Immigration in the 1920s USA

Why immigration?
1. To get away from war and poverty
2. Jews fleeing persecution
3. Many italians fleeing poverty- intended to make money and send it back home to their families
4. Most from: Great Britain, Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy
Attitudes to Immigration
1. America used to have an open-door policy
2. 1921 Emergency Quota Act- restricted immigration to 3% of all immigrants
3. 1924 Immigration Act reduced immigration to 2% and set a 150,000 limit/year
4. 1900-1920 -- 1.5 million immigrants emigrated from Europe to America
Challenges that immigrants faced
1. High levels of prejudice against eastern europeans and italians
2. Immigrants were often poor and un-skilled
  1. They lived in poor, high-crime areas
3. Some didn't bother to learn the language
4. Often brought bad influences and political ideas- ex: italian mafias and eastern europeans bringing communism
Sacco and Vanzetti case
1. April 1920- $15,000 stolen + 2 men killed in an armed robbery
  1. May 1920- Sacco and Vanzetti ( italian immigrants and anarchists) were found in the car the police thought was used for the crime and with 2 guns with matching bullets
    1. No clear evidence but case became more against their radical political ideas
      1. Prosecution used racism
        They were sentenced to death

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