Search results for " Immigrant Press"

Early Representations of Organized Crime and Issues of Identity in the Italian American Press (1890 to 1910)

2016

Beginning from the early days of mass immigration (1890s), Italian immigrants were increasingly depicted in association with crime, especially organized crime, in the mainstream press. Fuelled by nativist views of immigrants as a threat to American safety, character, and morality, these first images of the newcomers became increasingly popular as the new century progressed, crystallizing in the minds of Americans and becoming the predominant representations of Italian immigrants. The response of the newly formed Italian communities can be found in the Italian-American press, which took upon itself the task of providing alternative images with which the burgeoning Italian community could ide…