Ellis Island Trip - A look back provides perspective on modern-day immigrants

Late November is one of our family's most cherished times of the year.  We host our family's Thanksgiving Day feast and that means my sister and her family trek in from sunny, warm Florida to grace our table.  I not only enjoy this because my sister makes me laugh harder than most people, she also gives me a reason to explore some really incredible tourist sights in the amazing metropolis that is 40 minutes from our home, Manhattan!  My nephew is a native Floridian, so we often do the "Touristy stuff" when they are in town.  So this year, we decided to visit Ellis Island.  There was good reason for this trip...my nephew had to do a writing assignment related to what it was like to be an immigrant child in the late 1800's when Ellis Island was the first stop for almost all the immigrants coming from Europe and the middle East to the United States.  To tell the truth, in my forty-something years living on Long Island, I had never been to Ellis Island, so I was certainly game for this trip!
While waiting to board the ferry at the tip of Manhattan, we were herded into a giant mass of humanity.  My group was large and we were a chatty bunch, but every now and then when there was a lull in the conversation, I took note of the fact that we were one of the only groups speaking English.   There was a group of Chinese people to my left, a Russian couple was behind us and a friendly Jamaican family stood directly in front of us.  It certainly gave me an authentic feeling of excitement being one of the many diverse immigrants trying to make our way to Ellis Island.  The difference for us was that we knew we belonged here; the immigrants on their journey over 120 years ago had no idea what they were getting into -was it going to be the nirvana that they may had been promised or would they be outcasts in their new land or worse turned away and sent back to their homeland.
As we toured the facility, I was overwhelmed by the size and the amount of people who had passed through these halls not knowing what fate had in store for them.  The images of the people from that time made me wonder -  would I be able to be that brave if I had to leave my home and travel to a completely foreign land?  Would I be able to protect my children from the harsh realities of separation and discrimination?  And then I began to think about some of the modern day immigrants that I have come in contact with at work.
I realized that there are many people in our school community that have either made great sacrifices to be here or those that are here because living in their homeland was incredibly unsafe.  Parents have sent their only child here in order to provide them with a better education, not really knowing the people that would be hosting him or her.  In other situations, mothers and children have come here while the fathers remain in their native country in order to maintain their jobs and their incomes.  I have also heard of families fleeing unrest in their homelands, but they continue to carry with them the constant distrust and suspicion they had experienced prior to coming here.   I began to think about the daily trials and tribulations of these groups of people who have come to the U.S. in search of something better.  I realized that just because immigrants don't have to stop at Ellis Island anymore, they continue to experience the same fear and uncertainty that the immigrants of a century ago endured.
The language is just the first barrier to assimilating to a new world.  I was reminded of a situation I had to deal with a week or so ago, when two Asian girls were in tears due to some friendship difficulties and I was trying to help them see the other's perspective, but when it came right down to it, I could do nothing until they were able to communicate with each other in a manner to which they are accustomed.  That being said, it is also amazing to me how quickly the children learn a new language!  I have seen Kindergarten children come in with no English, and by second grade, they don't even have an accent from their native tongue!  For their parents, this transition is much harder because the window for the critical period for learning language has closed.  When I sit at parent teacher conferences, I try to put myself in the foreign-speaking parent's shoes and wonder what it must be like trying to piece together the comments made by the teacher about my child when I am only understanding every fifth word!   How incredibly frustrating - especially when you can read the worried expression on the teacher's face, but can't for the life of you understand what is being said!
Then fitting into a new community is another challenge for our current-day immigrants.  Again, the children seem to have an advantage because school provides them with an unavoidable opportunity to come in contact with other children.  They eat with them in the cafeteria and have the universal language of play during recess.  But what about the parent stuck at home, not sure of how to get around in this new place and who to trust when it comes to making friends?  I can only imagine it must be very lonely and intimidating to come to a PTA meeting when you have no one to sit with and don't understand much of what is being said.
So this year's Thanksgiving tourist trip to Ellis Island was supposed to be an historical  look back at the courage and determination of immigrants from the 1800's, however it provided me with the realization that today's immigrants face the same fears and hurdles that their ancestors experienced.   Being aware of their perpetual need to adapt and fit in, both in terms of their language and their culture, is something that we all need to be sensitive to.  Recognizing the sacrifices that they have endured in their immigration and honoring the time it takes to settle in is something we must respect.