Exploring Immigration: A Living History

UMD's new Center for the History of the New America looks at contemporary immigration in the the U.S.

UMD's new Center for the History of the New America looks at contemporary immigration in the the U.S.
By Leah Villanueava, Diamondback

In the eyes of history professor Ira Berlin, immigration is anything but a chapter in a dusty textbook — he's working to bring the issue to life at the university.
 Partnered with fellow history professor Julie Greene, Berlin launched the university's Center for the History of the New America last month. The center, he said, will bring together a worldwide community of students, experts and lawmakers to study the international history of immigration while acting as a focal point for outreach to local immigrant communities in the area.
 Berlin noted that while several other colleges and universities in the nation feature centers for the study of contemporary immigration, the focus on immigration's history has been largely overlooked in the world of academia. This university's program, the creators said, will bring this perspective to the forefront.