Publisher's Synopsis
Excerpt from Work of the Public Schools With the Division of Citizenship Training
The general feeling was that the immigrant having been permitted to come upon American soil, this privilege transcended all others that any other nation has extended or could extend to him. He was, therefore, allowed to drift, and any advancement which he achieved was viewed with feelings ranging all the way from jealous to patronizing indulgence, with but little deep sympathy. The forces of society were not overly sympathetic with the foreigner, his ambitions, his hopes, his difficulties, or his trials and embarrassments. He was a stranger in a strange land, among other strangers, all of whom spoke languages different from one another and yet all were speaking a language different from that of the people with whom they had cast their lot and toward whom they were irresistibly drawn by all the natural ties of fellowship. As late as the year 1914 there was no concerted action nor thought of concerted action on the part of the American public either to protect and elevate the standard of citizenry or to shoulder its responsibility to its foreign membership. This membership is as integral a part of the American Nation as the Constitution and laws made in harmony therewith. Statisticians report that two-thirds of those who comprise the American Nation are of foreign birth or with foreign parentage in one or both parents. This leaves but one-third of the Nation to lay claim to native birth with full American parentage. This clearly demonstrates the vital relationship of the foreign blood to the national entity. During the past five years a transformation has come over the public mind. In 1914 the public-school authorities were appealed to for the organization of the public-school system to undertake its share of this responsibility. Without exception officers of the public schools throughout the United States admitted the responsibility upon its presentation and committed the public schools to the national undertaking of spreading the doctrine of Americanism in concert with the desires of the Federal Government through this bureau. There are approximately 2,400 cities in the United States of 2,500 population or over. Many of these are located in the southern part of the United States and contain no appreciable alien population. Practically every community of 2,500 population or over has, however, taken the initial step toward reorganization of its school system to take up this national and local responsibility. There are only a small number of communities of 2,500 population or over where this necessity does not seem to exist, so far as foreign population is concerned. In all of the other places the school systems are pledged to this work and are in the various stages of perfecting their organization. In addition to this there are many communities with a lesser population than 2,500, which have undertaken this work. The school year in 1915 opened with 38 communities pledging their school systems, comprising hundreds of classes, to the spreading of the doctrine of Americanism; and the school year of 1919 closed with 2,240 communities, representing many thousands of classes. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com
