From a DoD EEO website>> WHITE AMERICAN EXPERIENCE
The following information is included:
1.Definition of the White American as defined by DoD Dir 1350.2.
2.Description of White American origins and the different groups in Colonial America.
3.Definition of the different types of immigration and the impact on individuals.
4.Explanation of European-American common experience and displacement.
5.Definition of Redemptioners.
Part I. Definitions
Definition. According to DoD Directive 1350.2 a White American (not of Hispanic origin) is a person having origins in any of the
original peoples of Europe, North Africa, or Middle East.
In 1850, it was relatively simple to describe a White American. In all probability he or she was of Anglo-Saxon background and
Protestant. However, after the Civil War, immigrants began coming from Southern and Central Europe. They were not Protestant,
not Anglo-Saxon, and had different languages and cultures from those who preceded them. Although each of these groups has
greatly assimilated into American life, each still maintains some of American life, each still maintains some of its uniqueness and
has contributed much to White-American society as we know it today. Therefore, it is next to impossible to describe a White
American in the 1990s. However, it is possible to highlight some of the experiences and contributions of major White ethnic groups
who immigrated to this country. The list is by no means inclusive and is changing rapidly every day.
In 1980, approximately 200 million White Americans could trace some of their ancestry back to the following groups (in descending
size order): English, German, Irish, French, Italian, Scottish, Polish, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Russian, Czechoslovakian,
Hungarian, Welsh, Danish, and Portuguese.
The White-American experience from its colonial beginnings is fairly short. It covers a period of approximately 400 years, a period
that can be spanned by the overlapping lifetimes of a half-dozen individuals. Yet the roots of the White-American experience go deep
into the human past. These roots are traced mostly to the Old World, but not the New.
Individuals who make-up the original White-American people came to American from three areas of the world. They were:
a.North Africa related to the Berbers. A Caucasian people, the Berbers are related in physical type to the Mediterranean
subgroup of southern Europe. They form the base population of Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, and Libya. Today they are mostly
Muslims and much of their culture is “Arabized.”
b.Northwestern Europe. Belgium, Denmark, England, France, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, Northern Ireland, Norway,
Scotland, Sweden, Switzerland, and Wales.
c.Southeastern Europe. Austria, Czechoslovakia, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Rumania, Spain, USSR, and
Yugoslavia.
d.Anglo-Saxon and White Anglo-Saxon Protestant (WASP). An Anglo-Saxon and White Anglo-Saxon Protestant (WASP) is a
person of Caucasoid, northern European, largely Protestant stock whose members are held by some to constitute the most
privileged and influential group in U.S. society. In the New World, they were usually the landlord and their culture and values,
with rare exception, were those that defined the culture. Their culture and values were normally based on:
Handwork.
Perseverance.
Self-Reliance.
Puritanism.
Missionary spirit.
Abstract rule of law.
The White colonists prior to the Revolutionary War, though immigrants by one definition, did not consider themselves immigrants.
Rather, approximate 78% of the English population conceived themselves as Founders, Settlers, and Planters. As the formative
population of those colonial societies, theirs were the policy, the language, the pattern of work, settlement, and many of the mental
habits to which the post-Revolutionary War “immigrants” would have to adjust.
During WWI, millions of people living in the U.S. were seemingly more interested in their former homeland then their newly adopted
country. The public labeled such people “hyphenated” Americans, German-Americans, Polish-Americans, and Irish-Americans. The
Irish and the Jews from Russia, because of previous mistreatment, became bitterly hostile to English and Russia and very
pro-German.
Part II. Immigrants
Immigrant. An immigrant is defined as one who settles permanently in a foreign country or region. In colonial American, those who
arrived in American following the Revolutionary War were considered immigrants.
In 1607, the first permanent English settlement in America was established in Jamestown, Virginia. The Pilgrims arrived at
Plymouth, Massachusetts, in 1620. In 1629, the Puritans came to Massachusetts Bay. Puritan settlers to the New England area
differed from the inhabitants of other colonies. Nearly all other colonies were settled by me without education, driven by poverty or
misconduct out of their homeland. Puritan settlers were British families with respectable social positions. They were educated and
financially secure. They came to American so they could live according to their own principles and worship God in freedom.
