The immigration debate

2. The immigration debate The history of immigration in the United States

3. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world. • …He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.

4. Early years • 6,000 a year (numbers are uncertain) • French refugees (slave revolt in Haiti) • After 1820 federal records were kept • Irish (famine of 1845-1849) • .5 million Germans • 1850 first census to ask for “place of birth” • 90% of population was native born

5. Timeline of US immigration laws • 1776 - Unrestricted • 1795 - Naturalization Act - Citizenship limited to "free white persons" residing in the US who renounce allegiance to former country • 1798 - Alien & Sedition Acts - President is given the right to expel "aliens" deemed dangerous to country (only lasted a few years) • 1850s - Emergence of "Know Nothing Party" seeking to "purify" the nation by restricting immigration and altering citizenship requirements (lasted less than 10 years) • 1882 - Chinese Exclusion Act - Fear of competition from Chinese workers led to prevention of any further Chinese entering the US • 1885 - Contract Labor Laws - Prohibited contracts for cheap foreign labor

6. 1892 - Ellis Island, NY set up to regulate immigration • 1917 - Immigration Act of 1917 - Further restrictions on immigration, expanding the classes of foreigners excluded from US. It imposed a literacy test and designated an Asiatic Barred Zone. • 1921 - Congress establishes first quota system for immigrants • 1924 - National Origins Act reduced quotas of immigrants deemed "less desirable", such as Russian (Jews) and Italians (Catholics) • 1942 - Bracero program • 1948 - Displaced Persons Act • 1952 - Immigration and Nationality Act - Consolidation of immigration laws and abolished Asian Barred Zone. • 1953 - Refugee Relief Act • 1954 - Operation Wetback

7. 1965 - Immigration and Nationality Act - national origin quotas abolished, annual limit imposed on visas for immigrants • 1980 - Refugge Act increased overall refugee quotas • 1986 - Immigration Reform and Control Act granted lawful permanent residency to over 2.7 million undocumented immigrants • 1990 - Immigration Act established categories of employment and placed cap of number of non-immigrant workers • 1992 - Chinese Student Protection • 1996 - Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act - imposted strict penalties against illegal immigration and expanded definition of deportable offenses Selected text taken from www.ailf.org

8. Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo • 1848 • Concluded the Mexican War • Citizenship for residents • 60,000 New Mexico • 4,000 California

9. The 20th. Century • Mexican Revolution (1911-1929) drove close to 1 million refugess across a porous border. • Some returned during the Great Depression.

10. The Evian Conference • July 1938 • Failed to pass resolution protecting Jews in Germany.

11. resistance • “In the past 50 years, polling data have charted a deepening opposition to immigration, linked in part, it appears, to economic concerns.” National Academy of Science study: Smith, James P. & Barry Emondston, eds., “The New Americans: Economic, Demographic, and Fiscal Effects of Immigration” (1997)

12. Countries with the largest number of immigrants in the US

13. We are a nation of immigrants because… • 56 million people • 20% of the population is either a first generation immigrant or has one or both immigrant parents. Schmidley, Dianne, U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Reports, Series P23-206, “Profile of the Foreign-Born Population in the United States: 2000”, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C., 2001.

14. Some definitions • Citizen : sworn loyalty to a nation • Naturalization: process by which citizenship is conferred • period of continuous residence and physical presence in the United States; • residence in a particular USCIS District prior to filing; • an ability to read, write, and speak English; • a knowledge and understanding of U.S. history and government; • good moral character; • attachment to the principles of the U.S. Constitution; and, • favorable disposition toward the United States.

15. …Some definitions • Resident : intending to stay • Undocumented : lacking permission • Illegal : prohibited by law or accepted rules • Guest worker : foreign labor hired on temporary or permanent basis (Federal Guestworker Program) • Economic migrant: guest worker, foreign worker • Resident alien: foreign national living and working in the United States • Refugee : seeking asylum to escape persecution

16. …Some definitions • Documents : official papers that prove the existence of relationships and facts • “Green cards”: Lawful Permanent Residency • Visa : allows the bearer to apply for entry, does not grant the right to enter the US (BCBP) • Citizenship : membership in a political community • Border : geographic boundaries of political entities. WASHINGTON October 1, 2006. (Washington Post) -- The Senate gave final approval last night to legislation authorizing the construction of 700 miles of double-layered fencing on the U.S.-Mexico border, shelving President Bush's vision of a comprehensive overhaul of U.S. immigration laws in favor of a vast barrier.

17. Alien • Any person not a citizen or national of the United States (USCIS) • National: a person owing permanent allegiance to a state strange unknown dissimilar opposed inconsistent incongrous adverse not native outsider outlander Creature from outer space

18. It all depends on your point of view • Emigrate • Immigrate • migrate

19. Something to think about • What is the best way to describe the immigration history of the US? • What is the current image of the immigrant? Why? • In terms of “ups” and “downs” where are we in the historic cycles of immigration?

25. October 1, 2006 • Congress okays 700 mile border fence with Mexico WASHINGTON October 1, 2006. (Washington Post) -- The Senate gave final approval last night to legislation authorizing the construction of 700 miles of double-layered fencing on the U.S.-Mexico border, shelving President Bush's vision of a comprehensive overhaul of U.S. immigration laws in favor of a vast barrier.

26. Resources on line • http://www.latinamericanstudies.org/ • Latino studies program at Indiana Univerisity • http://www.cis.org/ (Center for Immigration Studies) • “Pro-immigrant low-immigration think tank” • http://steinhardt.nyu.edu/immigration/about/lisa.htm (L.I.S.A. Longitudinal Immigrant Student Adaption Study at NYU) • http://www.ccis-ucsd.org/PUBLICATIONS/working_papers.htm • (working papers of Center for Comparative Immigration Studies at University of California at San Diego) • http://hapi.ucla.edu(Hispanic American Periodicals Index) • Database of Latin American journal articles