Irish women in America
The migration of women to America was a difficult move on any level, whether it be following a man, coming with a family or migrating alone. The economic opportunities for women in America were limited. In the nineteenth century America witnessed the largest independent female migration to the United States in American history. Irish women migrated by the thousands seeking economic opportunity and stability. They found that stability in domestic services, a line of work that was not attractive to most other female immigrant groups. The fact that Irish women migrated independently and had little attachments holding them from entering the work force, enabled them to take jobs that other women with families could not. Irish women served as a model for the feminist movement in the years after their migration. Their self-sufficient nature inspired other strong women to take the next step in female independence. Ironically, Irish women had no intentions of challenging their gender! role in society. Their independent migration was strictly economic. A woman's migration to America was courageous on any level, whether it be following a man, coming with a family or migrating alon
Domestic servitude was the highest paying job open to women during this time. The Irish women took advantage of this occupation and all of its benefits. However it was not attractive to most other immigrant women. "Italian women never took jobs that threatened the traditional structure of family life, the prospect of living away from the protection and watchful eye of father and brother seemed anathema to them"(p.82) Jewish women also preferred either sweatshop work or garment factories, where all family members worked together. Even though factories paid significantly less than domestic work, other immigrant women "turned down better wages for higher social status."(p.83) e. America before the female liberation acts, was not a fair playing field for women in the workforce. Women worked terribly long hard hours in horrible conditions, to receive half the pay of men. Working women were harassed for working outside the home in order to support their families. They were not acknowledged as a respectable social class. In the family these women were expected to take on two jobs; one of raising the children and the other, working to help support their family. These women were never given credit for their strife in American society. However, Irish migration turned the tables for gender opportunities. "The structure of the American job market as it translated into opportunities for the unskilled and uneducated tended initially to favor the Irish immigrant woman over the man."(71) This was a totally new concept in the hi! Compared to other ethnic groups that migrated to the United States, Irish women were single handedly the most independent, aggressive and successful. In their decision to better themselves and migrate alone to America, in their aggressive economic success in domestic service, and in their decision to put off marriage, Irish women demonstrated what could be looked at as the fist steps towards female independence. "These characteristics might have made them excellent recruits
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Approximate Word count = 1355
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)
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