These are difficult issues to confront. We need to recognize not only the cycles of tolerance and restriction that have emerged during the past two hundred years, but how these directly shape immigration policies and public perception today.

In order to understand our own histories, it is important to detail the personal struggles, community responses and immigration legislation - both positive and negative- that have affected immigrant communities in Indiana. It is equally important to recognize the impact of global events on immigration patterns and our response through government policies.

By remembering the tremendous benefits to Indiana contributed by these newcomers- our ancestors, our neighbors, ourselves - to so much of our cultural, political and economic heritage, we map out the blueprint of our future.


Immigration history is much more than statistics, more than dates and details of legislation, even more than the individual memories of our neighbors and our ancestors. It is a story of hope and possibility, struggle and survival. Immigration history is our history - a complex, living heritage that continues to shape and define this place we call home.

 

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