The Trial Of Liberty: The Theory And Practice Of "One Hundred Percent Americanism"

As the purpose of historical research is getting closer to the true context of events,and discover the meaning of these events, provide new knowledge and new ideas.Based on a large number of raw materials, this paper focusing on “one hundredpercent Americanism”, through the case studies of German, Italian and Chinese todiscover the edge of American Liberty.In the first chapter, the author mainly analyzes how the assimilation theory “onehundred percent Americanism” came into American History, argues that in the UnitedStates the assimilation theory always with Anglo Saxon centralism, but the process ofassimilation is not mandatory, and a series of social problems during the period ofsocial transformation in the United States, as well as the united nation's basic shapeand the awakening of consciousness of “the other”, prompting the assimilation patternof immigrants into American society from “natural assimilation” to “forcedassimilation”.In the second chapter, the author first introduces the most influential immigrantassimilation theory in American history:“Anglo-conformity” and “melting-pot”,consider “Anglo-conformity” theory is a kind of obvious discrimination, while thetheory of “melting pot” is a kind of ethnic fusion based on mutual respect and equalstatus.“One hundred percent Americanism” is an extreme form of“Anglo-conformity”, which requires immigrants to cut their home culture roots,thoroughly into the Anglo-Saxon mainstream culture of American society. As aconcept in practice is the “one hundred percent Americanization” during the FirstWorld War.In the third chapter, the author believe Hull House's assimilation strategy is a realsense of natural assimilation process, the immigrants took a relatively positive altitudeto participate in that process, the effect of this kind of assimilation is better. The nightschool assimilation education of government efforts has its own features, on thesurface, it belongs to a kind of natural assimilation, participate in voluntary, free agent.However, from the teaching content it tend to mandatory, trying to mainstreamAmerican culture on immigrants. Its effect on assimilation of immigrants relativelypoorIn the fourth to the sixth chapter the author take German, Italian immigrants and Chinese as case studies. In these three groups, each experience very differently,German immigration has always been considered a model of assimilation, its cultureand language has been respected by the mainstream American society, but theoutbreak of the first world war, changed German immigrants experience dramatically.Strangely, other European immigration groups, especially Italian immigrants oncediscriminated by American Mainstream society, but during this period their quicklyreceive acceptance and achieve Americanization. Chinese experience was quitedifferent. Because the Chinese Exclusion Act in1882, the Chinese was not consideredin “one hundred percent Americanization” movement. Thus, it seems that Chineseshould not be included in the consideration of this study, as a matter of fact, this hasnothing to do also is a kind of relationship, it is reflects the Chinese immigrants lackof “liberty” in the United States.“One hundred percent Americanism” does not takeinto consideration of the Chinese, doesn't mean that Chinese has been integrated intoAmerican culture, but hinted that American society attempts to ban Chinesenaturalization.The end of this article is the summary of the entire article. In this part I willfurther analysis the relationship between “assimilation”,“Americanization” and the“American”.