From the National Humanities Center website:

"One of the most familiar truisms about the United States is that we are a 'nation of immigrants.' Indeed, immigration and immigrants inform nearly every narrative of progress and possibility that Americans have told about themselves for more than a century, from individual stories of rags to riches to generational accounts of upward mobility and becoming American. And yet, immigration today remains one of the most controversial political topics, generating intense conflicts over who or what is an American and who should have the rights and responsibilities of citizenship. In this seminar, we examine and compare two waves of immigration to the United States: the 'new' immigration between 1890 and 1920, composed mainly of immigrants from southern and eastern Europe and Japan; and contemporary immigration, post 1964, involving undocumented and legal migration from Southeast Asia, Mexico, Central America, and Africa. By exploring changes and continuities in immigration to the United States, we seek to historicize contemporary controversies and fears."

Asian-American studies scholar Greg Robinson will speak about Mine Okubo: Following Her Own Road, a new book about the pioneering Nisei artist, co-edited with Elena Tajima Creef. Okubo's landmark Citizen 13660 (1946) is the first and perhaps best-known autobiography of the wartime confinement experience. The book is richly illustrated with Okubo's artwork and contains essays that illuminate the importance of her contributions to American arts and letters.

At this workshop, teachers may test curriculum produced by Densho, an award-winning leader in the field of oral history, while they gain expertise in working with oral histories in the classroom. The workshop will present innovative lessons that include primary sources drawn from Densho's Digital Archive of interviews, photos, and documents. The workshop will introduce new social studies units for elementary, middle, and high school that are aligned with Washington State Classroom Based Assessments (CBAs).

This event will provide an examination of two Facing History resources that explore the critical role that race has played in U.S. history as it relates to immigration policy: Race and Membership in American History: The Eugenics Movement and Becoming American: The Chinese Experience.

Bill Moyers's documentary, Becoming American: The Chinese Experience, explores the challenges faced by Chinese Americans from the 1800s to the present and raises questions about the tensions between race, democracy, and citizenship. Participants view excerpts and explore parallels between the Chinese experience and those of other newcomers to the U.S.—what it means to "become American" today.

This workshop will "treat the Lower East Side, a neighborhood known for its immigrant history, as a primary source. Walking tours, lectures, and photography will bring teachers and a diverse group of scholars together to learn about how various ethnic, religious and immigrant groups adapted their religion and culture to America. The workshop aims to provide teachers with the tools and inspiration to bring the Lower East Side back to their classrooms." Specific topics will include "Eldridge Street Synagogue and Religious Adaptation," "Chinatown and the Development of a Port Culture on the Bowery/Chatham Square," "The African Burial Ground and African American Communities," "Irish and Italian Immigration and Foodways," and "The Interaction Between East European Jews and the German Christians on the Lower East Side."

This workshop "will provide the larger historical and cultural context for understanding the Pearl Harbor attacks by illuminating one of most important (if at times antagonistic) bilateral relationships in the 20th century— that between the United States and Japan—and the impact of that relationship on both nations’ international affairs. Importantly, it will explore the multiple histories that converge at Pearl Harbor—including not only American and Japanese but also Hawaiian and diverse American experiences, especially those of Americans of Japanese ancestry—reminding us that despite the mythic status of the Pearl Harbor story in American culture, there are in fact a number of “Pearl Harbors,” with different impacts and memories for diverse Americans and for people throughout the world." Visits to historical sites; meetings with Pearl Harbor survivors and Japanese-American who spent time in the U.S. internment camps; discussions; pedagogical sessions; and curriculum development will be included.

This workshop "will provide the larger historical and cultural context for understanding the Pearl Harbor attacks by illuminating one of most important (if at times antagonistic) bilateral relationships in the 20th century— that between the United States and Japan—and the impact of that relationship on both nations’ international affairs. Importantly, it will explore the multiple histories that converge at Pearl Harbor—including not only American and Japanese but also Hawaiian and diverse American experiences, especially those of Americans of Japanese ancestry—reminding us that despite the mythic status of the Pearl Harbor story in American culture, there are in fact a number of “Pearl Harbors,” with different impacts and memories for diverse Americans and for people throughout the world." Visits to historical sites; meetings with Pearl Harbor survivors and Japanese-American who spent time in the U.S. internment camps; discussions; pedagogical sessions; and curriculum development will be included.