A Speech By Robert H. Clancy

Around the mid-19th to the 20th century, myriads of immigrants flocked to the U.S. seeking better job opportunities,or searching for religious freedom. U.S. citizens were fearful, envious, and willing to exclude immigrants who came to the US as they were viewed as an economic threat to the society. They believed that these immigrants were racially, morally and intellectually inferior to them and as such did not see or treat as their equals. These dysfunctions lead to severe and harsh treatment of immigrants. Historically, the three major immigrant groups that faced the most discrimination during this era were the Asians, German, and the Irish. American citizen’s fear of job secureness led to the resentment and discriminatory treatment towards Asian Immigrants. They believed that the majority of the Asian American immigrants were taking too many of their jobs. As such, the U.S. government decided that it would be necessary to restrict the amount of Asian Americans, in order to keep the U.S. citizens from being unemployed. The U.S. government passed numerous laws, banning Asian American immigrants from the United States. One distinct law that they passed was the 1922 Cable Act, this law “stripped a female citizen of citizenship, if she married an alien unable to become a citizen.”(Lutz 7).The law was basically passed to prevent Asian immigrants from obtaining citizenship by marrying a female U.S citizen.In fact, the government believed that female citizens that engaged in this

Throughout most of America's history immigration was seen as a natural process that benefited the nation (Divine 2). There were no clearly defined policies on immigration until the 1890's. During this time the country started questioning the economic benefits of more immigrants. In May 1921, the first bill in American history dealing with immigration was passed. This bill restricted European immigration and created the quota system (Divine 5). The downward turn in the economy could justify this turn toward restriction. Who could argue for more immigrants when the nation's own citizens could not find work. The slowing economy and the "spirit of intense nationalism" in the United States at this time made immigration a hot topic (Divine 23). After the depression hit, everyone agreed that there was a "need to limit immigration," of course the extent of those limits was not easily agreed upon (Divine 77).

There was a big gap between the native-born and immigrants in the 1920s. African Americans were not the only people who experienced racism in the 1920s. (Huggins) Masses of non-protestant immigrants arrived to the United States from south-east Europe. Most of them were Jews and Catholics. These new immigrants, along with Orientals, Mexicans, and Blacks, suffered the most from those who were involved with the White Anglo-Saxon Protestant (W.A.S.P.) values. (Racial Discrimination in America during the 1920s) In 1921, Congress passed many immigration laws to stop immigration from southern and eastern Europe. (Huggins) Congress passed the Emergency Quota Act which created a quota system. This

Economically, they filled a significant need for cheap labor in booming American industries. The large numbers of immigrants helped keep labor cost down for Big Business and different groups were often put against each other in competition for the cheapest workers. Politically, different immigrant groups became active members of various labor organizations and unions, pushing to change pro-business laws and establish regulations governing working conditions and wages. And socially, American culture as it is known now was formed by this influx of immigrants. People from all over the planet brought with them not only their labor but also their cultures, helping to contribute to the mosaic that is the American way of life. These immigrants, as shown by the prejudice and discrimination directed towards them, were not always welcome. In economic hard times, immigrants were blamed for job shortages and family hardships, used as scapegoats for larger problems. Nativist movements were directed against the Chinese, Japanese, Italians, and others, especially during the 1880s and 90s. As evidenced by the Chinese Exclusion Act and later legislation that limited immigration from Japan and other regions, this anti-immigrant sentiment went as high up as the nation's capital. This history was simply a repeat of the nativism and hatred directed against the Irish and Germans of the 1840s and 1850s and is similar to that experienced in America today by immigrants from Mexico and Latin America. In the area of immigration, history repeats

Millions of immigrants over the previous centuries have shaped the United States of America into what it is today. America is known as a “melting pot”, a multicultural country that welcomes and is home to an array of every ethnic and cultural background imaginable. We are a place of opportunity, offering homes and jobs and new economic gains to anyone who should want it. However, America was not always such a “come one, come all” kind of country. The large numbers of immigrants that came during the nineteenth century angered many of the American natives and lead to them to blame the lack of jobs and low wages on the immigrants, especially the Asian communities. This resentment lead to the discrimination and legal exclusion of immigrants,

The framework for American immigration policy began around the 1750-1820 period through the incorporation of colonial legacy with existing state and federal policy (Zolberg, 2009). The United States legislation has excluded whole nations and regions from migrating due to internal and external factors. The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 and the Page Act of 1875 restricted Chinese female immigration. In 1917 and 1924, quota systems were adopted to prohibit considerably “undesirable and “inferior” ethnic groups and races. During the Great Depression in the 1930s, between 400,000 and 1 million Mexican laborers and their families were deported under the “repatriation” programs. Approximately

One of the first significant pieces of federal legislation aimed at restricting immigration was the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, which banned Chinese laborers from coming to America. Californians had agitated for the new law, blaming the Chinese, who were willing to work for less, for a decline in wages.The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 was the first significant law restricting immigration into the United States. Those on the West Coast were especially prone to attribute declining wages and economic ills on the despised Chinese workers. Although the Chinese composed only .002 percent of the nation’s population, Congress passed the exclusion act to placate worker demands and assuage prevalent concerns about maintaining white “racial purity.”

