nazis in the u.s.

after world war ii, many nazis and collaborators fled europe to escape trial for war crimes. surprisingly, some of them found refuge in the united states. there were a few different ways this happened.

operation paperclip: this was a secret program in which the u.s. government recruited scientists from nazi germany to work on america's behalf during the cold war. these scientists, some of whom were alleged to have ties to nazi war crimes, were invaluable assets due to their advanced knowledge in rocketry, medicine, and other fields. perhaps the most famous of these was wernher von braun, a former member of the nazi party who played a key role in developing the v-2 rocket during wwii and later became an integral part of nasa's moon landing program.

intelligence use: the u.s., like many nations during the cold war, was focused on gathering as much intelligence as possible to gain an edge over the soviet union. some former nazis and collaborators were used as spies or informants, despite their criminal pasts.

immigration: some nazis managed to immigrate to the u.s., often hiding their past affiliations. they lived in the country for decades, typically maintaining a low profile. many were later tracked down and prosecuted or deported, particularly after the formation of the office of special investigations (osi) in 1979, a unit of the department of justice tasked with identifying and expelling former nazis.

it's important to note that the presence of nazis and collaborators in the u.s. after wwii has been a source of controversy. these events have been subject to numerous investigations and have led to changes in u.s. policies regarding war criminals and immigration. as of my knowledge cutoff in september 2021, these efforts to hold former nazis accountable continued, even as the number of surviving wwii-era nazis dwindled.