History and Overview of Illegal Immigration
ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION
Illegal immigration is an issue that the United States deals with everyday. It
causes many problems that America needs to address. The illegal immigrants cross our
nation’s borders for many reasons. They sneak into our country anyway they can.
The history of illegal immigration started when the United States started making
laws on whom and what kind of people could live in the U.S. Chinese immigrants were
some of the first immigrants to be persecuted by the United States. As the years went on,
Congress passed many laws regulating immigration.
Immigration to the United States began when Europeans first started coming to
the United States. Some of the first immigrants came from England, France, Germany,
Holland, Spain, and Portugal. The only immigration restrictions at this time were on
criminals and public charges (Vellos, 1997). During this period, immigration was needed
for labor and the development of the new land. It wasn’t until after the Civil war when
the United States government put restrictions on immigration. Convicts and prostitutes
were barred from entering the United States when congress passed the 1875 Act. This
was the same period when there were many Chinese laborers on the West Coast,
especially in California. Congress passed the Exclusion Act in 1882. This law prohibited
all Chinese immigrants from entering the U.S. and wouldn’t allow Chinese people to
become citizens. It wasn’t until 1943 when the Chinese Exclusion Act was repealed.
Immigration was now seen as a threat to the United States economy and Congress began
expanding the list of "undesirable classes" hoping to upgrade the quality of immigrants
and to limit overall entry (Vellos, 1997).
In the early 1900’s, California state law passed a bill called “The Gentlemen’s
Agreement”, which prohibited Japanese immigrants from owning property or
leasing farmland.
Illegal immigration is an issue that the United States deals with everyday. It
causes many problems that America needs to address. The illegal immigrants cross our
nation’s borders for many reasons. They sneak into our country anyway they can.
The history of illegal immigration started when the United States started making
laws on whom and what kind of people could live in the U.S. Chinese immigrants were
some of the first immigrants to be persecuted by the United States. As the years went on,
Congress passed many laws regulating immigration.
Immigration to the United States began when Europeans first started coming to
the United States. Some of the first immigrants came from England, France, Germany,
Holland, Spain, and Portugal. The only immigration restrictions at this time were on
criminals and public charges (Vellos, 1997). During this period, immigration was needed
for labor and the development of the new land. It wasn’t until after the Civil war when
the United States government put restrictions on immigration. Convicts and prostitutes
were barred from entering the United States when congress passed the 1875 Act. This
was the same period when there were many Chinese laborers on the West Coast,
especially in California. Congress passed the Exclusion Act in 1882. This law prohibited
all Chinese immigrants from entering the U.S. and wouldn’t allow Chinese people to
become citizens. It wasn’t until 1943 when the Chinese Exclusion Act was repealed.
Immigration was now seen as a threat to the United States economy and Congress began
expanding the list of "undesirable classes" hoping to upgrade the quality of immigrants
and to limit overall entry (Vellos, 1997).
In the early 1900’s, California state law passed a bill called “The Gentlemen’s
Agreement”, which prohibited Japanese immigrants from owning property or
leasing farmland.
References: John Kyl, (2006). Rightwingnews.com, “Answering Thirteen Frequently Asked Questions About Illegal Immigration” 2006, at http://www.rightwingnews.com/category.php?ent=5455 Jeffery S. Passel (2005). Congressional Budget Office, “The Role of Immigrants in the U.S. Labor Market”, November 2005 at http://www.cbo.gov/ftpdocs/68xx/doc6853/11-10-Immigration.pdf Edward Sifuentes (2004). City-Data Times, “Cost of Illegal Immigration in California Estimated at Nearly $9 Billion”, December, 2004. Elliot Spagat (2002). Associated Press, “Border Patrol Fires Tear Gas Into Mexico”, December 2002. Dainne Vellos (1997). American University Journal of Gender and the Law 407, 414-418, “Immigrant Latina Domestic Workers and Sexual Harassment”, 1997. .