Important Historical Events Related to Immigration Issues from U.S. & Arizona History
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Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo
It resulted in United States Acquiring Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, California, and Parts of Utah and Nevada. This is where new broderlines were made between Mexico and the United States. -
Gadsden Purchase, 1853–1854
The United States agreed to pay Mexico $10 million for a 29,670 square mile portion of Mexico that later became part of Arizona and New Mexico. -
US Congress Authorizes "Mounted Inspectors" Along the US-Mexico Border
"Mounted Guards" patrolled as far west as California and through Arizona, trying to restrict the flow of illegal Chinese immigration. This was a complete different turn around to the immigration issues we face today. -
Refugee Act of 1980 Allows Persecuted Individuals to Seek Asylum in United States
The primary goal of the Refugee Act of 1980 was to bring U.S. law into compliance with the requirements of international law. This act permits individuals within the United States and at the U.S. border to apply for 'asylum' or 'restriction on removal,' formerly known as 'withholding of deportation. It also provided opportunities for new programs like Refugee Children School Impact Grant (RCSIG). This prgram provided services for refugee children in all States including Arizona. -
Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA)
The alien must establish that he entered the United States before January 1, 1982, and that he has resided continuously in the United States in an unlawful status since such date and through the date the application is filed. I personally know people who benefitted from this act here in Arizona. I did not realize how much it meant to a lot of people at that time. -
Armed Forces Immigration Adjustment Act Gives Special Immigration Status to Foreign Veterans Who Served in the US Armed Forces
This Act provided for special immigrant status… for certain foreign nationals who served honorably in the U.S. Armed Forces, or will serve, for a period of 12 years.These enlistees/veterans and their spouses and children may apply to become permanent resident aliens of the United States and also become immediately eligible to apply for naturalization as U.S. citizens. I beilieve this act motivated more immigrants to join the forces in order to get a legal status in the United States. -
First Detailed National Count of the Unauthorized Immigrant Population Estimates 3.4 Million Immigrants in United States Illegally
"In 1994, the INS US Immigration and Naturalization Service developed the first detailed national estimates of the unauthorized immigrant population residing in the United States. Those estimates indicated that the unauthorized resident population was 3.4 million as of October 1992.". The States with the largest numerical increases in unauthorized population in the 1990s were California, Texas, Illinois, Arizona, Georgia, and North Carolina. -
Terrorist Attacks Prompt US Department of Defense to Expand Military Support along the Borders
The military generally provides support to law enforcement and immigration authorities along the southern border. Reported escalations in criminal activity and illegal immigration, however, have prompted some lawmakers to reevaluate the extent and type of military support that occurs in the border region. -
My personal experience with Immigration
I came to the United States from Colombia a month and a few weeks after 9/11. It was a difficult process for me as a young child trying to accustom to a new life. I am thankful to my mother for giving me the chance to have a successful life here in Arizona. It is hard to imagine what families go through when they immigrate illegally and try to have a new opportunity in the United States. -
"Minuteman Project" Begins Recruiting Civilians to Patrol the US-Mexico Border
"In Arizona, a group calling itself the Minuteman Project has stationed scores of men and women along the Mexican border in a controversial effort to track down undocumented immigrants. The Minutmen take their name from a militia group during the American Revolutionary War. -
Secure Fence Act Authorizes Fencing along the US-Mexican Border
The Act authorizes the construction of [700] hundreds of miles of double-layered fencing along the nation's Southern border. It also directs the Secretary of Homeland Security to take action to stop the unlawful entry of undocumented immigrants, terrorists, and contraband into the U.S. -
Inflow of Unauthorized Immigrants in 2007-2009 Decreased by Two-Thirds from 2000-2005
The annual inflow of unauthorized immigrants to the United States was nearly two-thirds smaller in the March 2007 to March 2009 period than it had been from March 2000 to March 2005. -
US Supreme Court Upholds Arizona Law Penalizing Businesses That Hire Undocumented Immigrants
The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday upheld an Arizona law that imposes sanctions against businesses that hire illegal immigrants. -
President Obama Signs Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) to Allow Some Undocumented Immigrants Who Came to the United States as Children to Stay in the Country
Hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants who came to the United States as children will be allowed to remain in the country without fear of deportation and able to work, under an executive action the Obama administration. -
Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act Adds Immigrants to Protected Classes
Violence Against Women Act provides a temporary visa and creates a pathway to legalization for undocumented immigrants who are the victims of domestic abuse. The idea being that immigrants who are subject to domestic violence don’t report it for fear of being deported or are abused though the threat of deportation. -
President Obama Announced Executive Action to Prevent Deportation of Millions of Immigrants in the United States Illegally
There are 11 million undocumented immigrants in the United States, President Barack Obama' plans would let some 4.4 million who are parents of U.S. citizens and legal permanent residents remain in the country temporarily, without the threat of deportation.
