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1790
Congress passed a law defining who could be a citizen if a person was not born here: Citizenship was possible only for someone who was "a free white person." This barred African Americans, among other minorities -
Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882
FIrst major law that barred entrance to specific groups becasue of the California Gold Rush and railroad building that attracted so many immigrants. By the 1870s, Chinese workers made up almost half of the workforce in San Francisco. -
Quota Act of 1921
Congress sets up quotas favoring immigrants from northwest Europe. -
Immigration act of 1924
The Immigration act of 1924 expands the quota system: immigration from any country is limited to 2% of its total number in the 1890 census. -
1965- Immigration Reform Act
This aboloshed the quota system based on national origin. LBJ referred to this act as "un-American". This new law was driven by 2 principles: reunifying families and giving priority to certain skills. -
1986- Immigration Reform and Control Act
Ronald Regan's act had 2 purposes: he wanted to slow illegal immigration by punishing employers who knowingly hired undocumented workers. Second, he wanted to offer a way for long term, undocumented immigrants to become legal. -
Immigration act of 1990
No country coulc account for more than 7% of total immigrants. This law also considered a persons skills and education. This law also set up special categories for war refugees and close relatives of American citizens. -
Immigration Reform act of 1996
Incresed border patrol staff and stiffened penalties for creating false citizenship papers or smuggling undocumented workers. -
2007
George W Bush backed a bill that addressed all immigration issues. Bill proposed to fill short term labor needs through guest worker programs and strengthened border patrol. This bill also would have fined undocumented immigrants and required them to fulfill certain obligations before they could apply for citizenship status. The Senate voted the bill down.
