What if the U.S. just about let anyone in during wartime?

Dark America and the Panay War timelines by Scott Palter from Changing the Times are two immense Ameriwank scenarios where the U.S. goes all authoritarian during or before WWII, and manages to defeat all of Eurasia with the help of the Brits, the Irish, the Norse, the Lusophones, and plucky Benelux. Oh, and a colonial empire stretching from Central America to the Caribbean to Liberia.

In the timelines is quite a lot of interesting discussion about the U.S. suffering severe manpower shortages during the war, leading to opening the floodgates to immigration for cheap labor as well as meatshields. Since there's so many refugees due to war, ya see. Excerpts from Panay War follows:

This is handled in several ways – allowing favored nations to use up unused immigration quota from prior years, some labor mobility from the new Empire, a host of private immigration bills for family reunificiation. Family reunification provides yet another form of patronage for the Democratic urban machines. Your ward boss has to co-sign your request to bring in Cousin Giovanni…Also Presidential exemptions made for skills – scientists, technicians, special skills [German refugees who can help us duplicate their advanced optics for example].

This is turn presents the beginnings of a labor shortage in the Empire. This is handled by using the oncoming world crisis as a population gathering system. The test cases are the persecuted Iraqi Christians and Austrian Social Democrats from their mini civil war of 1934. By 1936 they have gathered in the Jews of Poland, the Baltic States, and Rumania plus many Arab Christians, Armenians, White Russians, and European political refugees. Those with key tech or scientific skills get exceptional leave to enter the CONUS. For the rest, the extra people are swept into Empire and the Base Area on special external only passports (what the Brits did to the East African expats in OTL)– all rights of US green card holder except right of entry to lower 48. Oh yes, they are also liable to US taxes and conscription.

1938- ...
In Austria and Czechoslovakia massive use of US checkbook and green cards to get people and key goods out through Mid East towards Karachi. Trainloads of Czech officers and technicians with key machine tools and drawings from Skoda, etc. coming out through Salonika. The entire Skoda design staff airlifted out via Turkey to Detroit.

Japanese push bridgeheads into North and Northwest Australia but pinned down by US, Alliance and ‘volunteer’ [we will recruit any desperate refugee anyplace with a US consulate – if the menfolk enlist we will take the dependents to safety] forces with little Auzzie help.

August 1 1939 – December 31st 1939: Runup to war and alliance structure as in OTL except again US active with the checkbook and green cards. Most Balts lifted off to Sweden and Finland by promise of US transit visas. Remaining Jews, Uniates, White Russians and dependents of Polish officer corps out by August along with retired officers, key government officials and Enigma. Polish cadre will in this TL break for Rumanian, Hungarian borders instead of dieing in place. US has food, trains, visas waiting. No attempt to save weapons. Russians furious, Germans mostly relieved. Start of US units in Punjab like Our Lady of Cracow’s East Chicago Lancers.

...
Large US missions to Nordic countries to aid removal of Balt and Polish refugees.

...
Finland was popular in the US as the only country in Europe to pay off its WW1 debts. Unity wants the Scandinavian vote. Anticommunism is a good political seller in much of the US. So Russo Finnish War prompts immediate US ‘volunteer’ forces – corps strength plus major air and logistics. They had already been deployed in support of the Baltic evacuation, including nominally civilian garrisons to hold the RR back to Narvik, which is the refugee evacuation port. US and CCCP go to war. US crosses Bering in midwinter, take far side of straits and Wrangel Island. Scandinavian civilian evacuation to North America begun. Swedish old age homes in the Mississippi Delta…

Dark America also has this post-WWII, whereupon the U.S. trades no-good local Western Hemisphere commies for refugees, many of them "zeks."

10. No Russian Alliance. Truman still sends them Lend Lease but no attempt to portray them as our friends. Russian barbs on the second Front countered with American barbs that in a bidding contest they can offer Hitler more of Ukraine and the Caucasus than Stalin will. In the first of many people trades, imprisoned Reds from US and Carib swapped for Polish POW’s. Anders Army out and policy of zek swaps established.

Red Greek, Albanian, Yugoslav partisans swapped to Soviets for still more zeks of various kinds – Balts, Poles, Ukrainian nationalists, Rumanians, minority nationalities, etc.

Cold War on full force from the two separate VE Days (May 10th,1946 in East, May 8th in West). There is no final German surrender. They just cease to exist. We will keep buying out Norse, Finns, Poles, Slovaks, Hungarians, etc. in trades with the Soviets for Western, Latin, 3rd world Reds and Lend Lease but everybody keeps what they grabbed. Finland is given ultimatum and occupied by Red Army as the Finnish army covers a shrinking perimeter behind which everyone who can flees to Sweden. Swedes join the Western Alliance. Russians take Norway to below Narvik, pinch off Swedish Lapland – no ultimatum, they just do it.

Now, this is all Ameriwank to ludicrous levels, but it did lead me to look up U.S. immigration policy. It would seem like these refugees would be entering as Priority Two asylum-seekers.

Priority Two is composed of groups designated by the U.S. government as being of special concern. These are often identified by an act proposed by a Congressional representative.

Hence Cuban exiles and South Vietnamese. Priority Three, cases of family reunification for specific nationalities, seems related, as well. So I'm wondering, what if Priority Two was expanded to more categories of people, and earlier on in the 20th century? Could there have been more exile communities of persecuted minorities in America? What would they be? How would this affect our culture? No need to justify this by throwing in a massive 20-year WWII or a massive Cold War involving space weapons, as Mr. Palter did.
 
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NothingNow

Banned
Hence Cuban exiles and South Vietnamese. Priority Three, cases of family reunification for specific nationalities, seems related, as well. So I'm wondering, what if Priority Two was expanded to more categories of people, and earlier on in the 20th century? Could there have been more exile communities of persecuted minorities in America? What would they be? How would this affect our culture?
Not so many Big changes. There'd be more Minority groups, and more cultural influences, kinda like the Early 20th Century, so American Cuisine becomes a bit more varied, and things get a bit more interesting, especially if Nativist groups are there in force as well.
 
Dark America and the Panay War timelines by Scott Palter from Changing the Times are two immense Ameriwank scenarios where the U.S. goes all authoritarian during or before WWII, and manages to defeat all of Eurasia with the help of the Brits, the Irish, the Norse, the Lusophones, and plucky Benelux. Oh, and a colonial empire stretching from Central America to the Caribbean to Liberia.

In the timelines is quite a lot of interesting discussion about the U.S. suffering severe manpower shortages during the war, leading to opening the floodgates to immigration for cheap labor as well as meatshields. Since there's so many refugees due to war, ya see. Excerpts from Panay War follows:









Dark America also has this post-WWII, whereupon the U.S. trades no-good local Western Hemisphere commies for refugees, many of them "zeks."







Now, this is all Ameriwank to ludicrous levels, but it did lead me to look up U.S. immigration policy. It would seem like these refugees would be entering as Priority Two asylum-seekers.



Hence Cuban exiles and South Vietnamese. Priority Three, cases of family reunification for specific nationalities, seems related, as well. So I'm wondering, what if Priority Two was expanded to more categories of people, and earlier on in the 20th century? Could there have been more exile communities of persecuted minorities in America? What would they be? How would this affect our culture? No need to justify this by throwing in a massive 20-year WWII or a massive Cold War involving space weapons, as Mr. Palter did.

Swedish evacuation sounds interesting..........but the Miss. Delta? Why not Minnesota or the Dakotas instead? LOL. :D
 
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