In a recent episode, the discussion turned to U.S. immigration history in the early 20th century. The claim was made that America broadly “only accepted white people” during this era, framing acceptance largely along racial lines with skin color as the primary divider. While the episode touched on real policy restrictions and prejudices, this generalization feels overly simplistic and historically incomplete — a point driven home by personal family stories like that of German immigrants who faced real persecution despite their European background.
Early 20th-century U.S. immigration did favor certain European groups through quotas and cultural preferences, especially after the Immigration Act of 1924, which prioritized Northern and Western Europeans while restricting Southern and Eastern Europeans, Asians, and others.  However, painting this as straightforward “acceptance of white people” erases the ethnic, cultural, and wartime tensions that divided even European immigrant communities. “Whiteness” itself was not a monolithic shield; it was contested, with eugenics-influenced debates questioning the assimilability of various European subgroups.
A striking counterexample is the experience of German-Americans. By the time of World War I, Germans were one of the largest immigrant groups in the U.S. Yet, once America entered the war against Germany in 1917, anti-German hysteria exploded. German-Americans were suspected of disloyalty, leading to widespread discrimination:
• Cultural suppression: German-language newspapers closed or self-censored, German books were burned, and German classes were banned in many schools. In places like Iowa, speaking any language other than English in public was restricted. 
• Name changes and boycotts: Sauerkraut became “liberty cabbage,” streets and towns with German names were renamed, and businesses faced boycotts. 
• Violence and intimidation: Incidents included tarring and feathering, vandalism, and even the lynching of Robert Prager in Illinois. Families hid their heritage, stopped speaking German at home, and abandoned cultural practices to avoid demonization. 
This wasn’t abstract prejudice — it was a rapid shift that forced rapid assimilation and erased visible German cultural institutions. German-Americans had previously been relatively integrated compared to other groups, but wartime nationalism made their ethnicity a liability.