The unique background of these early Puritan settlers established a foundation for the cultural norms and beliefs of today’s New
Englanders. “Blue Laws” prohibiting the conduct of many types of activities on the Sabbath were introduced in New Haven Colony in
1638. They were printed on blue paper. The 1790 census indicated that 78 percent of the 2.75 million Americans were of British
background. In July 1831, Dr. S.F. Smith took the music of the British national anthem and changed the words to create “America.”
The British had taken the tune from the Germans.
Canadian-Americans. The history of Canada is closely tied to that of the United States. The “Cajun” residents of Louisiana trace
their roots back to French Catholic settlements in the provinces of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. Run out by the English in 1775,
they settled in Louisiana in places like Lafayette and New Orleans. With them they brought a unique French influence to the region.
Over 4 million Canadians have immigrated to the United States since 1820. The peak for Canadian immigration to the United States
was in the 1920s when 920,000 Canadians crossed the border looking for a new way of life. In the 1960’s this number decreased to
413,000 and in the last decade, 100,000. Canada is made up of persons primarily of British (45%) or French (29%) descent. Since
Canada is bilingual country, most Canadian immigrants, regardless of French background, assimilate easily into Americans
communities.
French-Americans. The influence upon American life is disproportionately greater than their actual numbers in the United States.
French explores (e.g., Cartier, Champlain, Marquette, Joliet, LaSalle) were the first to discover areas in the heartland of America
(e.g., the Mississippi River and all lands drained by it); the Great Lakes; the St. Lawrence River; Lake Champlain; Chicago, and
Detroit. In 1562, the first group of French Protestants (Huguenots) came to America because of religious persecution and settled in
South Carolina. The French fought alongside the colonists in the American Revolution; Rochambeau and Lafayette were great
military minds.
Dutch-Americans. In 1609, Henry Hudson set out to find a Northeast Passage to the East Indies and landed in which is now New
York. The first Dutch settlement in American was in Fort Nassau, near Albany, New York. In 1621, the Dutch West Indies
Company was formed. It promoted trade and settlement in America. The first group of permanent Dutch settlers came to America
seeking religious freedom in America. The Patroonship System was established in 1629. Land plus ownership rights were given to
anyone settling 50 people on their land within four years. To qualify as a patroon, a person had to be a major stockholder in the
Dutch West Indies Company since its founding. Although six patroonships were registered, only one was successfully settled.
In 1640, in a renewed effort to bring more settlers to New Netherland, the Dutch West Indies Company developed a charter
encouraging persons of limited economic means to settle there. As an early Governor of New Netherland, Peter Stuyvesant changed
it from a trading post to a permanent settlement, which permitted a large degree of religious freedom. In 1663, a Dutch Mennonite
named Pieter Cornelis Plockhoy established the first socialist community in North America. In 1668, the Dutch Quakers established
the first declaration against slavery in the United States. In 1758, they expelled from their membership anyone who bought or sold
slaves. The attitudes and behaviors of early settlers to this area (much of what is present-day New York) greatly influenced the
current culture and characteristics that are distinctive to this part of America. Unrest in the Netherlands increased immigration
between 1829 and 1865. Immigrants settled in Wisconsin, Michigan, Iowa, New Jersey, Indiana, and South Dakota.
German-Americans. The first German immigrants to this country founded Germantown, Pennsylvania, in 1683. By 1766, one-third
of Pennsylvania was inhabited by Germans. Most were poor farmers who settled along the frontier from Georgia to the New England
colonies. The Pennsylvania Dutch were industrious and excellent farmers. They developed the Kentucky rifle and Conestoga
wagon. Although many religious sects existed in Pennsylvania, there was a strong belief in religious tolerance and separation of
church and state. John Peter Zenger established the concept of “Freedom of the Press. Von Steuben introduced a concept of
military discipline during the Revolutionary War, which was instituted throughout the Army. During the first half of the 19th century,
German immigration exceeded all other. Germans settled all over the country, especially in Rochester and Buffalo, New York;
Cincinnati and Cleveland, Ohio, St. Louis, Missouri; and Milwaukee, Wisconsin. German artisans and craft persons established
businesses and help industrial expansion. German guilds marked the beginning of trade unions in this country.
Irish-Americans. The first Irish person to come to America was William Ayers, who was one of Columbus crew. Francis Maguire
was one of the original inhabitants of Jamestown in 1607. John Dunlap, an Irish-American in Philadelphia. printed the Declaration of
Independence. During and after the potato blight in Ireland (1846-48), immigration to the United States increased.
