Reflection 3

Thinking about WWII as Ernie's War and a unifying period in American history, I found Professor Hass's comment in discussion to be a novel perspective. She said that her grandparents of Italian and Irish descent were married and it was considered a "mixed" marriage and their children were considered "mixed".  I have rarely considered the racial hierarchy/tension between Italian immigrants and Irish immigrants mostly because this would never be seen as a problem today. However, in studying the culture before and during the war, I believe this story holds great value in understanding the war as a unifying force. WWII was in a sense an americanization process, bringing ethnicities together on the common ground of patriotism. Also, with a strong understanding of an enemy, it was fertile soil for American breeding. 

I also consider the perspective of the immigrants- much like discussion question 2 from Ernie's War. Although I recognize that there was (probably) some tension between loyalty given to ancestral countries and America, there may have also been a strong desire to assimilate to American culture. This is a different view that we usually discuss. We often talk about America's desire to assimilate 'newcomers' but I would assume that families immigrating to America would also have a desire to assimilate to their new country. Maybe this is something that most people have already considered already, but I found it an interesting, new point of view brought on by Professor Hass's contribution to our discussion yesterday.