In the early 1880’s immigrants started to come over to the United States. Immigrants came into the United States for job opportunities, and a better life for there families. Immigrants come from all over the world, such as chinese, Italian, and Russian immigrants. The experiences of Chinese immigrants differed from immigrants from Italy, and Russia. Their experiences differed, because of how they came over to America, where they lived, and jobs.

There were many people who wanted to continue allowing immigration, while others were completely opposed to the idea. Some of the main groups who wanted to end immigration were the Klu Klux Klan, labor unions, and African American organizations. The Klan wanted to end immigration because they had the same hatred for immigrants as they did African Americans. Labor unions and African American organizations were simply fearful that their jobs would be given to these new people. In 1882, Congress began to take steps toward restricting immigration. The first immigrants to be excluded were Chinese. A literacy test was soon put into place, but did not reduce the immigrant quantity significantly enough, A quota would now be put into place. The number of immigrants allowed per year from each country would be drastically reduced. Japanese immigrants would be banned. Our nations new immigration policy was creating new problems. Many countries, specifically China and Japan, grew deeply belligerent. Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti are two immigrants famous for stealing and murdering a paymaster and a guard. These men kept their innocence through the trail, but they were still executed. This case showed how much our country once full of immigrants, had turned against

Since the beginning of times up until present time the United States Congress has always passed laws to limit immigrants rights. Immigrants who came to America for a better life have gone through many struggles due to the restrictions against them. Precedently, with the Chinese Exclusion Act, which prohibited Chinese immigrants to enter the United States. Another act was the Gentlemen’s Agreement Act between Japan and America, where Japan agreed to limit immigration, only if President Theodore Roosevelt agreed to limit restrictions on Japanese immigrants. Then in 1924, Congress passed the Immigration Act of 1924. The act limited the number of aliens that are allowed in the U.S. Congress passed this act because they felt that immigrant threaten America’s “old ways.” Congress wanted American to be “pure” again, by doing so, they had to get rid of many immigrants. The factors that led to Congress to pass the Immigration Act were to maintain American traditions, maintain jobs for American citizens, and repair the income.

In 1917 America entered World War one. By doing this America played a grave role in conquering Germany and ushering peace to Europe. However, the Great War also meant that the US would change dramatically through historical issues and changes which resulted in American society. Industries had started to realise that it was not as simple as it was before to abstract the immigrants. As the country developed and became more successful it attracted outsiders who were searching for chances. During the 1920¡¯s the United States began to confine immigrants due to cultural and economical purposes. The immigrants faced several afflictions such as: racism and religious oppression. The examination of immigration expressed an important

Many came from eastern and southern Europe such as the Irish, Germans, Italians and Polish. Immigrants came to America with hopes and dreams of prosperity, freedom of religion, freedom from fascism and dictatorship with the possibility of wealth and security. Many if not all of the immigrants encountered the complete opposite. Hard labor, poor living condition, low wages and illnesses were the problems often faced by the

1924’s Johnson-Reed Act lowered the quota to two per cent and used the 1890 census figures. It also provided that in 1927 no more than 150,000 immigrants per year would be admitted on the basis of their national origin. These quotas favored the Western European countries. No restrictions were placed on Western Hemisphere countries such as Canada and Mexico. Asians were totally excluded. Another feature the 1924 law provided was the partiality and non quota status given to certain relatives of American citizens such as parents, children under twenty-two, husbands and the wives and children under eighteen.

The immigration act of 1924 was really the first permanent limitation on immigration. This limitation was like a quota system that only aloud two percent instead of the three percent of each foreign born group living in the United states in 1890. Like it say in Document A “Under the act of 1924 the number of each nationality who may be admitted annually is limited to two per cent of the population of such nationality resident in the United States according to the census of 1890.” Using the 1890 census instead of newer up-to-date ones they excluded a lot of new immigrants from Southern and Eastern Europe that came by in resent years (This is shown awfully well in Document B). This acts annual quota changed from 358,000 in 1921 to 164,000

     America, and what they faced after they landed on our shores. We will begin with the German immigrants who arrived after 1800. After 1800, Germans still poured into the United States, but for different reasons than previous generations. Modernization and population growth forced many Germans from their respective family businesses. In the United States, most Germans lived in the countryside. Large numbers could be found in the Midwest and Texas. Most of the West Coast farmers would sacrifice fertile land for a closer location to other Germans. They would cluster together to form communities not unlike the Chinatowns.