ABSTRACT
A careful analysis of the 1960 census revealed that second-generation Greek Americans possessed the highest educational levels of all, and were exceeded only by Jews in average income. In appraising the social status of second-generation Greek Americans one can consider native white Americans as the “norm.” The profile of a generally successful second generation of Greek Americans can only be appreciated in the context of where their forebears entered the social ladder. By the end of the 1940s, most Greek Americans were voting for the Democratic Party. During the Depression, the New Deal recovery measures of Franklin Delano Roosevelt appealed to the large majority of both working class and small businessmen alike. The Greek ethnic presence in American politics is not in its electoral strength, but in the visibility of second-generation Greek Americans in positions of high office.