Italian-Americans. Italians were among the earliest explorers of the country -- Christopher Columbus; Amerigo Vespecci (America
was named after him); Verrazano missionaries Marcos de Niza and Eusebio Chino. Philip Mazzei, in 1773, established a plantation
next to Thomas Jefferson’s in Virginia, where he introduced grapes and olives to America. He also aided the colonists during the
Revolution. Italian immigration increased after the failing of a great political uprising in Italy in 1848. The peak of Italian immigration
was reached during 1900-1920. the majority of Italians coming were poor and settled in New England, the Great Lakes Region,
Florida, and California. Most who could not get work in their specialties concentrated in the heavily urbanized states along the
Northeast Seaboard.
Polish-Americans. Several Poles accompanied the British when they landed in Jamestown, Virginia, in 1608. They were experts
and instructors in the manufacture of glass, pitch, tar, and other products England imported from Poland. They did so well that other
Poles were invited to come. However, they were not allowed privileges equal to those of the English. As a result of this inequity, the
Poles organized the first American popular assembly and labor walkout in 1619 in Jamestown. Many Polish helped in the fight for
American independence. Thaddeus Kosciuszko and Count Casimir Pulaski (father of American cavalry) organized some decisive
victories. When Kosciuszko left America, he left his will in the custody of Thomas Jefferson. He designated that the proceeds from
his estate be used to purchase Black slaves and give them freedom in his name.
Prior to 1865, Poles who came to this country were political exiles. Those who came after 1865 were poor peasants. They settled in
Chicago, Buffalo, Detroit, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, and Milwaukee. Even though they came from rural backgrounds, they became
involved in industry, working in the local and iron fields. Dr. Marie Elizabeth Zakrzewska, a medical pioneer, was active in women’s
suffrage and the abolition of slavery. She founded the New founded the New England Hospital for Women and Children. Caroline
Still, one of the earliest Black women doctors, did her internship at the hospital. It was also one of the few White nursing schools to
admit Blacks. Twelve percent of Americans who lost their lives in World War I were of Polish background, even though at no time
did the number of Poles in this country exceed four percent of the total population.
Middle-Eastern-Americans. Middle-Eastern-Americans are estimated to number 2.5 to 3.0 million in the United States. This
ethnic group is not closely tracked in the U.S. census and the trail of their immigration to the United States is sketchy. Many
Syrians and Lebanese who immigrated to the United States in the last century came under Turkish passports. Approximately 70
percent of Middle-eastern-Americans are Christian and 30 percent are Islamic. Although the number of Islamic-Americans is on the
rise, the majority of the Middle-Eastern population in the U.S. is made up of Maronite and Melkite Christians of Lebanese descent.
The first Lebanese immigrant to the United States on record was Anthony Bishallany in 1854. The first Arabic newspaper in the
United States was founded in 1892 as Kawab Amerika (The Star of America).
In 1919, there were 400,000 recorded Middle-Eastern-Americans living in the United States. Most were of Syrian and Lebanese
descent and most lived in New York City. New York still has the largest Middle-eastern population in the country. Immigration
quotas imposed in 1921 and 1924 reduced the allowable number of Middle-Eastern immigrants to less than 1,000. These restrictions
were later repealed, but the flow of these immigrants into the United States has still remained at a trickle.
Iranians, generally considered Persian and not Arabic, made up the largest group of immigrants from the Middle Eastern States or
Islamic countries in 1989 with a with a total of 21,000 immigrants.
Part III. Colonial America
Foundation. English/England. Most colonists prior to the 1600s came directly from England. They were the first to successfully
colonize in the New World. Englishmen had no desire to lose their Englishness, rather:
a.Build a better England.
b.One that would be free of the imperfections of their native land.
c.One that would give them greater opportunities for personal happiness.
Puritans and Pilgrims. The Puritans sought out the American wilderness so they could establish a truly colony free of European
decadence. They thought of themselves as “a city upon a hill with the eyes of all people upon them.” They demanded strict
conformity from all inhabitants. They earned the reputation for heartless discipline and the “Puritan tradition” in American life came to
mean the censoring the behavior of others. (Holds more impact then any other immigrant group today).
Both Pilgrims and Puritans considered themselves good Christians. Their ideology emphasized:
a.Protestant faith.
b.Diligent application to work.
c.Individual accomplishment.
d.Anglo-Saxon legal heritage.
e.Written compact.
f.English language.
