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Page Act
The Page Act prohibited the recruitment of laborers from ¨China, Japan, or any Oriental country¨ who were not brought to the United States for their own will or were brought for ¨lewd or immoral purposes.¨ This act is enforced by invasive interrogations at Angel Island, effectively blocking Chinese women from entering the country and stifling the ability of Chinese American men to start families in America. -
Chinese Exclusion Act
The Chinese Exclusion Act was passed by Congress in 1882. It provided an absolute 10-year ban on Chinese laborers immigrating to the United States. The act was passed to placate worker demands and assuage concerns about maintaining white ¨racial purity.¨ -
Japanese Internment Camps
Established during WWII by President Franklin D. Roosevelt through his Executive Order 9066, the policy stated that people of Japanese descent including US citizens would be incarcerated in isolated camps. The intention was to prevent espionage on American shores. -
Asian American First in Congress
Dalip Saund becomes the first Asian American sworn in as a US representative. He was vocal on issues of civil rights including desegregation. -
Advances in Labor Rights
Facing the threat of pay cuts the Agricultural Workers Organizing Committee consisting mostly of Filipino farmworkers, begins the Delano-Grape Strike. -
Immigration and Nationality Act
President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the Immigration and Nationality Act, putting an end to immigration policies based on ethnicity and race, resulting in a wave of Asian immigrants who have been barred from entry.