2.7: Md-Semester 2 Reflection

1. I believe that the most important thing that I learned about immigration in the 19th Century was how hard it truly was to immigrate. With literacy and US History tests becoming requirements to enter onto US soil. The Naturalization laws were also very cut and try and did not make the transition any easier for the trying immigrants. The visa and green card rules and regulations were also very strict and enforceable by border patrol and the Government. Birthright citizenship was the topic that I wrote about and I was able to find out just how much it effected those trying to immigrate and some of the legal challenges that they must face.
2. Immigration today still makes it very difficult for an immigrant to be able to come onto American soil. With the recent Government shutdown, some have had their green card hearings passed over, which seems unfair to wait all that time and because of a fault that was not their own they must miss their green card hearing and begin waiting in the back of the line. The border wall controversy is also very relevant with the election of President Trump becoming an ever lingering issue at the footsteps of the Government. I learned that even with new and improved rules and regulations, immigration is still made very difficult and could certainly still look for improvements.
3. One of the aspects of living that was challenging in the 19th Century is overcrowding and overpopulating of rural areas such as New York and Chicago. In these two places in particular, tenement housing was used as a cheap and effective way of housing a large number of families. Because of the lack of regulations, there were many downfalls to having these such as occasional fires, no running water, little to no light, no ventilation, and just overall really poor living conditions. Also, another problem with urban settings was the presence of pollution, litter, and unclean streets. The sanitation in urban areas was little to none and had an effect on the face value of properties and did not look good when shown to the public. In order to combat this, there was a "city beautiful movement" started in NYC.
4. The Highline promotes a sense of progressivism because of all of the volunteers and people that it took in order to bring it to life. From the private investors to the gardeners that keep the plants pruned they all played a significant role in the development of the Highline. The individual initiative that Robert and Joshua had to use in order to take this unwanted and thrown away railroad into something that the community uses as a symbol for their city was a true feat. Many people played important role in the construction and design such as architects, photographers, designers, gardeners, CSX, private investors, and even the Highline team that are there to answer questions and interact with the Highline visitors.

Image of the Highline in New York