Excellent piece! I learned some history I most likely would not have acquired in school and so timely, too! PS, put a little $ something in the collection for the friend of a friend because we are all in this together. I hope he heals quickly and should have put this bit in prior to the donation!!!
Thank you for introducing me to Emma Lazarus' sonnet 1492. However, I'm a bit surprised by your interpretation of it.
To my mind, the first half
Thou two-faced year, Mother of Change and Fate,
Didst weep when Spain cast forth with flaming sword,
The children of the prophets of the Lord,
Prince, priest, and people, spurned by zealot hate.
Hounded from sea to sea, from state to state,
The West refused them, and the East abhorred.
No anchorage the known world could afford,
Close-locked was every port, barred every gate.
most naturally refers not to the first voyage across the Atlantic by Christopher Columbus but to the other major event in Spain in 1492, when Ferdinand and Isabella signed the Alhambra Declaration on March 31, giving Spanish Jews four months to leave the country.
The second half, in contrast, celebrates Columbus' "discovery' of the new world precisely because it seemed to offer a safe haven for all refugees from the "old world," such as the Jews who later found temporary refuge in the Dutch colonies and, later, as you describe, in New York:
Then smiling, thou unveil’dst, O two-faced year,
A virgin world where doors of sunset part,
Saying, “Ho, all who weary, enter here!
There falls each ancient barrier that the art
Of race or creed or rank devised, to rear
Grim bulwarked hatred between heart and heart!”
Columbus, according to Lazarus' poem, arrived at "A virgin world where doors of sunset part. The various indigenous peoples of the Caribbean and the Americas aren't mentioned at all.
You’re interpretation Stephan is perhaps more on point. The colonists that pillaged, stole and brought disease and death to this native land has always been my perspective!
Thank you for another remarkable history lesson! I am so thankful Canadian immigration laws of the past allowed ‘criminals’ to come to Canada. Years ago, my brother did some digging into our family’s past and found that our father’s ancestor had a choice to stay in a French prison or come to Canada. Our family is proud of our French heritage and happy to say, we are law abiding Canadian citizens!
Thanks, Cheri. When you stop and think about it it's a miracle that any of us exist at all, let alone in the place where we exist. So many things had to break just so to ensure that outcome. I'm glad your ancestor chose to leave that French prison.
The words we’ve heard and seen many times in our history, interestingly placed into your Sunday posts are of great interest Greg, although this land was likely a much better place prior to colonization.
I’ve never been able to get past the nonsensical and unassuming nature of what transpired to destroy what must have once truly been a paradise!
There were people here, too, plenty of people, and they didn't always live in harmony with one another. But I read a book -- someone on here recommended it, and of course I can't remember who or the title -- looking into how these societies functioned, and one thing they knew is that, if Europeans lived with the Native Americans, they always wanted to return, whereas Native Americans who lived with the Europeans couldn't wait to leave.
I know you taught literature but I think you would also make an outstanding history teacher. I think this essay is ;your best amongst the many excellent ones I've read. Both you and Professor Heather Cox Richardson tell gripping stories about historical events while engaging emotions and interest.
I knew very little about the material you covered but you took complex stories from different eras and wove a sweeping, articulate narrative that helps us understand forces at work today. Thank you.
I don't know if you read Dr. Cox Richardson's Letters From An American but this one about Grant on the day Lee surrendered is one of my favorites. While you're not a historian by profession your narrative skill matches hers. If you're not familiar with her work I thought you'd appreciate this letter.
I visited Lady Liberty and the UN in 2016, in December after Trump was elected. My Norwegian grandparents came through Ellis Island, got married in NYC on Valentine’s Day and later returned to Norway with their two ‘anchor babies’ - one of them my mother. They weren’t tired and poor but headhunted by Titan, the great steel magnate. A good education always opens doors. I immigrated in my twenties to Los Angeles, and arrived with two suitcases and $200 in my pocket. A month later I was hired by a foreign consulate general and the rest is history. #NeverStopLearning 🗽
I just wanted to see if she was still there 🤭 When taking the ferry over, I had the perfect shot of her all lined up while standing outside on the deck, until my iPhone zapped black, as it was so extremely cold and windy. The double security check points both getting on and off the ferry is intense but she’s definitely worth protecting. Liberte, Egalite, Fraternite 🗽
My immigrant refugee late wife told me, only weeks before her escape from Parkinson's, that the first thing she saw when she came to America at age 3 - looking out the porthole of the troop ship that brought them from the refugee camp in Germany - the Statue of Liberty, was 75 years later the most beautiful thing she ever saw in all her life.
