Immigration around the world is in the news, on our TVs and social media, and in the discussions of world leaders and ordinary citizens. It is part of politics and daily life for most Americans and it is an IU East Campus topic theme for Fall semester 2017. What are the facts, the issues, and the opinions? The Campus Library has a resource for you to find out about Immigration. The purpose of the LibGuide is to provide reliable, factual, and editorial information about Immigration in the United States. Consider the last 600 years; unless you are Native American from the American Continents, you are of immigrant heritage. European settlers began a migration soon after Columbus landed on an island in the Caribbean in 1492. What is your heritage? You’re invited to attend a Heritage Quest workshop to discover your immigrant ancestry information.
In the guide, look at “The Big Picture” to gain understanding of the idea of immigration and the facts of immigration in the United States. An additional multidisciplinary search, EBSCO Discovery is linked there to search for articles from most of the library’s databases. The “Research Resources” provide informational sites and subject databases to search for specific facts, statistics, issues, and opinions. Use these to search for a more specific concept of immigration.
Also featured in the immigration guide is the IU East 2017 One Book The Girl in the Tangerine Scarf by Mohja Kahf. The novel provides insight into the life of an immigrant to the United States and the State of Indiana. The details of the story include a short reference to the Madonna of the Trail statue found in Richmond, Indiana’s Glen Miller Park. Mohja Kahf is a Syrian immigrant and lived in Indiana as a child. Visit the Campus Library to get your free copy and find out more in the One Book 2017 libguide.
The Immigration guide provides ideas for teaching about immigration through literature for youth, and also links to content featuring immigrant women and their contributions to America. In the “Immigration and Films” section there is a compilation of access points to relevant films in the IU East library collection and AVON, a database of films available to the IU East community. Over 1,100 films are found in AVON by using the term “Immigration” and these films have transcripts.
The idea of U.S. Immigration encompasses historic and current issues that define individual, political, community, state, and federal actions and opinions. There are humanitarian issues, financial issues, concerns of safety, and law surrounding immigration. Consider the details and critically think about your point of view on immigration. The information provided in the Immigration libguide can get you started and if you need more information, you are welcome to ask us! iueref@iue.edu
