General Resources on Ethnic Groups

Pittsburgh Region

• DiverseCITY Pittsburgh Festival
  The Greater Pittsburgh DiverseCity Festival is a four day event in August that celebrates the Pittsburgh region’s ethnic and cultural diversity and embraces all.
• Global Pittsburgh
  Just as Pittsburgh opened its doors to early settlers and immigrants and encouraged them to flourish, globalpittsburgh.org would like to provide today's immigrants and international visitors with a forum to gather information, share experiences, and celebrate cultural diversity. They have information on current ethnic communities in Pittsburgh:
  • Our International Communities
• Kennywood Nationality Days
  Each summer Kennywood Amusement Park celebrates the heritage of Pittsburgh ethnic groups with special days for Byzantine, Carpatho-Russians, Croatians, Greeks, Hungarians, Irish, Italians, Jewish, Polish, Scottish, Serbians, Slovaks, and Slovenians.
• The Pennsylvania Ethnic Heritage Studies Center
  The PEHSC is a partnership between the Pennsylvania Department of Education and the University Center for International Studies (UCIS) at the University of Pittsburgh. Its goal is to foster acceptance and appreciation of the diverse ethnic populations of Pennsylvania.
• Pittsburgh Folk Festival
  Food and entertainment from 15 countries. Organized by Pittsburgh area ethnic associations. Occurs every year on Memorial Day weekend (end of May).
• Pittsburgh.net: A Guide to Pittsburgh by Ethnic Communities
  Contact information for ethnic clubs, restaurants, and organizations, with some web links.
• Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: Ethnic neighborhoods becoming thing of past
  An article from May 25, 2003 about the declining ethnicity of European neighborhoods in Pittsburgh.
• University of Pittsburgh Nationality Rooms
  Twenty-six classrooms on the ground floor of Pitt's 42 story Cathedral of Learning created by Pittsburgh's ethnic communities as monuments to their cultural heritage. In December they are decorated for the holidays.

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Pennsylvania

• Historical Society of Pennsylvania
  The Balch Institute for Ethnic Studies merged into the Historical Society of Pennsylvania and now you will find information on immigrant and ethnic history within their "education" section.
  • Pennsylvania Ethnic History
  • Pennsylvania's New Immigrants
• Pennsylvania Humanities Council
  The PHC offers a list of Commonwealth Speakers that are available to speak on various topics, including ethnic and immigrant history.
  • The African American Experience
  • The Immigrant Experience
  • Native Americans

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United States

• CARTS: Cultural Arts Resources for Teachers & Students
  A great site specializing in folk arts in the United States with interesting links.
• Center for the Study of Upper Midwestern Cultures
  This Center at the University of Wisconsin studies local culture
• Ellis Island American Family Immigration History Center
  If you have an ancestor who came to the US through Ellis Island, check here to find him/her.
• New America Media
  New America Media provides news about immigrants and ethnic groups.
• Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage
  promotes the understanding and continuity of contemporary grassroots cultures in the United States and abroad. In June and July each year, it holds a two week Folklife Festival on the Mall in Washington DC.
• Simon Wiesenthal Center: Museum of Tolerance Online
  Multimedia resources on the Jewish Holocaust from the Simon Wiesenthal Center in Los Angeles. Read about Chiune (Sempo) Sugihara, the Japanese consular official serving in Lithuania, who saved one of the largest number of Jews in the Holocaust.