Thanks for sharing that. I was thinking about that when I wrote this, how AWESOME that statue must have looked to people coming over, who had never been before.
Relatively speaking, my family doesn't have to go very far back to reach immigration status. My grandfather, Fortunato, came here from Italy in 1920, and it sounds as though he may not have been allowed entry if he'd been four years later. He met and married my grandmother in 1929 and had my mom in 1932, and I came along in 1958. Without my grandfather coming over from "the old country," neither my mom, nor myself, would exist. Several years ago, when there was money being raised for the refurbishment of Ellis Island, I bought a brick with his name engraved on it to be on a wall there. I've never seen it in person, but a friend of mine took pictures. It's our family's little piece of immigration history.
I often like to REMIND people who act as though the United States is THEIR country (you know the type) that unless they're Native American, somewhere in their family tree is immigration from some other place on the planet. We ARE a melting pot of peoples from all over the world, and that's the way it's always been. People have accused me of not defending my "race," if you can believe that; white nationalists in particular, are extremely offensive to me, and yes, there are times when I am embarrassed to be white knowing that people like THAT have the loudest voices, and others may assume (as is our wont) that they speak for me when I am white, too.
Trumplicans* would change Emma Lazarus' poem on the Statue of Liberty to something less than the brilliance that it is in a New York minute. If they allowed it at all, they'd want to make sure that the immigration was more from "white" countries than anywhere else, more Christians than anyone else, and of course, "tired, poor (especially), huddled masses" need not apply. I've said it before and I'll say it again, Trump turned the United States into a shithole country, not only because every single thing he says is projection, but that he gave permission for the white nationalists to show their true colors in public without apology.
Unfortunately, for it is exhausting, we have to continue to resist this in whatever way we can. Greg does it with essays like this brilliantly. The rest of us can do the same wherever we can. And of course, VOTE for Democrats whenever we can. The gods know that Democrats aren't the saviors of mankind, but they are the absolute best thing we have right now to try to start fixing the problem. I would also like, just for fun, to vote in a presidential election sometime in the rest of my life, that isn't an existential crisis. The yearning to breathe free continues.
* I will no longer use the word "Republican," because they have nothing to do with our Republic. They only care about themselves and Trump. They are seditionists, cowards, and disgusting to our Republic. They should be shunned at every opportunity. (Yes, my comment has a footnote! LOL)
1/ Fortunato is a fantastic name. Wow. What part of Italy?
2/ There has always been nativist sentiment, even in the earliest days. But the USA thrives on its immigrants, and always has. It is the source of the country's greatness (insofar as it can be called that). The idea of categorizing and subdividing is sort of silly, but I think it's human nature to do so.
3/ Trumplicans, ugh. They really dragged the country to the shitter, along with the boxes of classified documents.
Lucca, in Tuscany. Close to Pisa, and a day trip to Florence. I was there with Fortunato (Frank) in 1975, climbed the tower in Pisa while he waited at the bottom, saw everything I wanted to see from Rome north to Venice and Turin -- HAD to see the Shroud! 1975 was a "Holy Year," so all the Catholic stuff was OUT and on display. Flew there and back on Pan-Am! (How old THAT makes me feel sometimes.) Oddly, Lucca was only our "home base" because that's where all the relatives were and I didn't see much of anything there, except I learned that green Italian ice means MINT in Italy, not lime -- loved that! It was almost fifty years ago, and I remember it like it was last week.
