Immigration History
1491-1830
Reasons
Religious tolerance, economic opportunity, political freedom, forced immigration (Slavery
Who
Northern and Western Europeans
Africans - Slaves: There were about 500,000 African Americans here by the time of the American Revolution.
Destinations
New England - English (Puritans)
Middle Colonies - Quakers, Dutch, Germans, Scotch-Irish, Swedes, etc. – very diverse
Southern Colonies – English Protestants (Catholics in Maryland), Scotch-Irish, indentured servants, slaves
Treatment
There were really no efforts to keep out immigrants in the 1600-1800's and in general, the presence of newcomers was accepted as yet another facet to America's diversity. In the 17th and 18th centuries, the control over the admission of newcomers was mainly in the hands of the individual colonies. In Virginia, laws encouraged newcomers by giving the "head-right" of 50 acres to each arrival if he/she paid for their own passage or to the master who paid for them. There was also an effort to keep out convicts and other undesirables whom the mother country might which to send to the provinces, except in the case of Georgia. After America's independence, all such restraints on immigration disappeared. The federal government simply regulated the conditions for naturalization. In the case of slaves, they were imported mostly through Charleston, but sold in all of the colonies. After statehood was achieved during the Revolution, some states abolished slavery in their state Constitutions.
Laws/Politics
1798 / The Alien and Sedition Acts permitted the President to deport any foreigner deemed to be dangerous. A revised Naturalization Act imposed a 14-year residency requirement for prospective citizens. These laws were passed by the Federalists during Adams presidency, and were removed after the Democratic Republicans took office in 1801.1830-1890
Reasons
Cheap land, jobs were abundant, and labor was scarce. The Irish Potato Famine; crop failures in Germany; the onset of industrialization; and failed European revolutions begin a period of mass immigration.The California Gold Rush spurs immigration from China.The U.S. government recruited Chinese immigrants to work on the transcontinental railroad.
Who
From 1830-1880 immigrants were primarily white Europeans who mostly spoke English: German, English, Irish (potato
famine and British rule) with few from Norway, Sweden, and the Netherlands
In 1848, with the discovery of Gold, there was a spur of Chinese and Latin American immigrants to the west coast
Destinations
Irish – NE cities; Germans – mid-West; Asians and Latin Americans – West Coast
Treatment
In the first half of the century, immigrants were welcomed as workers who built railroads, worked in factories, and farmed Western lands. However, there was also a growth in Nativism. The Know-Nothing Party emerged in the 1840s as a reaction to potential loss of jobs, subversion of the Anglo culture, and fear of Catholicism.
Laws/Politics1850s / Know Nothing party unsuccessfully seeks to increase restrictions on naturalization.
1882 / Chinese Exclusion Act restricts Chinese immigration.
1890-1929
Reasons
jobs, come to the "Land of Opportunity"
Who
“New Immigrants”: Southern and Eastern Europeans (Italians, Poles, Russian Jews, Greeks, Slavs, Eastern European Jews, Armenians) and Asians (Chinese, Japanese); most did not speak English
Destinations
Most immigrants settled near the port of entry (East Coast/West Coast); only 2% went South
Treatment
Were treated with little respect (taking away jobs, looked down upon for different cultural values); immigrants began to form their own communities
Laws/Politics
American Protective League – prejudiced against Catholics
German-Americans discriminated against during WWI
1919 – Red Scare – fear of Communists; Palmer Raids
1920s – reemergence of the KKK
1892 / Ellis Island opens; serves as processing center for 12 million immigrants over the next 30 years.Congress provided for the examination of immigrants and the excluding of convicts, polygamists, prostitutes, people suffering from diseases, and people liable to public charges
1907 / Under the Gentleman's Agreement with Japan, the United States agrees not to restrict Japanese immigration in exchange for Japan's promise not to issue passports to Japanese laborers for travel to the continental United States. Japanese laborer are permitted to go to Hawaii, but are barred by executive order from migrating from Hawaii to the mainland.
Dillingham Report – reports that newer immigrants are less assailable than earlier immigrants, therefore immigrants should be restricted by nationality
1913 / Congress enacts a literacy requirement for immigrants over President Woodrow Wilson's veto. The law requires immigrants to be able to read 40 words in some language. The law also specifies that immigration is prohibited from Asia, except from Japan and the Philippines.
1921 / Emergency Quota Act limits annual European immigration to 3 percent of the number of a nationality group in the United States in 1910.
Sacco and Vanzetti Case
1924 / National Origins Act of 1924 limits the number of immigrants who could be admitted from any country to 2% of the number of people from that country who were already living in the United States in 1890
1929 / National Origins Act of 1929 limits the total number of immigrants to 150,000; all Japanese barred
1930s-Present
Reasons
To escape political persecution (ex. Cuba, Vietnam)
Who
Latin Americans, Asians; increasing numbers of illegal immigrants
Destinations
South, Southwest, West Coast, NE Cities
Treatment
Japanese-Americans were treated harshly during WWII
Communists, or potential Communists, are barred post-WWII
In the last half of the 20th century, there was less emphasis on countries of origin, but immigrants continue to face discrimination.
In recent years, there have been increased campaigns to prevent illegal immigrants from entering the country.
Laws/Politics
1942 / Executive Order 9066 authorizes the military to evacuate 112,000 Japanese Americans from the Pacific coast and placed them in ten internment camps.The Chinese Exclusion Act is repealed. By the end of the 1940s, all restrictions on Asians acquiring U.S. citizenship are abolished.
1943 / Congress creates the Bracero Program a guest worker program bringing temporary agricultural workers into the United States from Mexico. The program ended in 1964.
In the case of United States v. Korematsu, the Supreme Court upholds the internment of Japanese Americans as constitutional.
1948 / The Internal Security Act, passed over President Harry Truman's veto, bars admission to any foreigner who is a Communist or who might engage in activities "which would be prejudicial to the public interest, or would endanger the welfare or safety of the United States."
1953 / Operation Wetback forces the return of undocumented workers to Mexico.
1965 / Immigration Act of 1965 repeals the national origins quota system
Refugee Act, enacted in response to the boat people fleeing Vietnam, grants asylum to politically oppressed refugees.
1986 / Immigration Reform and Control Act – penalizes employers for hiring illegal immigrants , but also grants amnesty to illegal immigrants arriving by 1982
The Redress Act provides $20,000 compensation to survivors of the World War II internment of Japanese and Japanese Americans.
1988 / The Immigration Act of 1990 increases the number of immigrants allowed into the United States each year to 700,000.
1995 / The Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act strengthens border enforcement and makes it more difficult to gain asylum. The law establishes income requirements for sponsors of legal immigrants.
1996 / The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act, Congress makes citizenship a condition of eligibility for public benefits for most immigrants.