Evolution of the National Citizenry

  • Naturalization Act of 1790

    Naturalization Act of 1790

    This Act limited access to U.S. citizenship to white immigrants to people from Western Europe as long as they had resided in the U.S. for at least two years and their children were under 21 years of age.
  • Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798

    Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798

    Enacted by Congress regarding laws that targeted people who would be deemed as a political threat to the U.S. over issues in Europe
  • Ban on Importation of People of Color

    Ban on Importation of People of Color

    The Haitian revolution resulted in Congress banning by free blacks in order to 'contain' anti-slavery campaigns and revolts (effective 1808)
  • Indian Removal Act

    Indian Removal Act

    Law authorized during the presidency of Andrew Jackson to confiscate land from Native Americans and then provided resources for their forced removal westward of the Mississippi River.
  • Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo

    Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo

    Treaty that formalized the U.S.' annexation of a northern part of Mexico that granted federal citizenship to those that remained in the territory after the Mexican-American War. Consisted if California, Nevada, Utah, New Mexico, and majority of Arizona and Colorado
  • Dred Scott v. Sanford

    Dred Scott v. Sanford

    Supreme Court ruling that established that slaves and free African Americans were not citizens of the U.S. with no entitlement to right and privileges of citizenship such as to sue
  • Emancipation Proclamation

    Emancipation Proclamation

    President Abraham Lincoln's Executive order to free slaves that were held in the southern Confederate states immediately
  • Immigration Act of 1864

    Immigration Act of 1864

    A law that legalized labor recruitment practices that were similar to indentured servitude/labor in hopes of encouraging immigration to the U.S.
  • 14th Amendment

    14th Amendment

    Secured Equal treatment for African Americans after the civil war and guaranteed citizenship to those who were born in the U.S. whilst providing equal protections for legal residents
  • Naturalization Act of 1870

    Naturalization Act of 1870

    Extended naturalization rights that white immigrants had to “aliens of African nativity and to persons of African descent,” denying access to the rights and protections of citizenship to non-white immigrant groups.
  • Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882

    Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882

    Prohibited immigration of Chinese people to the U.S.
  • Jones-Shafroth Act

    Jones-Shafroth Act

    Enacted U.S. Citizenship for Puerto Ricans after Puerto Rico was acquired by the U.S. in 1898
  • Emergency Quota Law

    Emergency Quota Law

    Enacted as an emergency measure to impose high and drastic numbers of immigration after the end of World War l
  • Indian Citizenship Act

    Indian Citizenship Act

    Native Americans that were born in the U.S. were given U.S. Citizenship but the right to vote depended on the state
  • Immigration And Nationality Act of 1952

    Immigration And Nationality Act of 1952

    Eliminated laws that were preventing Asians from becoming naturalized American citizens and race was no longer allowed to be a factor in immigration. The National Origins Quota System signified that each Asian nation was given only a minimum quota of 100 visas each year.
  • Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA)

    Congress implemented through bipartisan agreement a multi-pronged system that provided amnesty for established residents, increased border enforcement, enhanced requirements of employers, and expanded guestworker visa programs.
  • Immigration Act of 1990

    Congress revised the Immigration Act of 1965 by implementing the H-1B visa program for skilled temporary workers, with some provisions for conversion to permanent status, and the diversity visa lottery for populations unable to enter through the preference system.
  • Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)

    Executive order provided protection from deportation and work authorization to persons who arrived as minor children and had lived in the United States since June 15, 2007.