I sometimes reflect on the irony of the MAGA movement’s twisted logic that has arrived at such anti-American sentiments by hijacking beautiful sounding words. As a progressive—someone who believes in acknowledging our society’s imperfections and working together to fix them—I’d love to Make America Great! (I’m not sure about the “again” part.) Let’s work toward actually living up to our lofty mottos! Liberty and justice for all! I love my country! It’s a work in progress! But next week, as the country celebrates Confiscation Day, as my wife and I call it, let’s not let those who would whitewash history deceive us! This country was not “discovered” by paragons of virtue nor founded on egalitarianism. Our history of immigration policies shows that the racism and antisemitism have always been there. Our hope lies in voting against fascists and for true representatives of the people.
Thank you again Greg. I learn so much from you. Never knew anything about Emma Lazarus except that she wrote the beloved poem on the Statue of Liberty. My mom and her family came through New York Harbor after WW 2 after they had lived in a refugee camp in Austria after the War. They had lived on a farm in Croatia and lost everything. The camp was divided up 4 ways- America, Russia, Australia or Germany . Her family was completely blessed and lucky and came to America. She was 16. She loved the US till the day she passed. We are all immigrants or from immigrants.
Found this jewel as I was clearing old emails. Don’t know how I missed it. Immigrants have added much more than they have taken from America. Except for the Drumpfs
"like a big, strapping dude about to tinkle into the harbor"🤣
That was my lol moment reading this well written, interesting essay. Bravo. How do you know so much, man?
Speedy recovery to your friend.
Thank you.
That's what it looks like, right?
Often, and certainly today, these pieces are me exploring and learning more myself.
I enjoyed reading it, too. Hey, has anyone ever told you that you write well?😅
Excellent piece! I learned some history I most likely would not have acquired in school and so timely, too! PS, put a little $ something in the collection for the friend of a friend because we are all in this together. I hope he heals quickly and should have put this bit in prior to the donation!!!
Thank you for that!
Thank you for introducing me to Emma Lazarus' sonnet 1492. However, I'm a bit surprised by your interpretation of it.
To my mind, the first half
Thou two-faced year, Mother of Change and Fate,
Didst weep when Spain cast forth with flaming sword,
The children of the prophets of the Lord,
Prince, priest, and people, spurned by zealot hate.
Hounded from sea to sea, from state to state,
The West refused them, and the East abhorred.
No anchorage the known world could afford,
Close-locked was every port, barred every gate.
most naturally refers not to the first voyage across the Atlantic by Christopher Columbus but to the other major event in Spain in 1492, when Ferdinand and Isabella signed the Alhambra Declaration on March 31, giving Spanish Jews four months to leave the country.
The second half, in contrast, celebrates Columbus' "discovery' of the new world precisely because it seemed to offer a safe haven for all refugees from the "old world," such as the Jews who later found temporary refuge in the Dutch colonies and, later, as you describe, in New York:
Then smiling, thou unveil’dst, O two-faced year,
A virgin world where doors of sunset part,
Saying, “Ho, all who weary, enter here!
There falls each ancient barrier that the art
Of race or creed or rank devised, to rear
Grim bulwarked hatred between heart and heart!”
Columbus, according to Lazarus' poem, arrived at "A virgin world where doors of sunset part. The various indigenous peoples of the Caribbean and the Americas aren't mentioned at all.
That is certainly a valid interpretation. And you’re probably right. Maybe I let my 2023 perspective get the better of me!
Thanks for subscribing.
You’re interpretation Stephan is perhaps more on point. The colonists that pillaged, stole and brought disease and death to this native land has always been my perspective!
Thank you for another remarkable history lesson! I am so thankful Canadian immigration laws of the past allowed ‘criminals’ to come to Canada. Years ago, my brother did some digging into our family’s past and found that our father’s ancestor had a choice to stay in a French prison or come to Canada. Our family is proud of our French heritage and happy to say, we are law abiding Canadian citizens!
Thanks, Cheri. When you stop and think about it it's a miracle that any of us exist at all, let alone in the place where we exist. So many things had to break just so to ensure that outcome. I'm glad your ancestor chose to leave that French prison.
Great writing, as usual and informative.
And I Loved the video! So good!
