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Alien & Sedition Acts
President John Adams signed the Alien and Sedition Acts which not only lengthened the amount of time of residency required for citizenship to fourteen years, but also gave the President the power to deport any individuals he considered dangerous to the nation. -
Slave Trade Act
Congress makes it illegal to import more slaves into the United States. Approximately 50,000 slaves were smuggled passed the borders after this act was initiated and these slaves technically became the first illegal aliens in our country. -
Irish Potato Famine
After a potato famine killed over a million people in Ireland and their main resource of food became scarce, many Irish natives immigrated to America during the following years to escape hardships. -
The Gold Rush
In California, The Gold Rush increased the amount of Chinese immigrants coming to the United States. As a result, the California Government created the Foreign Miners Tax and often required Chinese immigrants to pay multiple times. -
Naturalization Act
After the Civil War, the Naturalization Act of 1870 provided slaves the opportunity for naturalization, which in 1790, naturalization was only provided for free white people. -
Chinese Exclusion Act
The Chinese Exclusion Act, signed by President Arthur, banned Chinese laborers without family in the US from immigrating to our country for the next ten years. -
Ellis Island Opened
Ellis Island opened for the following 60 years as it was a hub for immigrants coming to America to pass through before they were granted entry into our nation. -
Anarchist Exclusion Act
President Theodore Roosevelt signed this act into law, which gave the US the right to deport any immigrants who supported an overthrow of government and/or opposition of US laws. -
Mexican Revolution
The Mexican Revolution brought the first Mexican refugees to American soil and started the process of immigration from Mexico into the States. -
Emergency Quota Act
The Emergency Quota Act determined how many immigrants would be allowed into the US from other countries. This act was a turning point in our mmigration policy. -
US Border Patrol Established
Congress passed the Labor Appropriation Act of 1924 which officially established the US Border Patrol to secure the nation. They were stationed between inspection points both on the Canadian and Mexican borders, which also expanded to the coast as well. -
Alien Registration Act
The Alien Registration Act required all imigrants (non-citizens) in the United States over the age of 14 to register, state their political beliefs and occupation status within the United States. -
Refugee Act of 1980
The Refugee Act, signed by President Jimmy Carter, allowed for refugees under persecution in their own countries to come to the US as a safe haven. -
9/11 Attacks
The 9/11 attacks to the World Trade Center and the Pentagon caused the United States to tighten up the border. Airport security ramped up and citizens became on high alert in regards to immigrants. Furthermore, racial profiling increased as a result of these attacks. -
SB 1070
SB 1070 was signed by Jan Brewer in the state of Arizona which gave police the right to determine whether or not someone is here in the United States illegally based upon "reasonable suspicion".
