US Immigration Policy - Essay Example

?US Immigration Policy Before the Johnson-Reed act, otherwise knows as the Immigration Act of 1924, the US had its doors wide open to foreign guests and immigrants. Then the government realized that the US territory is being overwhelmed by immigrants, especially from Eastern European countries so they started the move towards the imposition of control on who gets to enter into the land of milk and honey. Their battle cry was, “America must remain American,” (Lombardo) which was echoed by no less than President Calvin Coolidge when he signed into law the Immigration Act of 1924. The Immigration Act of 1924 effectively regulated the influx of immigrants through the imposition of quotas which are based on the national origins of applicants. Section 11(a) of the aforementioned law states that, "The annual quota of any nationality shall be two per centum of the number of foreign-born individuals of such nationality resident in continental United States as determined by the United States Census of 1890, but the minimum quota of any nationality shall be 100”. However, the law does not just stop from the restrictive quota, it also made a sweeping ban against Asians from entering the United States with the exception of the Filipino and Japanese citizens. With the implementation of the Immigration Act of 1924, immigrants from Eastern European counties saw a drastic decrease in number while there was not much effect to the Northern and Western European immigrants. As a result the law unintentionally created a divide which implies that the people from Eastern Europe were inferior and disfavored as compared with the rest of the continent. Likewise, the law also created the same divide in Asia because of the imposition of the Asiatic barred zone, which in simple terms, banned all citizens of Asian countries from entering the US pursuant to a provision in Section 11(d) of the law which excludes “aliens ineligible to citizenship or their descendants”. This is in reference to all Asians who are expressly disqualified from acquiring citizenship through the naturalization process under existing laws at that time. This ban even extended towards the Japanese citizens who are previously covered by a separate Gentleman’s Agreement that they shall be allowed free access to the US. The violation resulted in tension and strained relations between Japan and the US in the 1920s. The only exception was the citizens of the Philippines, a US colony. However, this privilege was only short-lived because in 1934, the Tydings-McDuffie Act was passed into law which declared the Philippines as an independent and sovereign state effective July 4, 1946 but removed the Filipino people’s status as US nationals effective immediately. With its status as an independent state, the Philippines was given an immigration quota of only 50 immigrant visas per year. But then again, when World War II erupted, the US armed forces needed personnel so they reclassified the Filipinos as US nationals and enlisted them into the US army. Taken altogether, the Immigration Act created a big impact on the movement of people towards America. Apparently, in the years that followed, immigration statistics look very different from its earlier data. After 1924, there was a drastic decrease if not total elimination of immigrants from the barred Asian countries as well as the Eastern European states. In contrast, the ratio of Northern and Western Europeans vis-a-vis the total number of immigrants for each year dramatically increased because their competitions were literally stifled. If we evaluate the Immigration Act of 1924 within its own context and in terms of its declared purpose, which is “To limit the immigration of aliens into the United States,” then I would say that the law has been successful. However, it has also been successful in creating a common resentment among the citizens of the excluded countries who also want their share of milk and honey. In essence, the law had successfully created a selective and discriminatory process on who can pursue their American dream and those who can just continue on dreaming. In 1940, the Alien Registration Act was passed which effectively cemented government control over immigrants. The law requires that all aliens in the US territory shall submit their personal information and fingerprint impressions for close monitoring by the authorities. The very restrictive and discriminatory Immigration Act of 1924 saw several amendments from the 1940s onwards, especially during the chaos of World War II and during the euphoria of American victory. In 1940, The Nationality Act was passed which codified the US nationality laws. This was followed by the repeal of the Chinese Exclusion Act in 1943, which paved the way for the total abolition of the Asiatic barred zone doctrine. In 1945, the War brides Act was passed which opened the doors for the alien wives of American soldiers. A year later in 1946, the law was expanded to include the fiances of American soldiers in the list of non-quota immigrants. During the cold war era, the US again guarded its doors, especially against communists. In 1950, the Internal Security Act was passed which specifically bans any communist from entering the United States. At the same time, however, the US recognized the need to forge ties with Europe in its fight against the communism of the former USSR. In 1948, the Displaced Persons Act was passed which lifted the immigration quotas insofar as the Europeans who were displaced by war are concerned. Moreover, in 1953, the Refugee Relief Act was passed which granted to non-Europeans the refugee status and its concomitant privileges. The US immigration policy has seen a lot of changes and transformations since 1924. Interestingly, the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952, otherwise known as the McCarran-Walter Act, affirmed and reestablished the 1924 immigration quota system. But through time, there is only one thing that remains the same, the US immigration policies will keep on changing to adapt to the times and to maximize the benefit for the country. The case of the Philippines serves as the model for this policy. They were stripped of their US nationality only to be reinstated for the simple purpose of enlisting them into the American Army. Almost a century later, the US immigration policy is again pushed into the limelight. The US immigrations laws are poised for more changes to adapt it to the twenty first century. But whichever path it takes, we need to trust that our law and policymakers have nothing in their minds but the best interest of the American people. After all, immigration laws determine the composition of the American population. In other words, immigration laws define the American people. Bibliography: Digital history. Landmarks in Immigration History. Accessed on July 30, 2011. Available at http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/historyonline/immigration_chron.cfm Immigration Act of 1924 Lombardo, P. Eugenics Laws Restricting Immigration. Accessed on July 30, 2011. Available at http://www.eugenicsarchive.org/html/eugenics/essay9text.html Office of the Historian. Milestones: 1945-1952. Accessed on July 30, 2011. Available at http://history.state.gov/milestones/1945-1952/ImmigrationAct US Immigration Legislation Online. 1940 Nationality Act. Accessed on July 30, 2011. Available at http://library.uwb.edu/guides/USimmigration/1940_naturalization_act.html US Immigration Legislation Online. 1945 War Brides Act. Accessed on July 30, 2011. Available at http://library.uwb.edu/guides/USimmigration/1945_war_brides_act.html Read More