Forced Migration, Staying Minorities, and New Societies: Evidence from Post-war Czechoslovakia

Abstract

Forced migration traumatizes millions displaced from their homes, but little is known about the few who manage to stay and become a minority in a new society. We study the case of German stayers in Sudetenland, a region from which Czechoslovakia expelled ethnic Germans after World War Two. The unexpected presence of the US Army in parts of 1945 Czechoslovakia resulted in more anti-fascist Germans avoiding displacement compared to regions liberated by the Red Army. We study the long-run impacts of this local variation in the presence of left-leaning stayers and find that Communist party support and local party cell frequencies, as well as far-left values and social policies are more pronounced today where anti-fascist Germans stayed in larger numbers. Our findings also suggest that political identity supplanted German ethnic identity among anti-fascist stayers. The German staying minority shaped the political identity of newly formed local societies after ethnic cleansing by providing the 'small seed' of political development.

Forced displacement in history: Some recent research

“…Studying the same context of forced migration of Germans from Czechoslovakia, Grossmann et al (2021) point out that in areas liberated (and temporarily occupied) by the US Army, more anti‐fascist Germans avoided displacement compared to regions liberated by the Red Army. The presence of these left‐leaning stayers is associated with stronger post‐war Communist party support and local party branch frequencies, as well as far‐left values and social policies.…”