You're very impressive!
Thanks so much!
The words we’ve heard and seen many times in our history, interestingly placed into your Sunday posts are of great interest Greg, although this land was likely a much better place prior to colonization.
I’ve never been able to get past the nonsensical and unassuming nature of what transpired to destroy what must have once truly been a paradise!
Excellent 5-8 as always!!
Thanks, Patrick.
There were people here, too, plenty of people, and they didn't always live in harmony with one another. But I read a book -- someone on here recommended it, and of course I can't remember who or the title -- looking into how these societies functioned, and one thing they knew is that, if Europeans lived with the Native Americans, they always wanted to return, whereas Native Americans who lived with the Europeans couldn't wait to leave.
I know you taught literature but I think you would also make an outstanding history teacher. I think this essay is ;your best amongst the many excellent ones I've read. Both you and Professor Heather Cox Richardson tell gripping stories about historical events while engaging emotions and interest.
I knew very little about the material you covered but you took complex stories from different eras and wove a sweeping, articulate narrative that helps us understand forces at work today. Thank you.
Thanks, Kathleen. Oh, I'd love to teach history, even more than literature. Although it's all so intertwined.
I didn't know much about Emma Lazarus before yesterday, either. What a remarkable person!
I don't know if you read Dr. Cox Richardson's Letters From An American but this one about Grant on the day Lee surrendered is one of my favorites. While you're not a historian by profession your narrative skill matches hers. If you're not familiar with her work I thought you'd appreciate this letter.
https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/april-8-2023
I've been reading her for years. I love when she does the historical snapshot pieces.
I visited Lady Liberty and the UN in 2016, in December after Trump was elected. My Norwegian grandparents came through Ellis Island, got married in NYC on Valentine’s Day and later returned to Norway with their two ‘anchor babies’ - one of them my mother. They weren’t tired and poor but headhunted by Titan, the great steel magnate. A good education always opens doors. I immigrated in my twenties to Los Angeles, and arrived with two suitcases and $200 in my pocket. A month later I was hired by a foreign consulate general and the rest is history. #NeverStopLearning 🗽
Well, Kirsten, I am glad you came!
I grew up in New Jersey and lived for years in NYC, and I've actually never been to Liberty Island.
I just wanted to see if she was still there 🤭 When taking the ferry over, I had the perfect shot of her all lined up while standing outside on the deck, until my iPhone zapped black, as it was so extremely cold and windy. The double security check points both getting on and off the ferry is intense but she’s definitely worth protecting. Liberte, Egalite, Fraternite 🗽
I enjoyed this essay very much, Greg. And I learned a lot. Thanks!
Thank you!
My immigrant refugee late wife told me, only weeks before her escape from Parkinson's, that the first thing she saw when she came to America at age 3 - looking out the porthole of the troop ship that brought them from the refugee camp in Germany - the Statue of Liberty, was 75 years later the most beautiful thing she ever saw in all her life.
Thanks for sharing that. I was thinking about that when I wrote this, how AWESOME that statue must have looked to people coming over, who had never been before.
Relatively speaking, my family doesn't have to go very far back to reach immigration status. My grandfather, Fortunato, came here from Italy in 1920, and it sounds as though he may not have been allowed entry if he'd been four years later. He met and married my grandmother in 1929 and had my mom in 1932, and I came along in 1958. Without my grandfather coming over from "the old country," neither my mom, nor myself, would exist. Several years ago, when there was money being raised for the refurbishment of Ellis Island, I bought a brick with his name engraved on it to be on a wall there. I've never seen it in person, but a friend of mine took pictures. It's our family's little piece of immigration history.
I often like to REMIND people who act as though the United States is THEIR country (you know the type) that unless they're Native American, somewhere in their family tree is immigration from some other place on the planet. We ARE a melting pot of peoples from all over the world, and that's the way it's always been. People have accused me of not defending my "race," if you can believe that; white nationalists in particular, are extremely offensive to me, and yes, there are times when I am embarrassed to be white knowing that people like THAT have the loudest voices, and others may assume (as is our wont) that they speak for me when I am white, too.
