Press. voanews.com
President Donald
Trump’s executive orders last week limiting immigration to the U.S. may be the
first such directives in recent years, but they are hardly the first time the
U.S. government has sought to restrict immigration.
The U.S.
Constitution, which went into effect in 1789, gave Congress “absolute
authority” over immigration law, says Linda Monk, who wrote a book about the
Constitution called “The Words We Live By.” The president executes those laws
through regulations. For about the first
100 years of American history, Congress did not place any federal limits on
immigration.
During those
years, Irish and German immigrants came to the U.S. in large numbers. Many
Chinese immigrants did, too. In the 1860s, they came to work as laborers on the
continental railroad and stayed.
Members of the
American public disapproved of these groups. They did not like the Catholic
religion that many Irish and German immigrants practiced. And they did not like
Asian immigrants, whom they viewed as convicts, prostitutes, or competition for
jobs.
So, in the late
1800s, Congress moved for the first time to limit the number of immigrants.
Lawmakers targeted Asians, especially Chinese. The Page Act and the Chinese
Exclusion Act banned most Chinese women and workers.
By the turn of
the 20th century, the U.S. federal government had increased its role in
immigration. It established Ellis Island in New York as the entry point for
immigrants. And it oversaw a dramatic increase in the number of immigrants,
especially from Italy and Eastern Europe. Many of the new arrivals were
uneducated and had little money.
Once again, some
people opposed the number and kind of immigrants entering the country. A group
called the Immigration Restriction League was formed. They petitioned Congress
to require immigrants to show that they could at least read.
Both Presidents
Grover Cleveland and President Woodrow Wilson opposed the requirement. But in
1917, Congress approved the measure over Wilson’s objections. People who wished
to settle in the U.S. now had to pass a literacy test.
In the 1920s,
restrictions on immigration increased. The Immigration Act of 1924 was the most
severe: it limited the overall number of immigrants and established quotas
based on nationality. Among other things, the act sharply reduced immigrants
from Eastern Europe and Africa. And it completely restricted immigrants from
Asia, except for Japan and the Philippines.
At the same
time, the historian’s page at the State Department notes that the act made more
visas available to people from Britain and Western Europe. “In all of its
parts, the most basic purpose of the 1924 Immigration Act was to preserve the
ideal of U.S. homogeneity,” the State Department history page concludes.
Major change
During the 1940s
and 50s, the U.S. made some policy changes that increased – however slightly –
the number and nationalities of immigrants. Then, in 1965, a major change
happened. Under pressure in part from the civil rights movement, Congress
passed the Immigration and Nationality Act. President Lyndon Johnson signed it.
The act
eliminated the quota system based on nationality. Instead, it prioritized
immigrants who already had family members in the U.S. It also sought to offer
protection to refugees from areas with violence and conflict.
Even though the
act kept some limits in place, the origins of immigrants changed dramatically.
Instead of being from Western Europe, most immigrants to the U.S. by the end of
the 20th century were originally from Mexico, the Philippines, Korea, the
Dominican Republic, India, Cuba and Vietnam.
So, what about
Trump’s order?
Kunal Parker, a
professor at the University of Miami School of Law, says the 1965 law ended
“overt discrimination” in U.S. immigration policy. Parker is also the author of
a book called “Making Foreigners: Immigration and Citizenship Law in America.” Parker
says that people who are protesting Trump’s executive order probably “perceive
what is happening as contrary to U.S. tradition since 1965.”
The order bans
refugees and people from seven Muslim-majority countries from entering the
United States. The countries are Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and
Yemen. Protesters argue that Trump’s order discriminates against Muslims and
defies the American tradition of welcoming immigrants. But Parker cautions
against seeing Trump’s action as illegal. He points out that the Supreme Court
has historically permitted the president and Congress a good deal of authority
to regulate immigration.
And, he notes,
President Obama also signed an executive order related to immigration. That
order aimed to protect the families of undocumented immigrants with U.S.-born
children. However, Parker says, “Something that is legal might be very
problematic.” Both Parker and legal scholar Linda Monk also note the
Constitution requires both Congress and the president follow certain procedures
when regulating immigration. Those procedures protect against discrimination.
“The highest law
says that these actions have to be carried out fairly,” says Monk.
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