New york, new york
The Lower East Side
New York held a special place for the Jewish immigrants at that time and that location was the Lower East Side. A large percentage of the Jews of New York resided there and at one time held the majority of the world’s Jewish population. A large population crammed in such a small area led to overcrowding and an unsafe number of occupants in a room to keep costs down. This small area however was richly Jewish and retained a flavor of Jewish culture. With synagogues along the streets and vendors selling kosher food in the shops the culture thrived and adapted itself into its own unique little location.
New York held a special place for the Jewish immigrants at that time and that location was the Lower East Side. A large percentage of the Jews of New York resided there and at one time held the majority of the world’s Jewish population. A large population crammed in such a small area led to overcrowding and an unsafe number of occupants in a room to keep costs down. This small area however was richly Jewish and retained a flavor of Jewish culture. With synagogues along the streets and vendors selling kosher food in the shops the culture thrived and adapted itself into its own unique little location.
Coming to America many Jews faced the issue of their personal identity. Assimilation in America was key to gaining success yet they were rooted to their Orthodox Jewish roots. In the end many Orthodox ways were neglected and the modern Jew was much less Jewish and more American than the previous generations. This was looked at by the Orthodox as blasphemy but still the rewards of shedding some old thoughts in favor of new American ones held many rewards for their economic well-being. Rabbis from the Old World advocated against migration to America for fear of the loss of the Orthodox so many did not migrate. As Rabbis did not migrate to America in large numbers with the rest of the population it was easier for the rest to shed their old beliefs. The picture below shows a poster advertising classes for learning english in order to properly assimilate and that is very significant in showing the changing views of the older generations who immigrated to America.