We are a hemisphere of immigrants. For thousands of years—
before Europeans first set foot in what was called the “New World”—this hemisphere has
attracted people from around the globe. Over the last five centuries, European, Asian and
African immigrants have influenced the culture, politics and economies of North and South
America. A visit to Mexico City, Buenos Aires, New York, or Toronto makes clear that, more
than any other region of the world, this hemisphere has become a global melting pot.
ramiro fernandez collection
Our hemisphere stands out on the modern map of immigration at a time when,
according to the Global Commission on International Migration, some 3 percent of
the world’s population—about 200 million people—are on the move. The U.S. had
38. 4 million immigrants during 2005, according to in U.S. cities like New York and San Francisco have
the Commission, making it the prime destination in spread and prospered into thriving business centers.
the Western Hemisphere. Canada was second, with 6. 1 Another telling example is the migration of Europe-
million, followed by Argentina ( 1. 5 million), Venezuela an-born Jews to Argentina since the end of World War
( 1 million), Mexico (644,000), and Brazil (641,000). 1 II. Between 250,000 and 350,000 people who claim
The result has been the creat ion of vibrant , Jewish heritage now live in that country. The majority
diverse communities that do not fit within stereotyp- live in Buenos Aires, which is home to the largest Jew-
ical notions of ethnicity and national sovereignty. ish community in Latin America, the third largest in
Consider the astonishing growth of the Asian the Americas and the sixth largest in the world. Thanks
community in our hemisphere. More than 4. 5 mil- to a climate of tolerance, Buenos Aires’ Jewish commu-
lion Latin Americans nityhasprosperedtothe
(almost one percent of point that Rosh Hasha-
the total population of nah, Yom Kippur and
Latin America) are of by Sergio Muñoz Bata Passover are legal holi-
Asian descent. Accord- days in Argentina. That
ing to demographers, the tolerance has been test-
lack of adequate statis- ed over the years. Dur-
tics in many countries ing the 1990s, terrorist
suggests that the number could be millions higher, attacks (allegedly by the Iranian-backed Hezbollah) on
especially when those who have partial Asian ances- the Israeli Embassy in 1992 and the Jewish Communi-
try are included. The overwhelming majority are ty Center (AMIA) in 1994, killed 114 people and wound-
ethnic Chinese, Japanese and Korean. But there is a ed over 200. But the anger and support of their fellow
Vietnamese community in Cuba, a significant Taiwan- Argentines after those tragedies underlined the deep
ese population in El Salvador, a Hmong community sense of multiculturalism in Argentine society.
in Argentina, and other South Asian populations scat- The drive to find a better life or to escape persecu-
tered in Panama and Venezuela. With more than 1. 5 tion at home has indeed radically transformed this
million citizens of Japanese or mixed descent, Brazil hemisphere from an outpost of colonists and adventur-
boasts the largest ethnic Japanese population outside ers from Europe into a global marketplace. The impact
Japan. The influx began close to 1904, increased from of immigration can be measured in some surprising
1914 to 1923 and rose again from 1955 to 1959. ways. For example, the descendants of approximately
Meanwhile, in Canadian cities such as Vancouver 15,000 Confederate soldiers who fled the U. S. after the
and Toronto, Chinese is an unofficial third language Civil War live in Brazil. Welcomed by Emperor Dom
(after Canada’s two official languages, English and Pedro II, most settled in the state of São Paulo. As a
French), and formerly small enclaves of “Chinatowns” result, traces of antebellum Southern traditions—not
