higher history - changing attitudes towards immigration in USA 1920s

when did the USA have an “open door” policy towards immigration

prior to the 1920s

what was the idea that the usa was a “melting pot”

the idea that people from differing races and nationalities were mixed to create a new shared american identity

what did the term WASP’s stand for

white, anglo - saxon, protestants

what was the ‘american dream’

the idea that anyone, regardless of their background could succeed in the USA

by the 1900s what % of new immigrants were from southern and eastern europe

70%

how many german-americans were lviing in the usa at the time of ww1

8 million

isolationism

the idea that a country would aim to remain neutral in foreign wars.

what was the name of the boat that was sunk by a german u-boat in 1915

the lusitania

how many people was killed during the sinking of the lusitania

128 americans

when did the USA declare war on Germany

the 2nd of April 1917

what were ‘hyphenated americans’

those with dual nationality

how many german born males over 14 were imprisoned during the war under spy allegations

more than 4000

how many german born males over the age of 14 were there in the usa

480,000

how was german culture suppressed during the war in the usa

german-american press was heavily censored and schools stopped teaching german as a foreign language

who was robert prager

a german born man who was lynched by a mob and accused of being a german spy

what was the zimmerman telegram

a telegram sent to mexico in 1917 that called for mexico to declare war on the usa - sent from the germans

how did american involvement in ww1 affect attitudes towards immigrants

it unleashed a wave of xenophobia and hostility towards immigrants

examples of characteristics that defined being “american”

speaking english, patriotism

what were the Espionage and Sedition Acts

laws that were used to punish people who criticised the war effort, imprisoned people

what did congress do in march 1920

they voted against american membership of the league of nations - renewing support of isolationism

when was the emergency quota act introduced

1921

what was the emergency quota act of 1921

it set yearly quotas based on the number of immigrants arriving in the usa, quotas set at 3% number of residents per country at the time of the 1910 census

what was the annual immigration cap under the emergency quota act of 1921

357000

which regions benefited most from the 1921 quota system

northern and western europe (WASP’s)

which regions were disadvantaged under the 1921 quota system

eastern and southern europe

when was the immigration act introduced

1924

what change did the immigration act of 1924 make to quotas?

reduced the quotas to 2% of the number of residents from each country at the time of the 1890 census.

which region of the world was banned from immigrating to the usa under the 1924 immigration act

asia

what changes were made to the quotas in 1929

quotas were adjusted to 1/6 of 1% of the 1920 census figures. limiting immigration figures to 150,000

when did the usa host the washington naval conference

1921

what was the washington naval conference of 1921

a chance for the worlds largest naval powers to discuss disarmament and ways to relieve the growing tensions in east asia

when was the kellogg briand pact introduced

1928

how many soliders were demobilised after the war

4 million

what was the unemployment rate in 1921

11.7%

was the cost of living increasing or decreasing after the war

increasing

example of cost of living situation comparing 1914 to 1919

for the average american family in 1919, cost of living was 100% higher

how many workers were employed in war related industries during the war

9 million

throughout 1919, how many strikes were there

3600

what role did some immigrants play during the strikes

they lowered the effectiveness of strikes and were known as ‘strike-breakers’ as employers would replace striking workers with immigrants who were happy to work in low paid environments

why did working class americans resent immigrant workers

immigrant workers were willing to work long, low paid hours in horrific conditions, therefore trapping workers in poverty and terrible living conditions

when was the bolshevik revolution

1917

what fear did the bolshevik revolution create

fear of revolution - communism takeover

communism

a political system where there is no private ownership of land, property or businesses

the two countries that signed a peace treaty in march 1918

russia and germany

what did americans use the peace treaty between russia and germany in march 1918 as evidence for

that the bolshevik revolution was german controlled

when was the red scare

1917-1920

by 1919 how many american workers had been involved in strikes over wage and working hours disputes

4 million

what did the american press label the striking workers as

“radical threats to american society”

where had race riots exploded in the usa 1920s

East St Louis and Chicago

how were immigrants from russia and eastern europe treated

treated with suspicion and distrust

when were the palmer raids

november 1919 and january 1920

what happened to palmer in june 1919

his house was bombed again causing damage, and the bomber, an italian anarchist was killed in the explosion

what was the 7th november 1919

the second anniversary of the russian revolution

what happened on the 7th november 1919

the federal bureau of investigation (fbi) and local authorities raided the headquarters of the union of russian workers in new york and arrested more than 200 people

following a second of the fbis raids, november 25th 1919, how many people were deported

249 alleged communist revolutionaries were deported back to russia

what happened on the 2nd of January 1920

raids in 33 different cities and over 4000 arrests

how many people were deported due to the january raids

556

what event didn’t occur that caused attitudes towards palmer to change

the may day revolution

who was assassinated in 1901

president mckinley

what did the 1903 immigration act include

banned anarchists along with beggars and prostitutes from entering the Usa and made it easier to deport anarchists.

what happened on the 16th Sept 1920

a bomb exploded in Wall Street, New York’s financial district, killing 40 people and seriously injuring a futher 143

who were Sacco and Vanzetti

Italian immigrants and believed to have been followers of the anarchist Luigi Galleani.

why were Sacco and Vanzetti arrested

suspicion of carrying out the murder of two men in Massachusetts

when were Sacco and Vanzetti executed

23rd august 1927

during the first world war, what form of xenophobia was common

anti german xenophobia

after the first world war, what group of immigrants was targeted

immigrants from southern and eastern europe

what did eugenics argue was associated with ethnicity

criminality and low intelligence

what were WASP americans believed to be

the “naturally superior” race

what was the name given to those who promoted 100% americanism

nativists

what four cities did the majority of immigrants settle in (NE america)

Chicago, Boston, Pittsburgh, New York

what were some names of immigrant enclaves in cities

Little Italy, Chinatown, Irishtown

what were new immigrants prepared to do (working conditions)

work for low wages, and thus only being able to afford to live in the cheapest housing in the worst areas of the cities.

how many people often living in one room in the worst areas of the city

10-12

what was the area that immigrants tended to live in called

ghettos

what were immigrants blamed for, associated with housing conditions

poor conditions that made the country less desirable to live in

who in reality was to blame for the poor housing conditions

landlords and city authorities

what were italian immigrants often associated with in the 1910s and 1920s

the Italian Mafia

what high profile gangster seemed to confirm the image that italian immigrants were associated with the mafia

Al Capone

what did the immigration act of 1917 introduce to try reduce criminality

mandatory literacy tests for all newcomers over the age of 16. these tests involved reading a passage of 30-40 words in any language.

what was more prominent in the predominantly immigrants areas of american cities

pubs, taverns, gambling houses and brothels

what were the majority of immigrant arrests for

drunkenness, vagrancy and petty theft

what pseudo science had long been acceptable as american political discussion

eugenics

what commission was established in 1907 to investigate the consequences of changing immigration patterns

the dillingham commission

2 reasons why anti immigrant views spread more rapidly in the 1920s

• the red scare

• economic challenges of 1921

when was the chinese exclusion act passed

1882

when was chinese immigration made illegal

1902

when was the immigration act that banned anarchists from entering the USA passed

1903

by 1914, how many immigrants had been denied entry to the usa on suspicion of being anarchists

15

when had immigration from southern and eastern europe to the usa almost completely stopped

1930

what did Historian D. King say about the 1924 Immigration Act

it formalised anti immigrant attitudes