“How Jews Became White Folks”

“How Jews became white folks” is an informative article that talks about what allowed Jews to become a privileged group. Brodkin describes how the G.I bill allowed the Jews to get the education that they desperately needed to assimilate into the society. This bill also allowed them to have a place to stay and a job to work at. Brodkin tells about how because of their newfound assimilation, instead of being discriminated against, even they had begun discriminating towards the oppressed groups.
During this time, as described by Brodkin, three different groups of Europeans had immigrated to America. In this large immigration, there were three different groups of Europeans. The Nordics, the Jews and the Mediterranean’s. Of these three groups, one group assimilated easier than the other two. When the G.I bill was produced in 1944, Brodkin says, Jews took advantage. They were able to go to school and therefore become higher educated than the other groups and better educated than those of color. Though they had higher education, this was not the only reason for their slightly easier assimilation. Because most saw the “American” to be a white person with an English language, the Jews seemed to fit right in. This higher education allowed them to get better jobs and better homes to support families. They were still discriminated against in that they were a lot of times unable to hold higher cooperate jobs. To go along with all of this, the other groups such as African Americans were able to take no gain from this experience. The G.I bill was fit to help them, but somehow they were once again “screwed over” on the whole deal. The “red line’ came into play, which once again discriminated against blacks and even what neighborhood they were allowed to settle in. Those African Americans who were here first and had been trying their best to fit in were still looked down upon even by those who had just got here.
Why is it that though the African Americans were here first, they got looked right past? I believe, and many others would agree, that the only reason they were passed by the Jews was because of the color of their skin. The G.I bill had originally been fit to help even the blacks become educated, housed and employed. Our American government, I believe has always found ways to work around what’s on paper and make things just how they want them, which in this case I believe hurt the whole American society.
When I read this article I didn’t know about this G.I bill or anything that came along with it. I believe that those who work the hardest deserve what they get, and when all these African Americans got looked right passed just due to a tone of skin, I once again felt like I need to apologize. Our society has always been so messed up, I think its time we look past skin, and start seeing people.