Open Door Immigration Policy Essay

The definition of freedom and equality for immigrants in the United States is considered a long term struggle. The Federal Government’s size, and role in the average American life has both retarded and advanced freedom and equality for immigrants because of the constantly changing perceptions of immigrants. The Chinese Exclusion Act in 1882, the Enemy Alien Registration in 1918, the Immigration Act in 1924, and the Executive Order signed by Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1941 are all examples of the continuing struggle for the definition of freedom for immigrants in the United States.

Immigration has always been a complex issue in the United States. Previous and current administrations have had great difficulties in setting policies and programs in place to address this problem. During the course of American history, laws were enacted to address such issues. There were numerous legislative milestones in regards to immigration in the United States. In order to understand the current issues regarding immigration, we have to look back at the policies that were in place along with the goals that they intended to serve. According to (Barusch, 2012), the United States had an open immigration policy; which means that anyone could relocate to this country. As a result of this policy, the government had to redefine

Globally, the United States has been known as "a nation of immigrants" almost from its inception. Beginning in the 1600s with English Puritans and continuing today, America is a melting pot of culture and ethnicity. In fact, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, immigration was the major source of U.S. population growth. Looking over our 200+ years we find that to clearly be true, with approximately 1 million immigrants coming to America during the 17th and 18th century. Almost 3 million arrived during the 1860s, and another 3 million in the 1870s. In the next four decades, the number of immigrants rose to over 25 million people, most from various European nations, most arriving in New York or one of the Eastern seaports (Damon, 1981). Despite the politicization, as of 2006, the United States actually was the number one country globally to accept legal immigrants into the country, with a current immigrant population of almost 40 million (Terrazas and Batalova, 2009). In fact, the peak of immigration was 1907, when over 1.2 million Europeans entered the country beginning a push towards legislation limiting immigration in the Immigration and Naturalization Act of 1924 and the 1921 Congressional Quota Act. These immigrants came for two sociological reasons: the push factor (wars, famine, persecution and overpopulation) and the pull factors (jobs and the promise of freedom). Most came by ship, and a passage often cost the equivalent of an entire life's savings causing many

Immigration Reform is obviously a big issue in America today. I mean everywhere you go; you either see something about or read about it. There is no exact number as to how many illegal immigrants cross the border, but it is estimated to be around 11 to 12 million. This has become a major political and social issue because of the continued flow of illegal immigrants. There is nothing really around that will stop this problem. Nothing has really been done, I mean there are borders and all, but who watches the borders to stop the immigration and even so there is no one there to protect the people who are there trying to prevent it. Anything can happen to the people who are watching the borders such as being shot at and things of the nature,

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,

Since the 1700’s the U.S. has been working on and has implemented policies try to restrict and govern the immigrants entering this country. Many immigrants come to America looking for a better way of life than what was destined for them in their native lands.

comprehensive immigration reform could bring to this country, to the native- born and immigrants workers as well. Also, he makes emphasis in how the number of undocumented immigrants has increased since 1990’s; therefore, the economy of United States has dramatically increased.

When you have substantial amounts of people subsiding in a general region you will always have those who agree with certain policies and those you disagree. In the case of the US immigration policy, there was a considerable amount of people who had strong opinions on America's way of running their immigration system. Many interviews, articles, speeches, and cartoons were created to show the harsh insensitivity they felt was being portrayed in immigration. A Senator of New York named Meyer Jacobstein made several thought-provoking claims towards the policy. He started with a point against the committee, “ One of the purposes in shifting to the 1890 census is to reduce the number of undesirables and defectives in our institutions. In fact,

Immigration through out the late 1800’s and early 1900’s created nativism throughout the United States. Millions of immigrants flocked to the United States trying to find a better way of life to be able to support their families. Industrialization in the United States provided a labor source for the immigrants. Native born Americans believed immigrants were a “threat to the American way of life” (ATF chapter 11) Social and economic fault lines developed between natives and immigrants, through out the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, going unnoticed until the late 1920’s when the Sacco and Vanzetti case brought awareness of issue to much of the United States.

The United States has long served as a refuge for people who seek to escape hunger, poverty, torture, and the oppression of the human spirit in their own countries. However, the issue of immigration in the United States has become a political flashpoint since the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. The sacralization of the tragedy has served to paint all immigrants with the same fear-ladened brush, and has marginalized and stereotyped an already vulnerable population. Today, more than ever, immigrants in the United States face increasing stressors as they try to assimilate in a politically charged post 9/11 world. To be an effective social worker, immigration issues and multicultural awareness is critical. Mary and Mario, a couple who

In the United States, the cliché of a nation of immigrants is often invoked. Indeed, very few Americans can trace their ancestry to what is now the United States, and the origins of its immigrants have changed many times in American history. Despite the identity of an immigrant nation, changes in the origins of immigrants have often been met with resistance. What began with white, western European settlers fleeing religious persecution morphed into a multicultural nation as immigrants from countries across the globe came to the U.S. in increasing numbers. Like the colonial immigrants before them, these new immigrants sailed to the Americas to gain freedom, flee poverty and

One of the most defining traits for the United States of America is that the nation is one made up of immigrants, it is a basic building block that can not be overlooked, nor should it. That being said, it is important to countless citizens to be open when it comes to immigration, while keeping the country hospitable to its citizens for generations to come. However, this attitude to immigration is a fairly recent phenomenon in American history, especially in regards to immigrants coming in from non-Western European countries. With the introduction of the Immigration Act of 1965 and the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 (IRCA) came about the changes to immigration policy that would forever change the face of the nation and create the diversity that has become a point of pride. The sentiment is not felt nationwide, however, as the immigration patterns brought about with these two acts has brought hostility as well, especially from those who feel that immigration is a threat to the country as a whole, specifically illegal immigration. Immigration, and its illegal counterpart, is an issue that defines this period in American history, and while it did not necessary start off targeting Mexican and Latino immigrants, it has very much been immortalized within the communities and become the face of immigrants to the nation as a whole.

President Donald Trump’s immigration policy, now an Executive order, has been the topic of controversy since the order was signed on January 27th, 2017 (BBC.com). An improved order was again signed on March 6, 2017 (BBC.com). However, a case in the Supreme Court of USA will determine the future of the ban, which runs between October 2nd and December 21st (BBC.com). The first executive order banned people from seven countries: Iran, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Somalia, Sudan, and Libya from entering the United States for a period of 90 days. It also put a halt on refugee resettlement for 120 days and banned Syrian refugees permanently (Park). However, as per the revised executive order issued on March 6th, Iraq was removed from the list and the

Most Americans place their pride in being apart of a country where a man can start at the bottom and work his way to the top. We also stress the fact that we are “all created equal” with “certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness.” (Jefferson 45) During the early 1900s white Americans picked and chose who they saw fit to live in America and become an American. “Those that separate the desirable from the undesirable citizen or neighbor are individual rather than race.”

Immigration is a controversial topic that has impacted our society for decades perplexed by policies media coverage, perceptions based on one’s own lack of knowledge, personal experiences and a host of other factors that influence how our society views immigrants and immigration policies. The United States is a diverse population of people and filled with experiences that come from various walks of life that contribute to enhancing our social culture, economic development, and cultural acceptance.