Immigration

Nancy Foner is Distinguished Professor Emerita of Sociology at Hunter College and the Graduate Center, City University of New York.

"In this readable and wide-ranging book, Nancy Foner explores how our understandings of past immigration shape our interpretations of current immigration. She shows that myths about the past, and nostalgia for a past that never existed, contribute to current-day anti-immigrant attitudes. This hopeful and erudite book should be required reading for all Americans."Mary C. Waters, Harvard University"This book is a myth-buster that clears the way for a better understanding of how the history of immigration shapes the present moment, told in a refreshing, thoughtful, and concise way by a preeminent scholar of immigration."Mae Ngai, author of The Chinese Question"A comprehensive look into why the past is critical to understanding modern immigration."Vox"Immigration: How the Past Shapes the Present is a compassionate look at how the idealization of early European immigrants upholds an impossible standard for immigrants today."Ethnic and Racial Studies

• 1. Introduction: A New Perspective on Immigration, Past and Present 2. What Do We Remember? Myths, Memories, and Misperceptions of America's Immigrant Past3. Nativism, Hostility, and Nostalgia4. How the Immigrant Past Shapes the Immigrant Present5. Different Histories: U.S.-Europe Comparisons6. Conclusion: Past, Present, and Future