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Arrival of English Settlers
On May 14, 1607, a small company of settlers landed at a point on the James River in Virginia and established the settlement of Jamestown. It was the first permanent English settlement in the New World. -
The Naturalization Act
This article of legislation allowed an individual to apply for citizenship if they were a free white person, being of good character, and living in the United States for two years.The individual's citizenship was also extended to any children under the age of 21, regardless of their birthplace. If the applicant had never been a U.S. resident the application was disregarded. -
The California Gold Rush
The news of gold brought some 300,000 people to California from the rest of the United States and abroad. The gold-seekers, called "forty-niners" often faced substantial hardships on the trip. While most of the newly arrived were Americans, the Gold Rush attracted tens of thousands from Latin America, Europe Australia and China. -
Massive migration of Mexicans
The need of U.S. employers to import foreign manual labor was heightened first by the expansion of cattle ranches in the Southwest, and by the increase of fruit production in California in 1850 and 1880. Mexican workers supported American agriculture, between 1850 and 1880, 55,000 Mexican workers immigrated to the United States to become field hands. -
Massive migration of Japanese
The start of the great period of Japanese immigration to the United States was in the 1870s. On May 17,1868, the Scioto set sail out of Yokohama for Hawaii, carrying 153 Japanese migrants bound for employment in the sugar plantations. These constituted the first mass emigration of Japanese overseas. As Japanese immigrants willing to work hard for low wages, many Americans were afraid Japanese would take away jobs from American people. -
Notable immigration from Italy
About half of all late 19th century Italian immigrants were manual laborers. As early as 1890, 90 percent of New York City's public works employees and 99 percent of Chicago's street workers were Italian. -
The Chinese Exclusion Act
The Chinese Exclusion Act was one of the most significant restrictions on free immigration in U.S. history. For the first time, Federal law proscribed entry of an ethnic working group on the premise that it endangered the good order of certain localities. The Act excluded Chinese "skilled and unskilled laborers employed in mining" from entering the country for ten years under penalty of imprisonment and deportation. -
Ellis Island
Ellis Island opened in 1892 as a federal immigration station, a purpose it served for more than 60 years (it closed in 1954). Millions of newly arrived immigrants passed through the station during that time. In fact, it has been estimated that close to 40 percent of all current U.S. citizens can trace at least one of their ancestors to Ellis Island. -
Immigration Act
The 1917 Immigration Act, also known as the Asiatic Barred Zone Act, was a law passed by Congress on February 5, 1917 that restricted the immigration of 'undesirables' from other countries. Another important provision of the Immigration Act was the literacy test imposed on immigrants entering the country. Those who were over the age of 16 and could read some language must read 30 to 40 words to show they are capable of reading. -
Emergency Immigration Quota
The American, Emergency Quota Act, also known as the Emergency Immigration Act of 1921, restricted immigration into its country; the act imposed a quota that limited the number of immigrants who would be admitted from any country annually to 3% of the number of residents from that same country who lived in the United States. -
Creation of U.S. Border Patrol
On May 28, 1924, Congress passed the Labor Appropriations Act of 1924, officially establishing the United States Border Patrol with appropriations for 450 Patrol Inspectors. Their purpose was to secure the borders between inspection stations. -
Immigration and Naturalization Act
Otherwise known as the McCarran-Walter Act, the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 was meant to exclude certain immigrants from immigrating to America, post World War II and in the early Cold War. The McCarran-Walter Act focused upon denying immigrants who were unlawful, immoral, diseased in any way, or politically radical. -
Refugee Relief Act
Enacted on August 7, 1953, the Refugee Relief Act (RRA) authorized the granting of 205,000 special nonquota visas apportioned to individuals in three classes, along with accompanying members of their immediate family, including refugees. -
The Immigration Reform and Control Act
The Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 allows most illegal aliens who have reside in the U.S. continuously since January 1 of 1982 to apply for legal status and prohibits employers from hiring illegal aliens and mandates penalties for violations. -
Immigration Act
Act of November 29, 1990 increased the limits on legal immigration to the United States, revised all grounds for exclusion and deportation, authorized temporary protected status to aliens of designated countries, revised and established new nonimmigrant admission categories, revised and extended the Visa Waiver Pilot Program, and revised naturalization authority and requirements. -
Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act
This act is a very large and complex piece of legislation, enacted on September 30, 1996 (Clinton was president at this time), which addresses many aspects of immigration (both legal and illegal), and the responsibilities placed upon not only immigrants, but those enforcing legal immigration. It directly addresses border patrol and upgrades needed for border patrol enforcers, equipment, and the overall patrolling process. -
Patriot Act
The act, as a response to the terrorist attacks of September 11th, significantly reduced restrictions in law enforcement agencies' gathering of intelligence within the United States and immigration authorities in detaining and deporting immigrants suspected of terrorism-related acts. The act also expanded the definition of terrorism to include domestic terrorism. -
Real ID Act
Modified U.S federal law pertaining to standards for the state driver licenses and identification cards as well as various immigration issues pertaining to terrorism. -
Arizona SB1070
Arizona's SB 1070 invites rampant racial profiling against Latinos, Asian-Americans and others presumed to be "foreign" based on how they look or sound. They also authorize police to demand papers proving citizenship or immigration status from anyone they stop and suspect of being in the country unlawfully. -
DREAM Act
Under the provisions of the DREAM Act, qualifying undocumented youth would be eligible for a 6 year long conditional path to citizenship that requires completion of a college degree or two years of military service.
