Italian American Internment - Before United States Entry Into World War II

Before United States Entry Into World War II

In September 1939, Britain and France declared war against Nazi Germany after the Germans invaded Poland. In a show of support for Britain and France, President Franklin D. Roosevelt authorized the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, J. Edgar Hoover, to compile a Custodial Detention Index of those to be arrested in case of national emergency. The Axis powers allied with Germany included Fascist Italy and the Japanese Empire. More than a year before the attack on Pearl Harbor, the Department of Justice began to list possible saboteurs and enemy agents among the German, Japanese, and Italian populations.

In 1940, resident aliens were required to register under the Smith Act.

Read more about this topic:  Italian American Internment

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