Forced migration policy of britain and the united states in the first half of the twentieth century

Immigrants question has been on the agenda since the ancient times. Immigrants had to abandon their homelands because of social, economic and political factors. However; they faced internment and repatriation policies in the newly arrived countries due to nativism, discrimination, wartime hysteria and xenophobia. These policies mostly associated with the third world countries were also adopted by the Great Powers such as the United States and Britain in the modern times. This study will analyze and compare internment and repatriation policies implemented by the United States and Britain in the first half of the twentieth century. Internment and repatriation of Germans, Irish, Italians, Jews, Japanese, Boers and Philippines during the Anglo-Irish War, the First and Second World War, the Second Boer War and the Philippine-American War will be examined. Additionally, segregation and repatriation that Blacks and Mexicans were subjected in Britain and the US will be discussed. Internment and repatriation policies implemented by both countries and civilian experiences will be compared and contrasted. As internment and repatriation policies adopted by Britain and the US were imposed upon civilians as compulsion, they are included in the scope of forced migration. Wars of the first half of the twentieth century and segregation and racial discrimination that came to surface from time to time in both countries became key factors for taking decision of these policies. Laws enacted by both countries against minorities affected them even if they were citizens of these countries and pushed them out of the society. Both countries followed firm and harsh policies against immigrants. Apart from discriminatory policies adopted by the governments, unofficial racism via media, organizations and newspapers were used for the execution of these policies. Keywords: Britain, Internment, Repatriation, the United States