All of these aspects of their culture were firmly implanted on American soil as they laid the foundation for American society.
Influences. There key factors influenced the way of life of every new arrival to America:
a.Learning from those already here.
b.The environment they found.
c.Traditions they brought with them.
Divergence from the homeland. There were three main reasons for divergence from the culture of the colonies and that of the
homeland:
a.English society not transplanted as whole.
b.New World -- unfamiliar environment.
c.Countries other than England.
When the British took over New Netherlands (New York) in 1664, they offered citizenship to a population that spoke 18 different
languages.
These English settlers had the most difficult physical environment to master, but the easiest social adjustment to make. They
mastered rugged land that was hard, but built a society that was in their own image and never knew the hostility of old toward new
succeeding groups.
Cotton Mather was the first person, on record in 1684, to use the term “American.” Not long after, this term (American) was
considered sufficiently distinctive, from Europe, to have national traits (most of which were fostered by frontier life). Colonists were
thought to be:
a.More adaptable.
b.More independent.
c.More inventive.
d.More devoted to democratic principles.
e.More dedicated to the rule of law than the rule of a king.
Puritanism. In colonial America, Puritanism remained an important element. It would affect the outlook of most Americans for
many generations, not as theological doctrines or religious practices, but in the form of attitudes that were real, though hard to
define. These attitudes were:
a.Sense of duty.
b.Hard work and success as its own reward.
c.Mission to make the world a better place.
Puritans were able to influence Americans because:
a.They moved away from New England.
b.They trained the majority of ministers.
Non-English groups. There were groups of colonial immigrants who came to be considered Native-born. They included:
Scotch-Irish. These 250,000 constituted the largest non-English Protestants.
Protestants who left their homes for religious and economic reasons.
Factors for emigration were English mercantile laws, successive rent increases, termination of farm leases, poor
harvests, curtailed supplies of flax to linen for manufactures, increased food costs, and restrictions precluding
Presbyterians from holding political office. However, not until 1717 when the 4th successive year of drought ruined
crops were serious preparations begun for the migration to the New World.
Most of the Scotch-Irish were indentured servants. Once their service ended, they usually moved to the frontier. The
Scotch-Irish were forever on the move.
Wherever they want, the church and the schoolhouse followed. Devoutly religious with an intense desire for learning,
they stressed the importance of an educated ministry and dissemination of knowledge.
Virginia prohibited the sale of more than 20 Scotch-Irish on any one river.
In 1729, a Pennsylvanian said: “The common fear is that if they (the Scotch-Irish), thus continue to come they will
make themselves proprietors of province.”
German. These 200,000 were the second most significant European minority.
Wherever Germans went, they prospered. Their concern for their property was proverbial, and it was often said that a
German took better care of their cows than their children. One historian has written that they “produced in their
children not only the habits of labor, but a love of it.” They fed their stock well, exercised frugality in diet and dress,
and were known for their thrift, industry, punctuality, and sense of justice.
Colonial Germans had little desire to blend with rest of the population. They kept to themselves, continued speaking
German, attended their own churches, and rarely took the opportunity to become citizens of the British Empire. They
maintained their own culture and feared that the use of English and contact with other groups would completely
Anglicize their children.
Because of their aloofness, they antagonized the dominant English group in the colonies, especially in Pennsylvania,
who viewed them as dangerous elements in the community. Benjamin Franklin demanded in the 18th century “Why
should the Palatine Boors be suffered to swarm into Language and Manners, to the exclusion of ours?” “Why should
Pennsylvania, founded by the English become a colony of Aliens, who will shortly be so numerous as to Germanize us
instead of our Anglifying them?”
Non-Protestant groups. 98% of colonial America belonged to one Protestant sect or another. Only 1.4% embraced Roman
Catholicism, and only 0.12% embraced Judaism.
In 1775, there were 6 Jewish congregations, 56 Catholic, 65 Methodist, 120 Dutch Reformed, 150 Lutheran, 159 German
Reformed, 310 Quaker, 494 Baptist, 495 Anglican, 588 Presbyterian, and 668 Congregation churches in America.
To protect Catholics in case of eventual discrimination, Lord Baltimore urged passage of the Toleration Act in 1664. It granted
freedom of religion to all who believed in the divinity of Jesus Christ. Five years later, however, under the domination of
Protestant legislature, the act was repealed and Catholic were denied the protection of the law. The repeal signified how the
colonist, and in later centuries other Protestants, regarded, the Roman Catholic faith.
