U.S. Immigration: History and Current Issues

1
U.S. Immigration History and Current Issues

• Senior Capstone
• Ryan Rice

2
Overview

• Breakdown of history of U.S. Immigration by eras
• Open-Door
• Door-Ajar
• Pet-Door
• Revolving-Door
• Storm-Door
• Including Important Legislation and Court Cases

3
Overview

• Following Historical Breakdown
• Look at current societal impacts of immigration
  both legal and illegal.
• Assimilation
• Economics
• Bilingualism
• Multiculturalism
• National Security

4
Open-Door Era

• Founding of the United States until 1880.
• Immigration Relatively Easy and Encouraged.
• Old-Wave Immigrants primarily from Northwest
  Europe.
• 1789 Article 1, Section 8 grants Congress power
  To Establish a Uniform Rule of Naturalization

5
Open-Door Era

• Naturalization Act of 1790 First official act.
• Two-year residency requirement
• Revised in 1802 Extended to five years
• Became the Five-Year Residency Act in 1813
• 1819 Began documenting all immigrants as the
  left their ship

6
Open-Door Era

• 1848 - Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo Citizenship
  to those remaining in Territory cede by Mexico
• Two Waves 1845-1854 and 1865-1875
• First- Predominantly Irish and German
• Second Included British and
• Scandinavian

7
Open-Door Era

• 1862 Homestead Act
• 1868 Ratification of the 14th Amendment
• 1870 Citizenship granted to those of African
  decent
• 1 million immigrants per year 13 foreign born
• Gave rise to fear and anxiety in native-born

8
Door-Ajar Era

• Began in 1880 and lasted 1920
• Rate of 1 million per year continued
• Shift to South, Central and Eastern Europe
• Know-Nothings and Ku Klux Klan led restrictionist
  attitude.

9
Door-Ajar Era

• 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act First piece of
  legislation aimed at a particular race or
  nationality.
• Virtually stopped Chinese immigration
• ten years.
• Reenacted in 1888, 1892 and 1904

10
Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882
11
Door-Ajar Era

• 1885 Foran Act illegal to fund immigration of
  others.
• 1888 Scott Act extended Chinese Exclusion act
  ten years/ barred return.
• 1889 Chae Chan Ping v. United States upheld
  Scott Act.

12
Door-Ajar Era

• 1892 Ellis Island
• 1894 Bureau of Immigration
• 1898 Wong Kim Ark v. United States
• Native born are eligible for nat.
• even if parents are not.
• 1907 Dillingham Commission Led to the quota
  acts of the 1920s

13
Pet-Door Era

• The Pet-Door Era 1920-1965
• Pro-restrictionist groups pushed for quota acts
  1921, 1924, 1929
• Immigration shifted back to Northwest Europe.
• Era of restrictive legislation

14
Pet-Door Era Quota Acts

• 1921 3 of pop. Of a country as of 1910 census.
• only 4 million entered from 1920-1930
• 1924 Johnson-Reed Act 2 of pop. Of a country
  as of 1890 census.
• Brought about shift back to Northwest Europe
• Barred most Asians aliens ineligible for
  citizenship
• 1929 proportion of pop. Or of each nationality
  for 1920 census.
• Only 150,000 admitted.

15
Decrease in Immigration
16
Pet-Door Era

• 1922 Cable Act women can become naturalized
  unless married to ineligible alien.
• Labor Appropriations Act of 1924 Established the
  U.S. Border Patrol

17
Great Depression

• Immigration slowed dramatically between 1929 and
  1939
• 1940 End of Depression Congress passed
  Registration Law and Nationality Act
• Required all citizens to register address
• annually.
• Consolidated all naturalization policy into
  one Act.

18
Pet-Door Era

• 1942 Executive Order 9066 Japanese Americans
  to relocation camps.
• 1943 Hirabayashi v. United States upheld
  military necessity
• 1944 Korematsu v. United States allowed for
  excluded zones
• 1952 Immigration and Naturalization Act removed
  racial and national-origin barrier.

19
Revolving-Door Era

• Began with the Immigration and Naturalization Act
  of 1965
• Replaced quota system with preference system
• Immigration in the following decade was up 60
• Act was amended in 1966 to allow for more refugees

20
Revolving-Door Era

• 1967 Afroyim v. Rusk Dual Citizenship
• 1970s concerns over immigrants entering
  illegally
• 5.4 million immigrants entered
• 1978 Pres. Carter Select Commission on
  Immigration and Refugee Policy
• Recommended closing backdoor and opening front
  door.

21
Revolving-Door Era

• 1980 Refugee Act
• 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA)
• Immigration Act of 1990 (IMMACT)
• Culmination of IRCA and SCIRP
• 1993 - NAFTA

22
Revolving-Door Era

• California passed Proposition 187
• Claimed Illegal immigration was a financial
  burden
• LULAC et al. v. Pete Wilson et al. declared 187
  unconstitutional
• 1996 Illegal Immigrant Reform and Immigrant
  Responsibility Act (IIRIRA)

23
Storm-Door Era

• Began in 2001 as a result of 9/11 terrorist
  attacks
• 2001 USA Patriot Act
• 2002 INS is abolished and duties granted to
  Department of Homeland Security
• 2005 USA Patriot Act Improvements and
  Reauthorization Act

24
Current Immigration Issues

• Assimilation
• Economics
• Bilingualism
• Multiculturalism
• National Security

25
Assimilation

• 1st step Naturalization process
• Pre-1970s Strong pressures on immigrants to
  assimilate into the culture
• Large numbers fear that immigrants would not
  form emotional attachment to new country

26
Assimilation

• Assimilate by acquiring skills
• Naturalization more job opportunities
• Proponents Immigrants have no problem
  assimilating
• Age is greatest distinguishing factor

27
Economics

• Pros
• more workers create more wealth
• provide basis for S. Security and Medicare
• most still pay income and property taxes
• benefit from brain-drain of other nations

28
Economics

• Cons
• Immigrant wages are decreasing
• Create a strain on taxpayers and government
• Tax burden in most states couple hundred /yr

29
Bilingualism

• Economic and Ideological detriment
• Single language unifies incredible diversity
• Multiple languages are inefficient
• Argument for too many Americans are illiterate
  anyway

30
Multiculturalism

• Distinct Culture Groups
• Organizational and Conceptual Borders
• Maintain ties to home country, thus no true
  American identity
• Proponents Proportion has remained stable over
  the years

31
National Security

• Major Concern recently Became important in
  1920s
• 7,000 miles of border
• Department of Homeland Security
• Struggle until recently
• Advances in transportation security
• Creative thinking to prevent attacks

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Summary and Review

• Five Eras of Immigration Open-Door, Door Ajar,
  Pet-Door, Revolving-Door, Storm-Door
• Immigration history of legislation
• Current Issues Assimilation, Economics,
  Bilingualism, Multiculturalism, and National
  Security