| Chapter 1: | Italy from the American Immigration Quota Act of 1921 to Mussolini’s Policy of Grossraum, 1921–1924 |
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In an urgent report, the Italian chargé d’affaires in Washington, D.C., Dr. Saluzzo, cabled the Italian government (telegram no. 17515, dated March 14, 1921) warning Prime Minister Giovanni Giolitti that the American doctors’ reports of exanthematic typhus plaguing Italy threatened a decrease in visits by well-to-do tourists to Italy; discouraged Italian emigrants from coming to America for fear of a long quarantine in American ports and possible difficulties in disembarking; prompted more American demonstrations for limiting Italian immigration; harmed passengers aboard the vessels; and damaged Italian maritime companies because Americans planning trips to Europe would avoid taking passage on Italian ships.7 On May 19, 1921, the American Congress, with a Republican majority, passed the Immigration Quota Act, which President Wilson had previously vetoed; on May 11, 1922, Congress extended it for two additional years.
Consequences on Italian Demography and Maritime Business
Beyond any doubt the Immigration Quota Act damaged the Italian nation and wreaked havoc on maritime business and ultimately the country’s political structure. The Italian government had always relied upon emigration as a safety valve to alleviate overpopulation and unemployment, especially in the regions of central and southern Italy. It now had to face emergent and serious consequences. On May 1, 1921, Giuseppe De Michelis, head of the Emigration Bureau, a division of the Italian ministry of foreign affairs, delivered a memorandum to Prime Minister Giolitti informing him of the imminent application of the law restricting immigration to the United States. The memorandum pointed out the considerable reduction in the annual quota of Italian immigrants, which in the past had reached very high levels.8 In the first quarter of 1921, 100,000 Italians emigrated to the United States; after the passage of the new law, only 42,000 Italians would be admitted to the United States between May 21, 1921, and July 1, 1922. This drastic decrease would stagnate Italian emigration, rock Italy’s internal economic situation, and shake the stability of the Italian government.