Limmud Michigan 2020

The Michigan Alien Registration Act of 1931 gave unnaturalized immigrants a choice: register or risk deportation. Supporters said it was an act to protect the people of Michigan; Detroit’s Jewish leaders said otherwise. This is the story of how the Jewish community fought the anti-immigrant law on multiple fronts: in the courtroom, on the pages of the Jewish Chronicle and from the pulpit. As similar laws were being considered in other states, the eyes of the country were on Michigan and the outcome of this significant case.