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 deepend. 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?
German Sailors on the High Desert: a WW II Detention Camp at Fort Stanton
"German Sailors on the High Desert: A WW II Detention Camp at Fort Stanton" was written by Tomas Jaehn, an historian who works as archivist and librarian at the Fray Angélico Chávez History Library, Santa Fe, New Mexico. Published for El Palacio, the oldest museum...
“Treatment of Latin Americans of Japanese Descent, European Americans, and Jewish Refugees in WWII”-Hearing video
19 March 2009—Committee on the Judiciary - Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, Refugees, Border Security, and International Law. Video provided by U.S. House of Representatives and posted by House.Resource.Org.
World War II Enemy Aliens Program
World War II Enemy Aliens Program (2009)—National Archives and Records Administration, C-Span Video Library Archivist Lynn Goodsell talks about various aspects of the World War II “enemy alien control” programs and related records available at the National...
Fort Stanton: a German Internment Camp
In 1941, German Merchant seamen from the scuttled luxury liner S.S. Columbus found themselves held in the U.S. America was not yet involved in WWII, and Fort Stanton, New Mexico, was chosen to house the 400 plus sailors. (More information about Fort Stanton)
Ft. Meade guard tower. Image from sketch by German internee Paul Lameyer, courtesy of his grandson, Randy Houser.
History
