HST 175 “a nation of immigrants and immigrant exclusion” Michele Brewster Oct/Nov 2016

Naturalization Act of 1790 March 26, 1790: Limited naturalization to U.S. citizenship to “free white immigrants of good character”

1798 Alien Act Allowed for the deportation of persons from abroad deemed “dangerous” by federal authorities Foner, Page 303

1868: Initial Unrestricted Chinese Immigration 1868: Congress passed a law allowing unrestricted Chinese immigration The Railroad Act had been passed in 1862 The Chinese proved to be an efficient workforce in the specific task of railroad construction

1875 Page Law Congress forbids entry of Chinese, Japanese, and "Mongolian" prostitutes, felons, and contract laborers.

1882 Chinese Exclusion Act Prohibited immigration of Chinese laborers Renewed in 1892 Made permanent in 1902 Not repealed until 1943 1881-1900: San Francisco Chinese population went from 26,000 to 11,000 Chan Kiu San, 1904, “They call it exclusion; but it is not exclusion, it is extermination.” Downward migration of jobs to less skilled jobs 1882: Exclusion Act: most migration closed for owmen Merchant’s wives, house servants prostitutes Arnold Genthe

1885 Alien Contract Labor Law Halted US employers from sponsoring foreign laborers To ostensibly stop undermining wages of US workers Extension of the Chinese exclusion act, includes anti-Asian sentiments Blocked entry of indentured or contract laborers Those recruited, assisted and bonded by employers Page 44 Bengali Harlem

1898: Wong Kim Ark v. United States U.S.-born Chinese cannot be stripped of their citizenship.

1905: Section 60 of California's Civil Code Amended to forbid marriage between whites and "Mongolians."

1907: Gentlemen’s Agreement Japan will not issue passports to U.S.-bound workers

1913: California Alien Land Law "aliens ineligible to citizenship" cannot buy land or lease for more than three years Other states follow.

Immigration Restriction Act of 1917 or “Asiatic Barred Zone Act” Adult immigrants who failed a reading test were denied admission into the U.S. Immigrants not allowed from"barred zone" area: India, Afghanistan, Arabia, E. Indies The Impact and Changes Wrought by World War I

1922: Cable Act American female citizen who marries "alien ineligible to citizenship" loses her citizenship Later amended in 1931 so her husband can be naturalized

1922: Takao Ozawa v. U.S. Japanese ineligible for naturalized citizenship

1923: U.S. v. Bhagat Singh Thind Thind argued he was “Caucasian” arguing based on the Indo-European racial category The Supreme Court denied him this claim Asian Indians ineligible for naturalized citizenship Closed off Asian pathway to citizenship

1924 Johnson-Reed Immigration Act Denied entry to virtually all Asians # of immigrants limited to 2% of total population according to the 1890 census Did not affect immigration from western hemisphere Restricted overseas immigration to the U.S. leaving labor shortages Created strong demand for Mexican workers to come to the U.S.

Immigration Restriction Act of 1917 or “Asiatic Barred Zone Act” All adult immigrants who failed a reading test would be denied admission into the U.S. Banned those from India, Afghanistan, Arabia, E. Indies (even if they could pass a reading test)

Immigration Restriction Act of 1921 Numerical limits on immigration using quotas based on the National Origins Formula: 3% of the number of residents from that same country living in the U.S. per the census of 1910 Set no limits on immigration from Latin America Did not apply to Asian countries listed in the Immigration Act of 1917 “Asiatic Barred Zone Act”

1924 National Origins Act or Johnson-Reed Immigration Act Aliens ineligible for citizenship could not enter Number of immigrants limited to 2% of total population according to the 1890 census Immigration from the western Europe not hurt as bad Left labor shortages Created a strong demand for Mexican and Filipino workers, esp. Hawaii & California Page 143 in Little Manila: “As historians of American immigration policy have pointed out, the testimonies of eugenicists and so called scientists of race who claimed that the entry of nonwhites would be devastating to the racial makeup of the nation played a central role in the 1924 Immigration Act and the law that eventually excluded Filipinas/os…David Barrows of Univ of CA, C.M. Goethe of Sacramento characterized Filipinos as jungle folk who were vain, lazy, and arrogant.

1934 Tydings-McDuffie Act Senator Millard Tydings of Maryland and Rep. John McDuffie of Alabama authored the bill Gradual PI independence in 10 yrs (1944) Status from nationals to aliens Limited PI immigration to 50 Filipina/os per yr See page 144 of Little Manila

1943 Magnuson Act Repealed the Chinese Exclusion Act China and the U.S. allied vs. Japan Chinese already living in the U.S. allowed to naturalize as citizens To counter Japanese propaganda re: American racism Chinese still not allowed to own property Allowed a quota of 105 Chinese immigrants / yr Did NOT repeal immigration restrictions on all other Asian countries

1952: Mc-Carron Walter Act Ended racial restriction of the 1790 Naturalization Act For the first time, non-whites allowed to naturalize as citizens Kept in place the national quota system of 1924 (2% of the 1890 census) Allowed immigrants from Asia to enter, overturning the 1917 “Asiatic Barred Zone” Called for the deportation of anyone labeled as subversive, with known communist leanings, or with “moral turpitude” (gays, lesbians, psychopathic personality disorder) (dramatic rise of social workers after 1955 per Meyerowitz and Kunzel) Dec 1945: Congress Passed Public Law 271 (War Brides Act): Allowed German and Italian wives of American servicemen to migrate to the U.S. 1947: Congress granted immigration rights to Japanese wives of U.S. servicemen stationed in Japan

1965 Hart-Cellar Act President Johnson Immigration quotas by place of origin, NOT quotas of 1924 (1890) Favored scientists, engineers, and businesspeople, (trade and foreign policy) Based on immigrants’ skills and family relationships with U.S. residents Essentially maintained exclusion of working-class immigrants 170 K immigrants/yr allowed from the E. Hemisphere 120 K immigrants/yr allowed from the W. Hemisphere I960: 75% of new immigrants came from Europe 1999: 51% of new immigrants came from Latin America 27% from Asia 16% from Europe Post 1965 Immigration: PI, India, Korea, SE Asian Refugees See page 5 in Bengali Harlem