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Immigration. Plymouth Colony. 1620-1691 English settlers – Pilgrims – seeking religious freedom "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof." — U.S. Constitution. 1619 African Arrival in Virginia. 20 Africans
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Plymouth Colony • 1620-1691 • English settlers – Pilgrims – seeking religious freedom "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof." — U.S. Constitution
1619 African Arrival in Virginia • 20 Africans • Transported in a Dutch ship, stolen from a Spanish ship • Traded for food, left in Jamestown, VA as servants • “Servant” becomes “Slave” in less than a generation – at first justified by religious difference, later by skin color.
The Naturalization Act of 1790 • First law setting rules for granting of US citizenship (Constitution grants that power to Congress) • All “free white persons” of “good character” • Excludes: American Indians, slaves, free Blacks and Asians
Potato Famine (Ireland, 1845 – 1851) • 1 million dead • 1 million emigrated • Population of Ireland decreased 25% • Ireland produced ample food for export – Irish natives couldn’t afford to feed themselves • By 1850, the Irish made up a quarter of the population in Boston, New York City, Philadelphia and Baltimore.
Shift in Immigration • Old Immigrants (1620 – 1840) • Protestants • England, Germany, the Netherlands • White, fair hair and eyes • New Immigrants (1840 – 1920) • Irish, Asian, Eastern European, Italian • Looked different • Catholic, Jewish, many different faiths • Led to emergence of “nativist” movements
The Emergency Quota Act (1921) • First time numerical limits were placed on immigration • Quotas based on ethnicity • Each year US would admit no more than 3% of number of residents from that same country already living in the U.S. • Maintains the existing ethnic mixture • 1920: 805,228 immigrants • 1922: 309,556
The Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 • Eliminated the national origins quotas of the Emergency Quota Act • Created new guidelines • Gave preference to family members • Skilled laborers • Per-country limits • Total immigration limit
Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 • Required employers to attest to emplyees’ immigration status • Illegal to hire/recruit illegal immigrants • Legalized some seasonal agricultural workers • Amnesty for 3 million illegal immigrants in the US prior to 1982.