The Statue of Liberty may have promised welcome, but for millions of immigrants, arrival meant a fight to survive. This episode drops listeners into the bustling streets of New York, Chicago, and Boston — cities bursting with newcomers from Ireland, Italy, China, and Eastern Europe. We'll explore overcrowded tenements, ethnic neighborhoods, and the rise of political machines that offered help — for a price. As cities grew skyward and streetcars reshaped daily life, urban America became a mix of opportunity and hardship, diversity and division. It's the story of how the nation's melting pot started to simmer — and sometimes boil over.
