Immigration In The 1920s Essay

592 Words3 Pages

In the 1920’s the United States become home to an influx of more than 15 million immigrants which coincided with a second Ku Klux Klan growth. The Ku Klux Klan had previously been formed in 1865 by six confederate veterans operating primarily in the southern regions, however began to decline after the enforcement acts of three bills were put in place in 1871 during the Reconstruction Era. Delivering suffrage rights and prohibiting attacks on African Americans from state officials or the Ku Klux Klan, these enforcement acts were successful in supressing Klan crimes. The 1920’s saw the Klan peak popularity with more than 4 million members notorious for using violence against various different social groups. Whilst the rising immigration rate …show more content…

Migrating from all over Germany, Italy, Poland and Russia, in 1910 three-fourths of New York City population alone were either immigrants or first generation Americans . The newly arrived 15 million immigrants were considered scapegoats to many Americans; they were to blame for all of the country’s problems. This made it extremely difficult for immigrants to adjust to life in the US. The rising immigration rate in the early 1900s is most commonly known for the migration of 3 million Jews fleeing both pogroms in Russia and economic hardship throughout Eastern Europe . Whilst the number of Jewish immigrants increased through to the 1920s, some Americans gained concern about the high numbers of Jews with different dress, customs and religious worship. The beginning of the violence against Jews most notably began in 1915 when a Jewish man convicted of murder was found kidnapped and lynched by a mob with strong connections to the Ku Klux Klan. Due to the extreme media coverage exploring the ideas of anti-Semitism, in November of 1915, a group led by William Joseph Simmons, burned a cross on top of Stone Mountain, establishing a revitalization of the Ku Klux Klan. Immigrants travelled directly to America for a variety of reasons for instance, equality and economic prosperity. With industries flourishing from the late