What does the fear of “race suicide” articulated by Theodore Roosevelt say about motherhood and women’s roles? Whose motherhood was privileged?

Assignment instructions:

Answer the below question regarding the discussion topic.

Topic: From 1880 to 1930, some 27 million immigrants poured into the United States, many of them Catholic or Jewish immigrants from Southern and Eastern Europe. Immigrants of all backgrounds had traits considered by many to be “un-American”.

Immigrant women in particular faced prejudice and paternalism/maternalism for the family dynamics brought from the “Old World.” Theodore Roosevelt, president of the United States from 1901 to 1909, articulated many of the nativist fears of era, which centered around gender and motherhood.

Question:

What does the fear of “race suicide” articulated by Theodore Roosevelt say about motherhood and women’s roles? Whose motherhood was privileged?

Last Completed Projects