The English, in particular, were anti-Catholic, because English’s rivals, France and Spain, were catholic countries. The
colonist feared that the Pope would order all Catholics to fight the spread of democracy.
Anti-Catholicism in colonial time manifest primarily in the area of civil and religious rights. Only in Rhode Island could a colonist
Catholic enjoy full civil and religious rights according to chapter, decrees, and laws of the land.
In Pennsylvania, where there were a number of Catholic churches. Catholics were permitted freedom of worship and enjoyed
voting rights, but despite Quaker support they were excluded from public.
According to Maryland laws passed after 1691, Catholics not only were deprived of political rights, but were also forbidden to
hold religious services except in private houses.
In other colonies, including Maryland, Catholics were second class citizens, repressed, banished, and categorically scorned
and even excluded.
Belgium had been allowed to settle in Jamestown only the condition that not more than 300 could enter that they conform to
the Church of England.
The dilemma. As a result of the different groups, there was an intertwining of diversity and homogeneity.
Part IV. European-American common experience/displacement
Early Americans, with the absence of a truly rooted national tradition, were united in a commitment to the future. They also shared
the same common experience of displacement.
European colonist began to refer to themselves as “White” after about 1608.
Early Americans also shared many common traits. The most notable of the traits, which now characterize Native Americans, were:
a.Idealism.
b.Flexibility.
c.Adaptability to change.
d.High respect for personal achievement.
e.Dependency on self and immediate fame versus wider community.
f.Tendency to conform to the values of peers and neighbors versus stubbornly clinging to traditions or ancestral ways.
Immigrant experiences. There were various reasons for immigration to America. Four of the primary reasons were:
a.Religious persecution. the search for freedom of worship has brought people to America from the days of the Pilgrims to
modern times.
b.Political oppression. America has always been a refuge from tyranny.
c.Economic hardships/factors. This third factor has been more complex than the religious/political factors. This has been the
MOST compelling factor for the majority of the immigrants.
d.American letters. The most powerful selling point for America came from the letters that Europeans wrote to their
compatriots describing the wonders of America, or “the land of Canaan.” In the Scandinavian countries, in particular, letters
were passed carefully, from family to family, published in the local newspapers, and discussed avidly from the pulpits on
Sundays.
The voyage. The voyage to the New World presented travelers with unanticipated hardships:
a.Initially had to save money for passage.
b.Saying goodbye to friends and family whom they could expect to never see again.
c.No guarantees ships would sail as agreed and extra days meant added expenses.
d.Weeks/months dismally on ships that were overcrowded and disease-ridden.
America’s conscience and servitude. In early America, many poor people were unable to get to the colonies on their own. To
facilitate the trip, many individuals promised to serve as indentured servants in exchange for the cost of the voyage. Others assured
payments would be made by friends or relatives after arrival. If payment was not made, they also were indentured for a period to time
as payment of the costs of the trip.
Indentured servitude. This was the most common means of getting to the colonies. While indentured servitude was outlawed in
1820, as early as 1636, the system had become so commonplace that one could easily obtain a printed from with blank spaces for
the servant’s and master’s names.
a.The contract stated that the servant was to work for a set term, usually four years, during which time they would receive room,
board, and clothing in addition to passage to America.
b.At the end of the term the individual was awarded “freedom dues,” in the combination of money, tools, clothes, and/or land.
c.Skilled workmen sometimes added a clause exempting them from field work. Children’s indentures, which were usually
bound until the age of 21, specified that they be taught a trade or given an elementary education.
d.Many German indentures often entered into servitude on the condition that they be taught to read the Bible in English.
e.Servants were then assembled on deck so planters could interview them and/or feel their muscles. Then they were auctioned
to the highest bidder.
f.“Soul driver.” Those individuals who would buy in mass and then walk the servants from town to town, reselling them.
g.Masters could sell or auction them off, hire them out, whip, beat, brand them, or separate them from spouse/children, and
punish runaways by extending or multiplying their term of servitude. For runaways, some colonies had penalty of hanging.
h.In the early years, masters often drove their servants so hard that the backbreaking regime combined with crude living
conditions caused over 50% of the servants to die.
i.Women indentured servants in some colonies had to serve an extra year if they became pregnant. Once their time of service
was over, women did not receive land, as did men, and only rarely were given money. <<
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