Imperial ethnic citizenship survived in West Germany long after empire’s end

Evidence

Notwithstanding the two German states’ official rejection of imperialism, Baranowski emphasizes that the imperial legacy of an ethnic conception of Germanness survived in the FRG. The FRG’s Basic Law conferred citizenship on ‘ethnic Germans’, ensuring them a ‘right to return’. The continued inflow of Aussiedler (until 1992) and Spätaussiedler (after 1993) well beyond the actual period of expulsions and flight was a long-term consequence of this. By contrast, immigrants from other countries and their children born in the country had very restricted access to citizenship until 2000. — Manuel Borutta and Jan C. Jansen, Vertriebene and Pieds-Noirs in Postwar…, 68

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: The Kohl government privileged ethnic German resettlers over other immigrants after unification — Manuel Borutta and Jan C. Jansen, Vertriebene and Pieds-Noirs in Postwar…, 207; German imperial thinking long rejected multi-ethnicity and pursued ethnic homogeneity — Manuel Borutta and Jan C. Jansen, Vertriebene and Pieds-Noirs in Postwar…, 66; German imperialists worked to keep emigrants tied to the Reich abroad — Hannah Arendt, The Origins of Totalitarianism, 2229 (+5 more)

Broader Connections

• German imperial thinking long rejected multi-ethnicity and pursued ethnic homogeneity #contradicts (0.85) — Manuel Borutta and Jan C. Jansen, Vertriebene and Pieds-Noirs in Postwar…, 66
• The FRG’s citizenship law unified diverse German groups by descent #corroborates (0.85) — Manuel Borutta and Jan C. Jansen, Vertriebene and Pieds-Noirs in Postwar…, 183
• West Germany preserved expellee cultural identity where East Germany and France sought swift assimilation #corroborates (0.80) — Manuel Borutta and Jan C. Jansen, Vertriebene and Pieds-Noirs in Postwar…, 72
• Unification of a colonizer state was achieved through racial identity rather than ethnic culture #corroborates (0.78) — David Theo Goldberg, The Threat of Race, 1473
• German imperialists worked to keep emigrants tied to the Reich abroad #corroborates (0.75) — Hannah Arendt, The Origins of Totalitarianism, 2229
• German imperialists mobilized emigrant communities as national expansion instruments #expands (0.75)
• Residence, not just descent, came to confer German citizenship. #qualifies (0.72) — Manuel Borutta and Jan C. Jansen, Vertriebene and Pieds-Noirs in Postwar…, 208