Great Immigrants, Great Americans

Every Fourth of July since 2006, Carnegie has sponsored the Great Immigrants, Great Americans public awareness initiative, honoring a total of more than 750 naturalized American citizens from almost 120 countries.

The initiative aims to increase public awareness of the economic and societal benefits of immigration. It is a tribute to the legacy of Andrew Carnegie, a Scottish immigrant who, like the Great Immigrant honorees, found success as an American and contributed enormously to his adopted country. During the past 20 years, the Carnegie database of Great Immigrants has grown into one of the largest online resources for examples of Great Immigrants who became Great Americans. Past honorees include Isabel Allende, Elizabeth Blackburn, Sergey Brin, Michael J. Fox, Min Jin Lee, Yo-Yo Ma, Rupert Murdoch, Martina Navratilova, and Pedro Pascal.

Naturalization and the legal integration of immigrants are part of the foundation’s overarching goal of reducing political polarization for a strong democracy. According to the American Immigration Council, a Carnegie grantee, there are 48 million immigrants in America, about half are naturalized U.S. citizens, and more than seven million are eligible to apply for citizenship. Among Fortune 500 companies, 230 were founded by immigrants or children of immigrants, and among business owners, one in four is an immigrant.

“The U.S. is a nation of immigrants, and our ongoing support of nonpartisan organizations that help establish legal pathways for citizenship continues to enrich the very fabric of American life,” said Dame Louise Richardson, president of Carnegie, who is a naturalized American citizen born in Ireland.

To celebrate the 20th class of the Great Immigrants, Great Americans initiative in 2025, Carnegie commissioned a free comic book featuring more than a dozen inspiring stories as told by naturalized U.S. citizens. Read their stories at carnegie.org/immigrantstories.