Migration is a natural part of living systems, and human history is no exception. Yet it remains one of the most debated public issues of our time.
Both people and borders move. Who is allowed to move, and who is granted rights, lies at the heart of how nations define belonging. In Germany and the United States alike, these debates have been deeply intertwined with evolving ideas of race and ethnicity.
These timelines trace how citizenship and belonging have been constructed, challenged, and redefined through laws, social movements, global events, and cultural works — and how those histories continue to shape the present.
Persecuted since the 15th century, Sinti and Roma were, from the founding of the German Empire onwards, subjected for the first time to systematic state repression — ranging from special laws to coercive measures such as imprisonment, deportation, and the registration of children.
