Book #107 of 2020:
The Guarded Gate: Bigotry, Eugenics, and the Law That Kept Two Generations of Jews, Italians, and Other European Immigrants Out of America by Daniel Okrent
A clear and powerful account of the American eugenics and anti-immigration movements of the early twentieth century, and how the two were inextricably linked. Author Daniel Okrent provides a detailed overview of the widespread extent of these ideologies, as well as a step-by-step understanding of how reasonable citizens of the era fell in with the associated pseudoscience. It’s an uncomfortable read due to all the historical bigotry, much of it quoted verbatim in the bluntest of terms, and I’m sure modern readers who don’t think their own views on border restriction are racist will be even more unsettled by the irrefutable connections Okrent presents. (As well they should be.)
My only significant critique is that the book’s discussion of antisemitism never really grapples with the distinctive elements of that prejudice — such as beliefs that Jews control the government, banks, media, etc. — instead framing it largely like any other bias towards some group’s assimilation into the country. Okrent is Jewish like me, so the writer likely has this knowledge, yet by not clarifying and contextualizing how our people in particular have often been seen by the world, it feels as though his audience may miss a key piece of the picture.
Still, this is overall a fine bit of research, impeccably highlighting a lesson from the past that many might wish to forget.
★★★★☆
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