For many immigrants; the move from Sicily to a New York tenement was accompanied by rapid; significant; and often surprisingly satisfactory changes in a wide variety of social relationships. Many of these changes can be traced to the influence of a changing housing environment.From Sicily to Elizabeth Street analyzes the relationship of environment to social behavior. It revises our understanding of the Italian-American family and challenges existing notions of the Italian immigrant experience by comparing everyday family and social life in the agrotowns of Sicily to life in a tenement neighborhood on New York's Lower East Side at the turn of the century.Moving historical understanding beyond such labels as "uprooted" and "huddled masses;" the book depicts the immigrant experience from the perspective of the immigrants themselves. It begins with a uniquely detailed description of the Sicilian backgrounds and moves on to recreate Elizabeth Street in lower Manhattan; a neighborhood inhabited by some 8;200 Italians.The author shows how the tightly knit conjugal family became less important in New York than in Sicily; while a wider association of kin groups became crucial to community life. Immigrants; who were mostly young people; began to rely more on their related peers for jobs and social activities and less on parents who remained behind.Interpreting their lives in America; immigrants abandoned some Sicilian ideals; while other customs; though Sicilian in origin; assumed new and distinctive forms as this first generation initiated the process of becoming Italian-American.
#1281009 in Books Pathfinder Press (NY) 1994-07-01Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 8.50 x 5.50 x 1.00l; .80 #File Name: 0873481321328 pages
Review
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful. Nothing but the cold hard truthBy Eugen LepouThose of us who live outside of North America may well be surprised to read of the momentous class battles which saw hundreds of thousands of working people give their support to Socialist ideasEugene V. Debs was one of the very best products of American Labor movement. He was one of the millions of workers engaged in mass struggles for the most basic of rights waged during the late 1800's and early 1900's.Two decades as a union fighter led Debs to adopt revolutionary socialist conclusions. He did so while in Chicago's Woodstock Jail; a few months before his 40th birthday.For the remaining thirty years of his life Debs devoted himself to convincing working people in the US that the road to their emancipation was through the overthrow of American capitalism.Through the selection of Debs speeches and writings put together in Eugene V. Debs Speaks you see where the class battles are at their hottest; there is Debs; writing; speaking and even using his election campaigns to aid the workers involved in struggle.Debs delivers the cold hard truth about American capitalism and it's institutions. Much in the same way as another working class leader who made his mark some 40 years later - Malcolm X.2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. An Objective and Honest Look at a Great Man!By Bob BerkowitzJean Tussey's well written biography of the legendary Eugene V. Debs is a must read. Conservatives will accuse this man of being "un-American"; but Tussey proves that Debs had more patriotism in one hand that Rush Limbaugh had in his entire body; yes the whole thing! Anyway; if you want to learn about a Socialist that cared for the people; a brilliant author and orator; a former Presidential Candidate that puts Bush and Gore to shame; and of course being thrown in jail after Amerika found out his views on WW1 were too hot to be heard in a "free and democratic" country.1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Debs; Like Malcolm; Shows Working Class PotentialBy David SalnerEugene Victor Debs was sentenced to ten years in prison for the anti-imperialist speech he gave in Canton; Ohio in 1918. It is a fire-breathing speech full of love for the oppressed and hatred of the imperialist oppressor. After you buy this book; read this speech first. It tells you about the U.S. rulers today-and their wars. The speeches in this well-rounded book (with a superb introduction by James P. Cannon); provide socialist answers to the big questions workers face today; as well as yesterday. His writings on the capitalist prison system are especially relevant. Debs; who spent four years behind bars himself; salutes the humanity of his fellow prisoners and points to the real criminal-"Capitalism is inherently a criminal system for it is based upon the robbery of the working class and cornerstoned in its slavery." Not much question about what he would think about U.S. wars and the anti-working class measures involved in Homeland Security. Like Malcolm X; Debs shows that the U.S. working class can indeed produce great leaders. If not available rom ; booksfrompathfinder will have it--click on "new and used" near the top of the page.
