“From Orchard Street to Bloomingdales: Transformations of American Jewish Life” with Shelly Tenenbaum
Mondays February 7, 14 and 28, 7-8:30pm
We will begin the course with a broad discussion of ways that American Jewry has transformed over the generations. We will then turn our attention to the history of Jewish immigration to the United States with an emphasis on the mass influx of East Europeans in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. In the final class, we will build on our sociological and historical foundation to explore economic transformations and social mobility. Although our focus will be on American Jews, participants will gain analytic tools to understand why some immigrant groups move up the economic ladder faster than others.