Friday, October 9, 2015
Struggle and Success
In a recent publication (GreekAmericans: Struggle and Success, Transaction Pub., 2013) Professor Peter C. Moskos undertook the work of revising a cornerstone of Greek American studies written in 1980 by his father Charles C. Moskos. The first and second edition (1987) of the book charted the landscape of Greek immigrant experience, giving a snapshot of Greek-American life grounded on a narrative that evolved around the telling subtitle “Struggle and Success”. It is the story of generations of immigrants who maintain an attachment to Greek ethnic identity, even as they became one of America’s most successful ethnic groups.
This completely revised edition includes an introduction by Michael Dukakis and blends sociological insight with historical detail, expands themes such as the daily life of working-class early immigrants, their trials and tribulations, the Greek Orthodox Church, Greek American politics, success in the new country and the future of Greek-American identity.
Reviews: Kostis Karpozilos, Journal of Modern Greek Studies (May 2015), Gregory Jusdanis, Diaspora: A Journal of Transnational Studies (Fall 1991)
This completely revised edition includes an introduction by Michael Dukakis and blends sociological insight with historical detail, expands themes such as the daily life of working-class early immigrants, their trials and tribulations, the Greek Orthodox Church, Greek American politics, success in the new country and the future of Greek-American identity. Reviews: Kostis Karpozilos, Journal of Modern Greek Studies (May 2015), Gregory Jusdanis, Diaspora: A Journal of Transnational Studies (Fall 1991)
Journal of the Hellenic Diaspora (1987): The Greeks in America; Modern Greek Studies Association: The Greek American Studies Resource Portal
Greek - American Radicals: Untold Stories
From the time of the Great Depression to the demise of ethnic radicalism in the 50s, the documentary “Ταξισυνειδησία / Greek-American Radicals: the Untold Story” brings forth an alternative vision of Greek-American history that highlights the transformations and multiple interrelations between ethnicity, class and radicalism.
In an interview with the Journal of Modern Greek Studies (May 2015), Kostis Karpozilos, the historian behind the bilingual (64’) documentary, underlines that "Greek American communities are trapped in the narrative of “struggle and success” - which has shifted from labour and economic assimilation to an understanding of success in an entirely folkloric fashion… this narrative promotes a sense of Greek exceptionalism that does not correspond to the historical and contemporary interactions between Greek and other immigrant/ethnic groups and American society in general." Karpozilos also notes that in relation to the global economic crisis there is a renewed interest in debates relating to social questions, and it is within this context that dissenting voices and relevant documentaries come forth.
See also: Greek-American Radicals - Trailer; Other recent productions on Greek - American Radicalism: Palikari - Louis Tikas and the Ludlow Massacre (2014); Dan Georgakas - A Diaspora Rebel (2014)
