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1790
Congress passed a law defining who could become a citizen if a personwas not born here: citizzenship was possible only for someone who was "a free white person." This barred any African or Asian immagrant from becoming a citizen. After the civil war, the law was changed to allow people born in Africa to become citizens, but Asians were still excluded. -
Period: to
1880-1920
This time saw then heaviest period of immagration when some 25 million immagrants arrived. Most came from Southern and Eastern Europe. -
Chinease Exclusion Act of 1882
Congress passed the first major law that barred entrance to specific groups because the California Gold Rush and railroad building had attracted many immagrants. Congress later passed the Chinease Exclusion Act of 1882. It said that no Chinease laborer could enter the U.S. for 10 years -
Quota Act of 1921
Congress set up quotas favoring immigrants favoring northwestern Europe; the Immigration Act of 1924 expands the quota system: immigration from any country im limited to 2% of its total numbers in the 1890 census. -
Immigration Act of 1924
Congress introduced a quota system by country. Each country's immigrants we limited to 2% of foreign-born residants from that countrylisted in the U.S. Census of 1890 -
Immigration Reform Act
Abolished the quota system based on national origin. Johnson called the old system "un-American." -
Immigration Reform and Control Act
Penalizes employers for knowingly hiring undocumented immigrants, but gives amnesty to some undocumented immigrants, allowing them a path to eventualy apply for citizenship. -
Immigration Act 0f 1990
More than 80% of American immigrants came from Asia and Latin America. Congress wanted to prevent any one country from making up most of the immigrants of the U.S. -
Immigration Reform Act of 1996
Increased border patrol staff and stiffend penalties for creating false citizenship papers or smuggling undocumented workers. -
2007
Bush (Dubbya) committed himself to a bill to address all immigration issues. Proposed to fill short-tem labor needs through guest worker program and strengthened boarder control
