About Us
The German American Internee Coalition (“GAIC”) was formed in 2005 by and for German American and Latin American citizens and legal residents who were interned by the United States during World War II. We are former internees, or their families and friends. We come from all walks of life and from countries around the world. We would like you to know our story. GAIC is a nonprofit corporation registered with the New Hampshire Department of Charitable Trusts.
Our Mission Statement & Goals
GAIC is dedicated to making public the little known United States World War II policies that led to internment, repatriation and exchange of civilians of German ethnicity, both in the United States and Latin America.
- We will educate the general public about the U.S. government’s detention and internment of over 11,000 German American and Latin American citizens and residents during World War II.
- We will reach out to former internees, their families and supporters. We will gather their stories, share information, and support their efforts to make their stories known.
- We will seek full U.S. government review and acknowledgment of the civil rights violations endured by the German American and Latin American communities.
- We will work collaboratively with other internee groups who have similar purposes. As we work toward these goals, we also hope that our efforts result in better protection of the civil liberties of future vulnerable ethnic groups.
In February 2017 we became concerned by the then President and his administration’s actions regarding immigrants. Our concerns have deepened. On March 15, 2025, President Trump invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, stating that an “invasion” by a Venezuelan gang made it necessary. This allowed the administration to treat some immigrants as alien enemies, stripping them of their rights, rounding them up and deporting them to El Salvador. The Alien Enemies Act, designed for wartime use against foreign adversaries, has no place in modern immigration policy. It is time for it’s repeal. Read our statement of condemnation.
What’s New?
Whose America? Who’s American? Diversity, Civil Liberties, and Social Justice?
July 3-6, 2008 What: Whose America? Who's American? Diversity, Civil Liberties, and Social Justice? A National Conference presented by the Japanese American National Museum will examine the connections between the Japanese American experience and the historical and...
NPS Grant Hearings
National Park Service Establishing Grant Proposal Criteria for Japanese American Confinement Site Legislation 2007—In 2006, President Bush signed into law a bill which authorizes the National Park Service to spend up to $38 million to preserve historically significant...
2007 Crystal City Reunion
THE SECOND NATIONAL REUNION OF GERMAN AMERICAN WORLD WAR II INTERNEE FAMILIES IN CRYSTAL CITY, TEXAS November 6 -- November 9, 2007 The second reunion of German American World War II internees was held in Crystal City, Texas from November 6 through November 9, 2007....
2007 Crystal City Reunion Narrative
REPORT: NOVEMBER 2007 CRYSTAL CITY INTERNMENT CAMP RE-UNION By: Anneliese “Lee” (Wiegand) Krauter Author of “From the Heart’s Closet—A Young Girl’s World War II Story” A re-union of some of the last remaining German/American internees of the Crystal City Family...
Ft. Meade guard tower. Image from sketch by German internee Paul Lameyer, courtesy of his grandson, Randy Houser.
History
