Journal Entry of a Subordinate Group Member: Irish Americans

The Great Irish Famine
In October of 1845, a serious affliction occurred that was brought upon the Irish potato crops. The major disaster ruined a significant amount of Ireland's crops. A vast majority of families, including mine, depended on potato crops as our main source of food and income. The entire country began to suffer due to lack of resources for food, money, and supplies. My family attempted to ration our food and crop supply to a minimum, but with nine hungry and needy members, it didn't last too long. Our neighbors and the rest of the country were all in the same position. People began to die of starvation and fell ill with an outbreak of typhus due to weakened immune systems. It wasn't long before less people attended church services, social events, and schooling sessions because they were too ill. The troubling months brought illness into our family, with the death of two Aunts, four cousins, a set of grandparents, and two of my younger siblings. There were six other members of my family, not including myself, left with the heartache and pain of losing loved ones. The Irish Famine stimulated a great desire for our family, along with thousands of others, to escape Ireland. It was nearly three years later that my family decided to take a chance and head for America.

The United States of America, the Free Land
The journey to America consisted of my father William, mother Marianne, brothers David and Isaac, sisters Lois and Rebecca, and me; Carmen River Abernethy. The trip from Ireland to America through the ferocious Atlantic Ocean was a terrible struggle. The maximum capacity of our ship was ignored and supplies were limited. Families did not have enough water or food to survive the trip. A high number of people began dying and their bodies being tossed into the water. I remember seeing my sister Rebecca's frail body being hoisted over the ship and into the crashing waves. The loss of another sibling sent me into a depression. I feared another family member would die, or perhaps this time it would be me. The pain was unbearable but I knew I had to be strong for the rest of my family. I was of course, the oldest child, and had to remain positive.
The days seemed to pass by so slowly, but we finally arrived at a port near Massachusetts. I remember the flow of people stepping off our ship. People were crying with sadness, joy, and all sorts of other emotions. We were lucky enough to have not been quarantined and quickly found shelter. I then realized my family was now immigrants of the United States, and a feeling of relief swept over me. I thought maybe life would improve and we would no longer suffer. Maybe we would never have to worry about money, food, supplies, and our health ever again.

Immigration
Our family was recognized as immigrants and the Irish Immigrant Society attempted to persuade us to move further west. It was an unreasonable and unrealistic decision for my parents to make at that moment in time. The combined money my parents had saved and brought along during the trip was very little. My family was poverty-stricken and lived close to the port where we originally arrived. There was no possible way we could manage to fund a move that far.
My father began working two stable jobs building railroads and coalmining. The working conditions were absolutely terrible. There were no safety precautions taken at work sites. I remember hearing multiple stories about men and young boys dying due to accidents that should have been prevented. His income was very little but it was enough to provide for the family. My mother helped to provide income by sewing clothes and accessories for local shops. She was paid little to nothing for her hard work, but it was necessary. I too found a job at a local stable, tending to horses and other farm animals. My entire earnings went to providing a roof over our head and food on the table. By the end of the day, my parents and I were absolutely exhausted. It was so hard to continue schooling while working so often, that I dropped out after a short period of time. A decision I came to regret years later.
Many other families were struggled to provide for their families as well. We were all in a similar position as to the one when we lived in Ireland. Some people felt the journey was pointless, but in all honesty, it was the greatest decision my parents ever made. The conditions may have been similar to Ireland's, but we no longer had to fight for food resources, and people weren't dying of horrible illnesses.

Discrimination
The United States labeled us as Irish Americans and we were discriminated against because of our culture and religion. It was known that a majority of American citizens were Protestant, and Irish Americans were Roman Catholic. The services we attended were detested. The parish schools financed and created by Irish immigrants was also looked negatively upon. The Irish immigrant children were segregated into these parish schools, rather than being amongst other American children. Irish people were also not allowed to apply for many jobs, as no employer wanted to hire us. My family supported the Democratic Party rather than Republicans, which also labeled us for moments of discrimination. We supported enslavement because our jobs would be threatened if African Americans received freedom.

Conclusion
My family and I encountered many hardships throughout living in Ireland and immigrating to America. The struggle with job opportunities, living arrangements, religious beliefs, discrimination, and injustice were very troubling. We kept the faith and stood strong against all other's who wished to bring the Irish immigrants down. I remember the unity among communities with Irish Americans. We were strong and gave each other support. The poverty stricken lifestyles we lived did not affect our personality traits and character. We know one day that acceptance among all immigrants with different races and nationalities would be accepted. We all just have to remain strong until that day occurs.

References
A Web of English History. (2005). The Irish Famine: 1845-9. The Peel Web. http://www.historyhome.co.uk/peel/ireland/famine.htm
Irish Immigration. (2002). Irish-Catholic Immigration to America. Immigration. http://memory.loc.gov/learn/features/immig/irish2.html
United States Census Bureau. (2000). Irish Americans. American Fact Finder. http://factfinder.census.org
Your Irish Roots. (2000). Irish History. http://www.youririshroots.com