In 1916, the US began forcing Mexicans crossing the southern border to take kerosene baths. That tactic was later studied by the Nazis.

Thu, 11/09/2023 - 09:15

A masked worker fumigates a bracero at the Hidalgo Processing Center in Texas.
Leonard Nadel Photographs and Scrapbooks, Archives Center, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution

In 1916, the US began forcing Mexicans that crossed the border to bathe in a mix of kerosene and vinegar. That later expanded to include pesticides.
US officials feared that Mexicans could bring typhus and tuberculosis into the country.
The Nazis used some of the same chemicals used in the baths during The Holocaust.

Until the 1920s, crossing the southern border was not heavily restricted and was not considered illegal. Domestic workers and farm laborers regularly made their way between Mexico and the United States.