Nativist Movements and the New Right in American History - Essay Example

An unofficial political party was formed against the Irish Catholics and other immigrants in the mid 1800’s. This political party would oppress any immigrants for the existing job for the Native Americans (Bennett 179).During the potato famine in the mid 19th century, a huge wave of nativism took part in unite states after the migration of Irish Catholics to the country. Petitions to the congress from the northeastern state suggesting that the immigrants right to vote be limited. The Irish Catholics were barred from holding any public office across many states when the constitution became the law of the land in 1806.

In Massachusetts and other colonies by the 1870s, a celebration of Guy Fawkes Day was done by burning the pope in effigy. Allegiance to the pope was viewed to bring political unrest in America by the natives.A national nativist movement was organized by November 1837 by anti-Catholics. With the increase in numbers of immigrants between 1820s-1850s, there was reinforcement of economic, social, and political concern in New York and other points was done. A native majority select committee in the House of Representatives endorsed legislation extending the naturalization period for all the immigrants especially the Irish Catholics who they deemed as uneducated, superstitious and dominated by their priests (Bennett, 174).

Though, with much support, the legislation did not pass. A lot of legal restriction soon followed all trying to oppress the immigrants and even trying to get rid of them.