Why did the good people of the USA refuse to allow Jewish refugees into the USA during the 30's and 40's?????

Question

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Jews_in_the_United_States

Answer 1

We were smarter back then

Answer 2

FDR's Democrats held power back then and did not want a flood of any foreign people. You may recall, the US suffered from an economic depression. The US allowed a few Jewish people in. You cannot hold the United States responsible for the acts of the German National Socialist. Even though the National Socialist Hitler stated his objectives in Mien Kampf, to murder people due to their race, no one believed him; it seemed lunacy at the time. When Eisenhower found out about the Holocaust, he made sure every available news and historical service documented the facts of this socialist atrocity against humanity.

Answer 3

The truth of it is that for the most part, until the sinking of the Reuben James in late 1941, we weren't really having a huge ethical problem with Germany policies abroad.

The US political mainstream was not exactly as receptive and sensitive to Jewish input as it is today - by any stretch. Most all non-English and Irish immigrants were routinely refused entry.

You have to remember it was a VERY different time, Jews were by and large still subject to a variety of restrictive blue laws here in the US, antisemitism was more than a little rampant in many areas and we should not forget that several states throughout the southeast had instituted their own eugenics programs - chemically sterilizing "undesirables".

Racial segregation and discrimination were not only condoned but considered normal and part of the law in almost all states, there were (until the 1970's in many cases) laws prohibiting Blacks from many entitlements and rights enjoyed by whites were repealed.

So the different between NAZI policies and the policies of many US states, was one of degree and not kind.

Answer 4

The U.S. had it's own problems, The great depression, and the Presidents of the Time were Isolationist, and didn't involved in World War2 untill it was almost 2 Late,

Answer 5

And how does something that happened over 60 years ago have any bearing on the current situation? The people that made those decisions are long dead and gone now.

Answer 6

Sadly, it has to do with the fact that we were bigots then and we are bigots now. We just pretend we are not. The language being used in the current immigration debate (including many of those on this board) is further proof of that.

Answer 7

FDR was very anti-Semitic and the country was very anti-immigrant during the depression.

Answer 8

antisemitism

Ford used to give out pamphlets about how evil Jews were when you bought a car from them.

we felt really bad after we found out what the Nazis did. then we became allies and helped form Israel

Answer 9

There are no sources, because this is complete bunk.

Answer 10

norrow minds.