Ch.1.3
The Diversity of Americans
A Nation of Immigrants
 On U.S. Currency, you will find the
words “E Pluribus Unum”
 Latin for “Out of Many, One”
 A reminder of how diverse Americans
actually are.
A Nation of Immigrants
 All of today’s 320 million + Americans
are descended from immigrants
 Even Native Americans who scholars
have said crossed the land bridge
connecting Asia to North America
A Nation of Immigrants
 The first Europeans settled permanently
to North America from Spain and
Portugal during the 1500’s (Gold, God,
& Glory)
 Settlements ranged from Florida,
California, and the Southwest U.S.
A Nation of Immigrants
 During the 1600’s the world belonged to
France and England.
 French settlers inhabited Canada and
the regions of the U.S. around the
Mississippi River
 The English settled the East Coast, what
we consider the 13 colonies
A Nation of Immigrants
 After our country gained independence,
the number of immigrants grew from
600,000 to more than 2 million people
from the 1830’s to the 1850’s.
 Most coming from countries such as
Ireland, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden
A Nation of Immigrants
 Between 1890 and 1924 saw another
boom in population to the U.S.
 22 million immigrants came to the shores
of America from Central European
countries such as Italy, Greece, Poland,
and Russia. Why?
A Nation of Immigrants
 Over the past 50 years we have seen a
shift of immigration from European
countries to Latin American countries.
 Asian countries account for the second
largest share of incoming foreigners
A Nation of Immigrants
 We can not forget about the people who were
brought over to the new world against their will,
Western and Central Africans
 Middle passage—between 1619 and 1808
500,000 enslaved people were brought over
here via the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade
 Conditions were horrible, many more died
during the trip
A Diverse Population
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Americans are ethnically diverse.
White European 64%
Hispanic
16%
African American 12%
Asian American 5%
American Indian/Alaska Native >1%
A Diverse Population
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Religious diversity thrives in the U.S.
Christianity
79%
- Catholics 25%
- Baptists
17%
No Religion 15%
Jewish
2%
Muslim
>1%
Transforming America
 Between 1830 and 1930, the nations
population boomed from 12 million
people to 120 million people
 Immigration helped but the overall
increase of child bearing due to
agricultural living is a reason as well.
A Growing and Changing
Population
 In the mid-1800s people began moving
from the fields to the factory jobs that
were springing up in the cities. Blue
Collar Workers
 What we have seen in the more recent
decades has been a shift from the
factories to the office setting. White
Collar Workers
A Growing and Changing
Population
 We have seen the U.S. go from a
agricultural based society to a
Manufacturing economy to what we see
today—a service based economy
 Service jobs: law, medicine, retail,
computers, teaching, advertising, etc.
A Growing and Changing
Population
 Our population is changing due to migration—
mass movement of people.
 After the Civil War and the end of slavery, we
saw a massive population shift of African
Americans leaving the rural areas and following
jobs to the factories in the cities. Many people
started working in factories up North.
 Today the jobs are moving from the “rust belt”
and returning to the South “sun belt” and to the
West. Thus the amount of people in these
areas of the country are increasing.
A Growing and Changing
Population
 The average age of Americans is increasing as
well; Medical technology is making are
population older; living longer
 Education levels in this country are increasing
to meet the changing economy; more
marketable in the workforce
 Fastest growing ethnic group: Hispanics
Unity Among Americans

We as Americans share a common
civic and political heritage

All our common values can be found
within the founding documents of this
country
Declaration of Independence 1776
The U.S. Constitution 1787
The Bill of Rights 1791
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Unity Among Americans
 We as Americans can all find unity under
a common language—English
 It is the primary source of
communication for education,
government, and business
 However, it is not our official language.
It does however strengthen our nation.
Unity Among Americans
 After September 11, 2001, we as
Americans rallied together after the
tragic terrorist attacks.
 Patriotism—love for one’s country
American Institutions
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Where do we develop our ideas of
relationships and values; roles of
citizens and how society functions?
Family
Religion
Education
Government
Social