Honoring the Core Values and Authentic Past of the United States Today
In the heart of the United States' history, immigrants have played a crucial role in shaping the nation's identity, values, and growth. From the Revolutionary War to westward expansion, immigrants have been active participants as soldiers defending independence and as pioneers and settlers enabling territorial expansion.
During the Revolutionary War (1775β1783):
Many soldiers who fought for independence were immigrants from countries including Ireland, Germany, France, and Poland. Notable foreign-born figures contributing to the war effort were Marquis de Lafayette (French) and Baron von Steuben (German), who were key military leaders assisting the Continental Army. Immigrants composed a meaningful part of the nascent American society, with almost 10% of the First Congress being foreign-born, and over 30% of the population in the 1790 census tracing their ancestry to countries other than Britain. This diversity played a role in the patriotic and military efforts that led to independence.
Immigrants embodied hope, hard work, and a desire to contribute to society, traits important to the revolutionary cause and the creation of a new nation. Alexander Hamilton, an immigrant from the West Indies, was Washington's most famous right-hand man, a capable military officer, and a financial genius. Haym Salomon, a Polish-Jewish immigrant, helped finance the Revolution itself.
During Westward Expansion Post-Revolution:
Settlement west of the Appalachian Mountains grew notably during and after the Revolutionary Warβfrom a few thousand settlers before to about 25,000 during the war. Immigrants joined many settlers moving west, attracted by land opportunities as codified in policies like the Land Ordinance of 1784 and 1785 and the Northwest Ordinance of 1787, which structured governance and outlawed slavery in new territories to attract northern settlers.
Later, the Homestead Act of 1862 further catalyzed westward migration by granting land to settlers willing to develop it; this included new immigrants intending to naturalize, freed slaves, and women, thereby broadening the demographic composition of western settlers. Chinese workers built the Transcontinental Railroad, Irish laborers dug canals and laid bricks in burgeoning industrial cities, German farmers planted wheat fields in the Midwest, and Mexican vaqueros and cowboys shaped the economy and culture of the American West.
In summary, immigrants were active participants as soldiers defending independence and as pioneers and settlers enabling territorial expansion. Their contributions were foundational to both the successful outcome of the Revolutionary War and the demographic and economic growth that defined early American westward expansion.
Fast forward to the modern era, the U.S. labor force consists of 18.6% immigrants. In 2023, immigrants paid $89.8 billion in federal, state, and local taxes while holding $299 billion in spending power. Attacking immigrant workers is detrimental to the U.S. economy as it has always relied on immigrants to drive growth.
The United States has been shaped, built, defended, and enriched by immigrants, both documented and undocumented. The Fourth of July is a time for patriotic reflection and an opportunity for honest reckoning in the United States. The Immigration Act of 1924 was the first federal law limiting immigration from certain countries and requiring documentation of new arrivals to the U.S. In Nevada, the percentage of immigrants in the labor force is higher than the national average. More than 20% of the soldiers who fought under George Washington in the Revolutionary War were foreign-born. More than 100,000 people still living in the U.S. today were born prior to the passage of the Immigration Act of 1924.
[1] Source: The American Yawp (https://www.americanyawp.com/) [2] Source: The American Yawp (https://www.americanyawp.com/) [3] Source: National Park Service (https://www.nps.gov/articles/homestead-act-of-1862.htm) [4] Source: National Park Service (https://www.nps.gov/articles/homestead-act-of-1862.htm)
- Many immigrants contributed to the war effort during the Revolutionary War, with foreign-born figures like Marquis de Lafayette (French) and Baron von Steuben (German) serving as key military leaders assisting the Continental Army.
- Immigrants, including Alexander Hamilton from the West Indies and Haym Salomon from Poland, helped finance the Revolution itself.
- Westward expansion after the Revolutionary War saw immigrants joining settlers, drawn by land opportunities and guided by policies that structured governance and outlawed slavery in new territories.
- Chinese workers built the Transcontinental Railroad, Irish laborers developed industrial cities, German farmers cultivated Midwest fields, and Mexican vaqueros and cowboys established the culture of the American West.
- In the modern era, immigrants pay significant taxes and hold considerable spending power, contributing to the American economy.
- The Fourth of July serves as a reminder of the pivotal role immigrants have played in shaping the United States throughout its history, from its founding to the present day.
