ELLIS ISLAND SCENES PICTURED: Immigrants Just as They Arrive Are to Be Seen in Screen Version of the Stage Comedy “We Americans”
Government authorities have not always been keen to permit the film producers to reproduce the machinery of making Americans. Now, however, Government officials, when they are certain that a moving picture will contribute to Americanism or to an awakening on the part of the country at large to the problems presented by immigration, have made it possible for picture producers to photograph actual scenes.
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We asked him if he felt there would be any danger of the costumes of the immigrants having changed in these twenty years.
“Not a chance… They haven’t changed in two hundred years…. I would suggest that he wait for one of the immigrant ships from Italy before taking some scenes. They are the most colorful of all the immigrants who come here.”
It developed in the talk with Commissioner Day that not nearly so many immigrants are sent to Ellis Island at the present time as in the old days. This is due to the practice instituted by the United States Government of having prospective immigrants examined by immigration officials in foreign countries before taking passage.
This newspaper article details the use of film and images of immigrants making their way through Ellis Island in a film titled We Americans in an attempt to highlight the poor representation of immigrants and the countries they come from. The perception of Italian immigrants by Americans at the time, and the attempt to stir nationalism and racism, by making “Americanization” a goal for incoming immigrants. Quotes from Ellis Island officials can be seen that highlight the apparent racism and denigration toward the immigrants on the grounds of their clothes. It is also important to note that in the screenplay, there are scenes of actual immigrants arguing their cases for immigration to officials for the audience to see. The idea of Americanization was not only imposed on immigrants coming to the country, but it was also presented to the public in a form that celebrated its ability to seemingly civilize these immigrants.