Dissertations and Theses @ UNI
Availability
Open Access Thesis
Keywords
American Turners (Organization)--History; German Americans--History--20th century; United States--History--1933-1945;
Abstract
Although German Americans were unable to completely recover from the discrimination endured during World War I, the American Turners proved to be a resilient group. Despite the insistence of some scholars that the German-American community in the United States lost the battle for cultural pluralism, from 1935 to 1945, the American Turners continued to craft and foster a unique Turner identity. Composed of what members perceived to be the best aspects of their German and American identities, the Turner identity allowed American Turners to both valorize their German heritage and present themselves as devoted Americans. My research into the American Turner Topics newsletter and the World War II era correspondence of the American Turner National Executive Committee reveals that the utilization of the English and German languages in addition to political participation were key elements in the preservation of the Turner identity.
Until the end of World War II, the American Turners actively used language and politics to establish a unique Turner identity. However, the outbreak of war in Europe had a profound effect on the organization. Still able to recall the horrific anti-German sentiment of World War I, the American Turners sought to avoid a similar situation as the entry of the United States into World War II proved imminent. By 1938, Turner correspondence and articles in American Turner Topics began promoting Americanization to deemphasize their German ties. The process of Americanization, undertaken by the American Turners from 1938-1945, resulted in the transformation of the Turner identity. This study traces the transformation of the American Turner organization from a bastion of cultural pluralism to a fully Americanized institution through the efforts of members to equate Turnerism with Americanism.
Year of Submission
2015
Degree Name
Master of Arts
Department
Department of History
First Advisor
Emily Machen, Chair
Date Original
2015
Object Description
1 PDF file (iii, 127 pages)
Copyright
©2015 Amy Rekward
Language
en
File Format
application/pdf
Recommended Citation
Rekward, Amy, "Stars, stripes, and swastikas : the American Turners and national identity, 1935-1945" (2015). Dissertations and Theses @ UNI. 156.
https://scholarworks.uni.edu/etd/156
