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Colonization of the U.S.
After the 102 English colonists arrived, immigrants from different countries traveled to the U.S. This relates to the present immigration issues because they both share the connection of trying to strive for a better life. People living in countries like Ireland and Germany moved to the U.S due to crop failure within their homeland. Just like these concerns seen in the 1600-1700’s, some Mexican immigrants see the U.S as the land of opportunity and a chance to build a better life for themselves. -
Bacon's Rebellion
Bacon’s Rebellion relates to the immigration issues we see in the United States today because both instances deal with the fight against a higher power and the controversy behind these events that are apparently corrupting our nation. Bacon’s rebellion resulted in almost demolishing Jamestown, while illegal immigration into the U.S has resulted in differing opinions on whether this issue is destroying our nation’s foundation. -
Bacon's Rebellion Cont.
Just like Bacon’s Rebellion and the storm through Jamestown in order to protest against Berkeley, we see a various amount of protests and citizens voicing their opinions about what laws and guidelines are to be made on the immigration status in Arizona. One example is the rallies seen circulating around Arizona’s Immigration Law. -
Alien and Sedition Acts
These four acts passed in 1798 heavily relate to the problems we see within immigration into the U.S today. The Alien and Sedition Acts state that aliens can be deemed dangerous during peacetime and wartime and can be removed. It also extended the residency time to 14 years before an immigrant can become a citizen. In 2010, Arizona Governor Jane Brewer signed a bill on the deportation of illegal immigration that was extremely strict. The fight to reside in the U.S proves to be an ongoing issue. -
Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
The treaty ended the Mexican-American War, which resulted in the U.S receiving 55 percent of Mexico’s land in exchange for $15 million. This relates to immigration issues today because the aftermath resulted in highly patrolled borders as well as an anti-Mexican environment from the treaty being ratified later on. This could have possibly sparked the controversies we see today with our excessively protected border as well as some stereotypical viewpoints seen along the southern states. -
Know-Nothing Party
The Know-Nothing Party, established in the 1850’s, was an anti-immigration group, mostly towards the Germans and Irish, which thought immigrants were a significant threat to the nation on an economic level. In today’s world, a lot of people in states near the border see illegal immigrants as a risk to the economy. They think that illegal immigrants are stealing jobs from hardworking citizens because of the manual labor they will provide for a cheap price. -
American Civil War
Opposing views of the northern, which at the time was Union, and southern, which at the time was Confederate, sections of the U.S sparked the Civil War. This circulated around the idea of whether all men were created equally. This ties into the attitude towards immigrants because the north and south sections of the U.S Mexican border are struggling to see eye to eye on various issues. Another connection is the controversy between the equality shown towards immigrants and native-born citizens. -
Chinese Exclusion Act
The Chinese Exclusion Act was a significant point in history because it was the first law designed to restrict immigration occurring in the U.S. Although this is directed towards the Chinese, this Exclusion Act overall sparked the fear from native-born citizens and there concern with falling salaries and unemployment rates. This is still seen today along the U.S and Mexican border. There is still fear that immigration poses as a threat towards the lifestyle and comfort of residents in the U.S. -
Ellis Island Station
Ellis Island opened an immigration station in 1892 that ran for over 60 years. This passageway allowed millions of U.S. immigrants into the country, which can be seen as the root to the diversity in the U.S. This relates to our ever-growing diversity from immigration in today’s world. The attitude towards immigration and diversity varies, but some citizens see diversity as a social problem while others see it as a positive outcome from immigration. -
Importance of the "The Melting Pot"
The Melting Pot was a production that summarized the life of immigration. This successful Broadway show instilled compassion and reminded the viewers of the opportunities America has to offer. This is important to point out because it shows that although there were differing views on immigration, there were those who supported the efforts immigrants made in order to enter this country. This can be reflected on today's immigrants and how most just strive to live as an American. -
The Labor Appropriations Act
The Labor Appropriation Act of 1924 established border patrol by hiring 450 inspectors to examine travelers at scattered stations who wanted to enter the country. This is directly linked to the exceedingly protective actions we see taking place along the border today. With this, the rise of technology and security have caused many illegal immigrants to go to extreme measures to enter the U.S. -
U.S Labor Secretary Statistics Released
The U.S. Labor Secretary estimated that there were roughly 1,000,000 illegal immigrants, most of which being Mexican. With this, it was also stated that the smuggling of Mexican immigrants has become common along the southern part of the U.S. I think that this relates to issues of immigration because there are an exceeding amount of undocumented immigrants residing in Arizona, and the number continues to increase. The smuggling of illegal immigrants has been a serious, reoccurring issue. -
Great Depression
With the job crisis and shortage of food during this era, Mexican immigrants suffered greatly. With this, they also faced the fear of being deported because of a lack of resources available within the U.S, even if they were Mexican American. Over 200,000 Mexicans were sent out of the country solely because of this reason. I think this relates to the present day fear of being deported and how it affects the daily lives of many undocumented immigrants. -
14th Amendment and Citizenship
The Supreme Court ruled that the 14th Amendment grants citizenship to every person born in the United States. In today’s world, there is much controversy that arises from the 14th Amendment and whether a child who was born in the U.S by an illegal immigrant should have the right to automatically become a citizen of this country. There is much debate on whether the Constitution should be changed in order to remove this from the 14th Amendment. -
Homeland Security Act
The Homeland Security Act of 2002 was the result of the 2001 World Trade Center terrorist attacks. The reconstructive measures taken directly link to immigrants and the newly enforced rules and regulations that made it more difficult to enter U.S territory. Although there were more actions taken to prevent the U.S from becoming vulnerable to terrorist attacks again, it overall made the border that much more secured. -
Minuteman Project
The Minuteman project recruited citizens in 2004 to patrol along the Mexican border in order to find undocumented immigrants. Because this is a more recent issue, it is highly relevant to the extreme efforts the United States is making to stop the illegal crossing of immigrants from the Mexican border. The Minuteman project is seen as a controversial issue due to the measures taken in order to prevent this illegal activity. -
World War II
Although there were many outcomes from World War II, the race hierarchy seen throughout this time and the term "war of race" relates to immigration. Race hierarchy was used in propaganda and imagery in order to create stereotypes and to change the viewpoints of citizens. In today’s world, the conflict at hand is the issue of race and the stereotypes that were built around Mexicans, and whether or not they are legal citizens. This issue raises a lot of misconceptions about this ethnicity.
