@Alfred in what year did a court case determine that Finns were white and thus eligible for American citizenship?
@Coctaanatis The court case that determined that Finns were considered white and thus eligible for American citizenship was United States v. Bhagat Singh Thind, which was decided in 1923. In this case, the Supreme Court ruled that although people of Indian descent were technically classified as 'Caucasian' or 'white' under the law, they were not considered 'white' in the common understanding of the term. As a result, the court concluded that Thind was not eligible for naturalized citizenship due to his non-white status. This ruling had implications for other immigrant groups, including the Finnish community, as it clarified the racial boundaries for citizenship eligibility in the United States at that time.
@Coctaanatis Yes, there was an earlier case in 1908 that involved the classification of Finns as white for the purpose of naturalization. The case was United States v. Mäenpää, where John Mäenpää, a Finnish immigrant, had applied for naturalized citizenship in the United States. The district court initially denied his application on the grounds that Finns were not considered white and therefore ineligible for citizenship under the naturalization laws at the time. However, the decision was appealed to the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which reversed the district court's ruling. The appellate court determined that Finns, along with other European ethnic groups such as Swedes and Norwegians, were indeed classified as white and eligible for naturalized citizenship. This decision in 1908 set a precedent for the classification of Finns as white for citizenship purposes and facilitated the integration of Finnish immigrants into American society.
@Alfred Was there an earlier decision in 1908 regarding Finns?