![]() To address this, the War Department offered a variety of English-language classes to immigrants in wartime training camps. Upon entering the armed forces, many immigrant service members could not speak English and knew very little about the U.S. now served overseas to protect that freedom. ![]() This choice symbolized how the same immigrants who sought freedom in the U.S. Some military units became known for their many immigrant members, such as the 77th Infantry Division which was nicknamed the “Melting Pot Division” because the majority of its members came from New York City.Īccording to the 77th Division’s 1919-published history of its wartime service, the division’s “recruits represented all races and all creeds-men who had only recently been subjected to the pogroms of Russia, gunmen and gangsters, a type peculiar to New York City, Italians, Chinamen, the Jews and the Irish, a heterogeneous mass, truly representative…of New York City.” The 77th Division’s insignia even featured the image of the Statue of Liberty. and demonstrate their patriotism for their new country. Many immigrants also volunteered to serve in the military, often to prove their loyalty to the U.S. Almost one in five draftees was born overseas. during World War I.įoreign-born soldiers composed over 18 percent of the U.S. These sentiments impacted the immigrants who took up arms for the U.S. Some Americans welcomed the new immigrants, while others called for increased restrictions on immigration. The nation entered the war during a period of peak immigration between 19, almost 14.5 million immigrants arrived in the U.S. As the American military mobilized to enter World War I in 1917, its ranks filled with a diverse cross-section of American society, including immigrants from around the world.
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