The golden door

On a small island in New York harbor stands a giant statue of a robed woman. She looks out to sea, her right arm holding a torch high in the air. She is the Statue of Liberty, one of the best-known landmarks in the world.

For millions of immigrants the Statue of Liberty has been their first sight of America. The story of the American people is a story of immigrants. More than 75 per cent of all the people in history who have ever left their homelands to live in another country have moved to the United States.

Between 1840 and 1860 more immigrants than ever before arrived. Most came from Europe. Poor crops, hunger and political unrest caused an estimated five million Europeans a year to leave the lands of their birth at this time. More of them went to the United States than to any other country.

Among these immigrants were many Irish people, German people, Italians, Poles, Greeks, Russians, Jewish people and others. So many immigrants wanted to enter the United States in the late 1800s that the government found it difficult to keep check on them. To control the situation it opened a special place of entry in New York harbor. This place was called Ellis Island. All intending immigrants were examined there before they were allowed to enter the United States. Ellis Island was opened in 1892. During its busiest times it dealt with almost 2.000 immigrants a day. Between its opening and 1954, when it closed its doors, more than twenty million people waited anxiously in its halls and corridors. Immigration officers asked these people questions to find out if they were criminals or mentally abnormal. Doctor examined them for disease.

The flood of immigrants worried many Americans. They accused immigrants of taking jobs away from American-born workers, of lowing standards of health and education, and of threatening the country's traditions and way of life by bringing in «un-American” political ideas like anarchism and communism.

In the I920s Congress passed laws to limit all kinds of immigration.

Vocabulary

torch	факел
landmark	достопримечательность
political unrest	политические беспорядки
estimated	приблизительный
to keep check on	1) вести учёт (чего-л.) 2) следить за (чем-л.)
anxiously	тревожно, с волнением, с беспокойством
mentally abnormal	психически ненормальный
disease	болезнь
accuse of	обвинять

1. Guess the words:

worried and nervous;

a building or place that is easily recognized;

illness of people, animals, plants;

to say that someone has done something morally wrong, illegal or unkind;

disagreements or fighting between different groups of people;

a thick stick with material which burns tied to the top of it in order to give light;

mentally ill.

2. Fill in the gaps:

1. The Rock of Gibraltar is one of Europe's most famous ...

2. We have fear that the ... in this country could lead to civil war.

3. An ... cost of the flat is 200 000 $.

4. My mother always gets a bit ... if we don't arrive when we say we will.

5. The first symptom of the ... is a very high temperature.

6. He's been ... of robbery.

3. Make up 4 questions to the text.

4. True or false? Give an adequate response to each statement.

1. The Statue of Liberty is a giant statue of a robed woman which is situated in the centre of New York.

2. The story of the American people is a story of immigrants.

3. Between 1840 and 1860 an estimated five million people left the USA for Europe.

4. To control the situation the government opened Ellis Island where all intending immigrants were examined before they were allowed to enter the United States.

5. Immigration officers asked these people questions to find out if they were rich or poor.

6. All Americans treated newcomers fairly.

7. In the 1920 s Congress passed laws to forbid all kinds of immigration.

5. Translate into English.

Америка – страна иммигрантов. После открытия Америки десятки тысяч переселенцев из Англии, Франции, Германии, Нидерландов, Испании и Португалии поспешили в Новый Свет. Они спасались от политических преследований, беспорядков голода и нищеты.

Первый закон об иммиграции был принят в 1882 году. Он предусматривал установление контроля за “качеством” иммигрантов (страна нуждалась в трудолюбивых специалистах, а не бездельниках и преступниках), а также запрещал въезд душевнобольных людей. Этот закон также установил налог в 50 центов на каждого прибывающего иммигранта. Остров Эллис был самым крупным пунктом приема иммигрантов в США, действовавшим с 1892 по 1954 год. В самый разгар переселения через эти «воpoтa» проходило по 2000 человек в день. В среднем иммигрант проводил на острове от 3 до 5 часов, с волнением ожидая разрешения на въезд. Американцы обвиняли иммигрантов в том, что они забирали их рабочие места, снижали уровень образования и привозили с собой тяжёлые болезни.