Race, Labor, Immigration: A Conversation with Professor Katherine Benton-Cohen | Hollywood & History

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After a brief hiatus, we are back with the latest edition in the Hollywood and History series in our interview with professor of history at Georgetown University Katherine Benton-Cohen. A long-time member of the WHA and an Arizona native, Professor Benton-Cohen's interests include the history of the American West, the history of race and immigration and the history of women in the United States.

In this interview, she talks about her most recent book, "Inventing the Immigration Problem: The Dillingham Commission and Its Legacy" (Cambridge, MA, 2018), which examines the largest study of immigrants in American history, carried out from 1907 to 1911. She explains how this commission's findings revealed how Americans thought about immigrants, themselves, and the nation’s place in the world in the early twentieth century. And we look at how its recommendations marked a final turn away from an immigration policy motivated by executive-branch concerns over foreign policy and toward one dictated by domestic labor politics.

We also discuss some of her previous and ongoing projects, including her first book, "Borderline Americans: Racial Division and Labor War in the Arizona Borderlands" (Cambridge, MA, 2009), and a global history she is writing of the Phelps-Dodge family (of American University of Beirut fame).

Finally, our conversation concludes with Professor Benton-Cohen speaking about her fascinating role as a historical advisor for the critically acclaimed 2018 documentary feature film, "Bisbee ’17" (directed by Robert Greene), which won the American Historical Association’s John O’Connor Prize for Best Documentary Film. The film tells the little-known story of the mining town of Bisbee, Arizona, which in the summer of 1917 was rocked by the heavy-handed tactics of a private company and public law enforcement when they decided to physically expel immigrant laborers striking for better working conditions. We share some of our thoughts and concerns on how historical events are portrayed on film and the difficulties of striking the right balance between telling a good story and remaining faithful to the facts. It's all this and more on Hollywood and History.

Professor Benton's most recent book on the Dillingham Commission may be purchased from Amazon (https://www.amazon.com/dp/0674976444/ref=rdr_ext_tmb) and wherever books are sold.

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