Immigration Laws
October 13, 2014
Next Class
● Unit Test Thursday/Friday, Oct. 16/17
● Who is taking the PSAT on Wednesday???
○ You need to make-up Wednesday’s activity
○ information will be up on the website
Homework Check
● You may use your packet
● On a full sheet of paper, explain the law
and what its effect on immigration was
1. National Origins Act, 1924
2. Immigration and Nationality Act, 1965
3. Illegal Immigration Reform and
Responsibility Act, 1996
Chinese Exclusion Act, 1882
● 1861-1880
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200,000 Chinese immigrants
20-30% labor force in California
Worked for low wages
Workers angered → petition Congress
● Pass the Exclusion Act forbidding Chinese
immigration
National Origins Act, 1924
● 1921
○ immigration quotas based on national origin
● 1924
○ restrict immigration to 2% of its proportion
to 1890 US population.
○ Heavily affected groups who came after
1890.
Displaced Persons Act, 1948
● Cold War
○ allowed 400,000 refugees from WWII to
immigrate
○ Also allows people to escape Communism in
Eastern Europe
Immigration and Nationality Act, 1965
● Replaced the quotes from 1924
● Set priority on reuniting families
● Attracting highly skilled, educated
professionals
● Re-opened immigration from Asia
● By the 1970’s, laws become more
restrictive → 290,000 per year
Refugee Act, 1980
● In response to increased refugee claims
from Southeast Asia
● Included an emergency admissions
provision
● Allowed for more immigrants to claim
refugee status
Immigration Reform and Control, 1986
● Penalized employers of illegal
immigrants
● Granted citizenship to illegal immigrants
and undocumented workers
○ 3.2 million people
●
Immigration Act, 1990
● Raised immigration limit
○ 675,000
○ emphasized skilled labor and educated
immigrants (21% of visas)
○ family reunification
○ 71% of visas → family members
Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant
Responsibility Act, 1996
● Stop illegal immigration
● made deportation and rejecting asylum
(refugee) simpler
● deportation doubled
Next time...
Immigration in the Media
HW: Test Thursday/Friday, Oct. 16/17