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First Alien 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. Upon receiving the courts approval they took an oath of allegiance which was recorded. The individual's citizenship was also extended to any children under the age of 21, regardless of their birthplace. -
The Steerage Act
Established standards to be followed by ships carrying passenges to the United States. -
California Gold Rush
When gold was discovered in 1848, people poured into California to prospect the "golden mountains." This shortage created opportunities for many people that needed the work. Most of these people were immigrants who, when they finally reached California, found that the gold was harder to find and less abundant than they dreamed. -
The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
The treaty added an additional 525,000 square miles to United States territory, including the land that makes up all or parts of present-day Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming. The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ends the Mexican-American War and extends citizenship to the approximately 80,000 Mexicans living in Texas, California, and the American Southwest. -
The Great Compromise
The Compromise of 1850 was a package of five separate bills passed by the United States Congress in September 1850, which defused a four-year political confrontation between slave and free states regarding the status of territories acquired during the Mexican-American War (1846–1848). -
The Homestead Act
The Homestead Act was a way to get land. The government said that any U.S. citizen who did not fight against the government could file an application to receive land. The law allowed any citizen, or even an immigrant who had initiated the citizenship process, to claim 160 acres of land simply by paying a fee of $10. -
Immigration Act
Congress passed a new Immigration Act that stated a 50 cents tax would be collected on all aliens landing at United States ports. An act in which the State Commission and officers were in charge of checking the passengers. -
Statue of Liberty dedicated
France gives the Statue of Liberty to the United States as a gift of friendship. She becomes America’s symbol for freedom. -
The Naturalization Act of 1906
The Naturalization Act of 1906 was an act of the United States Congress signed into law by Theodore Roosevelt that revised the law from 1870 and required immigrants to learn English in order to become naturalized citizens. -
Border patrol was created
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. -
Indian Citizenship Act
Native Americans who are indigenous to the United States did not get the right to vote. Congress passed the Indian Citizenship Act which proclaims, “BE IT ENACTED by the Senate and house of Representatives of the U.S.A. in Congress assembled, That all non-citizen Indians born within the territorial limits of the United States be declared to be citizens of the United States. -
Native Americans officially granted the right to vote
It was not until July 15, 1948, after World War II, as a result of a lawsuit, that Indians in Arizona were granted the right to vote. That lawsuit was filed by two WW II veterans from the Fort McDowell Reservation. -
Immigration and Nationality Act, a.k.a. the Hart-Celler Act
The Hart-Celler Act abolished the national origins quota system that had structured American immigration policy since the 1920s, replacing it with a preference system that focused on immigrants' skills and family relationships with citizens or residents of the U.S. -
Immigration Reform & Control Act
The purpose of this legislation was to amend, revise, and reform the status of unauthorized immigrants set forth in the Immigration and Nationality Act. This bill gave unauthorized aliens the opportunity to apply and gain legal status if they met requirements. -
Secure Fence Act
The Secure Fence Act of 2006 was enacted October 26, 2006 and is a part of President George W. Bush’s effort on immigration reform. Allow the Department of Homeland Security to gain control over the entire United States-Mexico border and maritime border. Construction of physical barriers and advanced technology in reinforcing fencing along the southern U.S. border, and enforcement of immigration security in specified areas. -
S. 2205 Dream Act
A bill to authorize the cancellation of removal and adjustment of status of certain alien students who are long-term United States residents and who entered the United States as children, and for other purposes. -
Arizona Senate Bill 1070
Arizona Senate Bill 1070 was signed and went into effect under Republican Governor Jan Brewer. Arizona Senate Bill 1070, which requires police to determine the immigration status of someone arrested or detained when there is “reasonable suspicion” they are not in the U.S. legally. Becoming the most stringent anti-immigration law in recent decades. An immigrant found without proper documentation would be charged with a misdemeanor and transfer to Customs or Border Protection.
