Whiteness of a Different Color: European Immigrants and the Alchemy of Race

Jacobson draws attention to various petitions for naturalization. Despite the courts sometimes offering a “liberal” ruling on these petitions, Jacobson argues that all the petitions themselves were conservative. Why?

The Irish were seen as a lesser white race in the 19th century though they became “white” and thus arguably gained status in becoming American citizens. Unlike the Germans, who also immigrated in great numbers in the mid-19th century, the Irish did not desire to assimilate, especially into Anglo-Saxon culture. Why?

The relation between whiteness and the category of Caucasian helps to establish the definition of whiteness with which 21st-century Americans are familiar. How?