Immigration policy timeline

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    Irish and German immigrants

    Irish and German immigrants made up the majority of the immigrants entering the unites states. The U.K. was also a large contributor
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    German, Chinese and British Immigrants

    Germany and the U.K. made up the majority of immigrants entering the United States as well as Ireland, Canada, Norway/Sweden, Italy, China
  • Ratification of 14th amendment

    Citizenship clearly granted to anyone born in th united states
  • Chinese exclusion act

    prohibiting all immigration of Chinese laborers, excluding merchants, teachers, students, travelers, and diplomats
  • Anti-immigration movement

    Based ideals on “know nothing party” ,who were anti Irish and German immigrants
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    Italian, Hungarian, Soviet immigrants

    Italy, Hungary/Austria and the Soviet Union made up most of the immigrants, as well as Canada and the U.K.
  • Literacy entry requirement

    Congress overrode President Wilson’s veto, and made literacy a requirement to enter the US
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    Canadian and German immigrants

    Canada and Germany made up the majority of immigrants entering the U.S. as well as Italy, Mexico, the U.K
  • 1924 Nations Origin Act

    Limited the number of immigrants to be accepted from each country
  • Displaced Persons Act of 1948

    Allowed for the admission of more than 400000 refugees left homeless by WWII and the imposition of the Soviet communism in Eastern Europe
  • 1952 immigration and nationality act

    Accommodate “escapees” from communist domination
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    Mexican and Canadian immigrants

    Mexico and Canada made up the majority of immigrants, as well as Cuba, Philippines, and U.K.
  • Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965

    Replaced old quotas with a set of seven preference categories. Priority placed on reuniting families and attracting highly skilled professionals.
  • Refugee act of 1980

    Give refugee policy greater consistency by allowing for both a regular flow of refugees and emergency admissions
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    Mexican and Philippino immigrants

    Mexico and the Philippines accounted for the majority of immigrants as well as China, India and the Dominican Republic
  • Immigration reform and control act

    Imposed penalties on employers who knowingly hired workers without proper documentation. Also allowed illegal aliens who lived in the Unites States since 1981, as well as undocumented agricultural workers, to become citizens
  • Immigration act of 1990

    Raised the limit on annual admissions from 290000 to 675000 immigrants. Emphasised family reunification.
  • Illegal immmigration reform and immigrant responsibilities act of 1996

    Reduced overall annual immigration to 550000 and strengthened border control efforts. However it ended streamlining procedures for deportation of illegal aliens and rejecting asylum claims