They arrived in North America as slaves of the first European settlers, and their history is largely one of hardship and injustice. Here is their story, including their emancipation in the 1860s, their leadership in the civil rights movement of a century later--but also their artists, intellectuals, musicians, educators, military heroes, athletes, and social leaders. There are brief, vivid sketches of important individuals, including Sojourner Truth, Ralph Ellison, Louis Armstrong, Martin Luther King, Jr., Colin Powell, and others. This important new series documents and dramatizes the immigration experience of untold numbers of men, women, and children who arrived in America from the four corners of the world. As they assimilated into American society, they enriched the nation's character and experience. Many of America's immigrants passed through the Ellis Island Immigration Center in New York Harbor during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. What were the initial hopes and fears of these new arrivals? Where did they first settle, and what kinds of work did they find? Which elements from their various cultures have since blended into the national scene and helped reshape what has become modern America? The first titles in this dramatic series bring alive the experiences of four important ethnic groups, with contemporary photos and first-person accounts of their dramatic, life-changing experiences. Readers glimpse each group's social customs, family life, traditional food and drink, festivals, and much more. There are also brief but vivid capsule biographies of famous individuals who rose to prominence from each ethnic group. Approximately 150 illustrations in eachbook.