Trumplicans* would change Emma Lazarus' poem on the Statue of Liberty to something less than the brilliance that it is in a New York minute. If they allowed it at all, they'd want to make sure that the immigration was more from "white" countries than anywhere else, more Christians than anyone else, and of course, "tired, poor (especially), huddled masses" need not apply. I've said it before and I'll say it again, Trump turned the United States into a shithole country, not only because every single thing he says is projection, but that he gave permission for the white nationalists to show their true colors in public without apology.
Unfortunately, for it is exhausting, we have to continue to resist this in whatever way we can. Greg does it with essays like this brilliantly. The rest of us can do the same wherever we can. And of course, VOTE for Democrats whenever we can. The gods know that Democrats aren't the saviors of mankind, but they are the absolute best thing we have right now to try to start fixing the problem. I would also like, just for fun, to vote in a presidential election sometime in the rest of my life, that isn't an existential crisis. The yearning to breathe free continues.
* I will no longer use the word "Republican," because they have nothing to do with our Republic. They only care about themselves and Trump. They are seditionists, cowards, and disgusting to our Republic. They should be shunned at every opportunity. (Yes, my comment has a footnote! LOL)
1/ Fortunato is a fantastic name. Wow. What part of Italy?
2/ There has always been nativist sentiment, even in the earliest days. But the USA thrives on its immigrants, and always has. It is the source of the country's greatness (insofar as it can be called that). The idea of categorizing and subdividing is sort of silly, but I think it's human nature to do so.
3/ Trumplicans, ugh. They really dragged the country to the shitter, along with the boxes of classified documents.
4/ Hurray for footnotes!
Lucca, in Tuscany. Close to Pisa, and a day trip to Florence. I was there with Fortunato (Frank) in 1975, climbed the tower in Pisa while he waited at the bottom, saw everything I wanted to see from Rome north to Venice and Turin -- HAD to see the Shroud! 1975 was a "Holy Year," so all the Catholic stuff was OUT and on display. Flew there and back on Pan-Am! (How old THAT makes me feel sometimes.) Oddly, Lucca was only our "home base" because that's where all the relatives were and I didn't see much of anything there, except I learned that green Italian ice means MINT in Italy, not lime -- loved that! It was almost fifty years ago, and I remember it like it was last week.
That sounds wonderful! I've never been to that part, only Rome and Ischia. Rome is SUCH a great city.
I sometimes reflect on the irony of the MAGA movement’s twisted logic that has arrived at such anti-American sentiments by hijacking beautiful sounding words. As a progressive—someone who believes in acknowledging our society’s imperfections and working together to fix them—I’d love to Make America Great! (I’m not sure about the “again” part.) Let’s work toward actually living up to our lofty mottos! Liberty and justice for all! I love my country! It’s a work in progress! But next week, as the country celebrates Confiscation Day, as my wife and I call it, let’s not let those who would whitewash history deceive us! This country was not “discovered” by paragons of virtue nor founded on egalitarianism. Our history of immigration policies shows that the racism and antisemitism have always been there. Our hope lies in voting against fascists and for true representatives of the people.
Amen to that. And I like "Confiscation Day." Perfect word for it.
Thank you again Greg. I learn so much from you. Never knew anything about Emma Lazarus except that she wrote the beloved poem on the Statue of Liberty. My mom and her family came through New York Harbor after WW 2 after they had lived in a refugee camp in Austria after the War. They had lived on a farm in Croatia and lost everything. The camp was divided up 4 ways- America, Russia, Australia or Germany . Her family was completely blessed and lucky and came to America. She was 16. She loved the US till the day she passed. We are all immigrants or from immigrants.
Thanks for sharing that, Helen. I'm glad they came and glad the country let them come.
This is a beautiful piece, Greg. Thank you.
Thanks, Sharon. I hope you are doing well!
Staying out of trouble.
Yes. I thought this one about Grant was exceptional.
Found this jewel as I was clearing old emails. Don’t know how I missed it. Immigrants have added much more than they have taken from America. Except for the Drumpfs