Ingeniero

EUROPEAN & AFRICAN IMMIGRATION TO NORTH AMERICA It’s a fact that all living organisms possess an innate instinct that leads them to survive, to adapt, and to develop. Throughout history, peoplehave manifested their will to seek for something better for their lives; to improve their life conditions, even when this means giving up to their old ways or sacrificing certain rights. Into thiscontext, approximately during the 16th through 18th century, massive populations shifted their lands for those of the southern, central and/or north easternmost part of the American continent in a questthat was motivated by different reasons, but that had only objective; a better life. The first people to migrate to North America were Europeans. They came from countries such as Spain, England, orGermany. Now, why did this people abandoned their homelands? Well, reasons vary. For instance, Spaniards moved into the continent during the 15th century, due to the high probabilities of developingwealth, this was the case of several conquistadors such as De Soto or Pizarro and several peninsulares. The conversion of many Native Americans to Christianity, and the establishment of colonies in thename of the Spanish Kings were other determining pull factors. The motivations from British and German people were totally different and had a political and religious background. Taking a quick glanceto what happened during those days in Europe; we could say that the Catholic Church and its principal figure, the Pope, started to lose their widespread political and religious power due to events suchas the foundation of the Anglican Church, and the Protestant Reformation led by Martin Luther. Unwilling to leave minor churches from spreading, Spain financed an aggressive campaign against themthrough the Counter Reformation which led Protestants to look for a territory where they could practice their religion, which is why several of them migrated to America. In the upcoming centuries, more...