The first federal law to restrict immigration based on nationality was the Immigration Act of 1917
The Immigration Act of 1924
The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) led to:
The Immigration Act of 1924 established a quota system that heavily favored immigrants from Southern and Eastern Europe.
The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 was the first federal law to restrict immigration on the basis of race and nationality.
The Bracero Program allowed Mexican laborers to work temporarily in the United States to fill agricultural jobs.
By the 1930s, immigration had dropped to historic lows
Jews in large numbers first immigrated to the United States during the Market Revolution
Italians in large numbers first immigrated to the United States during the Market Revolution
The Irish in large numbers first immigrated to the United States during the Market Revolution
The anti-immigrant Know-Nothing Party was created during Reconstruction
The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 was passed during the Market Revolution
The Refugee Act of 1980 was passed during Lyndon Johnson's Great Society
Jane Adams' Hull Houses was a community center that provided services and support to immigrants and the working class, such as education, healthcare, and housing assistance.
The Palmer Raids are to the first Red Scare what McCarthyism is to the Second Red Scare
Upton Sinclair's book “The Jungle” exposed the terrible living conditions of immigrants and the working class in New York City’s slums.
Political machines provided important services to immigrant communities,
One of the key provisions of NAFTA that said citizens of Canada and Mexico with specialized skills and education could obtain a work visa to work in the United States for up to three years.
In 1906, the city of San Francisco passed a law that required all schoolchildren of Chinese descent to attend a segregated school. This law was challenged by a group of Chinese-American parents who took their case to the United States Supreme Court. In 1923, the Supreme Court upheld the law, which effectively led to the expulsion of many Chinese-American students from mainstream schools.
The rise of political machines in the United States coincided with a period of massive immigration from Europe.