history of american immigration

7/30/2019 History of American Immigration

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Models of American Immigration

The first major wave of immigrants came to America between the 16 th and 18th century.The second wave lasts roughly between 1830 and 1860. The third wave is considered to

be between 1880 and 1924.

While the first three waves were dominated by Europeans, this current, 4 th wave isdominated by Latin-Americans, Asians, Africans and people from the Caribbean.

We can also consider 3 major models of immigration. These 3 models are:

1.) The Pennsylvania model

The immigrants here were expected to be good citizens, regardless of their religiousbackground. William Penn, a Quaker and the founder of the colony, was a strong believer

in tolerance.

2.) The Massachusetts model

The colonists here accepted only immigrants that were religious pure, meaning puritans.Those who challenged the accepted religious view were expelled.

3.) The Virginia model

People willing to work cheaply were accepted here, without the colonists bothering tointegrate them into society and providing citizenship.

The Bracero program, allowing Mexican immigrants to enter the country in order to fillthe labor forces during WWII, is a modern-day representation of the Virginia model.

During the 17th century, approximately 2.000 people came to the American colonies, thisnumber including Europeans and African slaves. The majority of these people went to theSouthern colonies.Immigration continued to grow during the 18 th century, approximately 600.000 people,again mostly from Europe and Africa, arrived between 1700 and 1755. The first

American population census took place in 1790. The new state numbered 3.8 millionpeople.

The census also took into the account the national origins of the people, and discoveredthat the largest percentage of population was of English and Welsh descent, whileScottish and German descendants made up a large percentage as well.


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The second wave of immigrants was mostly formed out of Irish, Scandinavian, but evenChinese people.

The third wave of immigrations was significant. Between 1905 and 1919, over 1 millionimmigrants traveled to America, mostly from eastern and southern Europe. With the

introduction of limiting legislation, immigration was put on a hold after this period.

Following WWII, immigration resumed to some extent. The 1920s legislation wasamended in 1965, with the Amendments to the Immigration and Nationality Act.National origin quotas were abolished and earlier restrictions to the admittance of Asianswere removed.

The concept of melting pot appeared in the Chicago school current, during the 1970s.Robert E. Park and W.I. Thomas were representatives of an early version of this current.They provided an early definition of this assimilation, regarding the process as a processof interpenetration and fusion, in which persons and groups acquire the memories,

sentiments and attitudes of other persons and groups, and, by sharing their experience andhistory, are incorporated with them in a common cultural life.

*Old world trades transplanted 1921

Historically speaking, the American mainstream originated with Western and NorthernEuropean colonists, who brought their own cultures into the composite culture. Elementsfrom these immigrant groups were continuously added to the existing culture, especiallycuisine, religion and art.

In Gordons view (a representative of the Chicago School), 7 indicators formed an index,that was used to measure how much an ethnic group was assimilated. These were

cultural, structural, marital, identity, prejudice, discrimination and civic.

Cultural pluralism is the ancestor of the idea of multiculturalism, which argued that asociety benefits, when the different ethnic elements in it maintain their culturaldistinctiveness. More research in the 1970s focused on structural assimilation, includinginter-marriage and socio-economic assimilation.


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Colonial heritage

Since the early 17th century, we realize that the majority of the colonies wereoverwhelmingly English, but other groups are also present, namely Scotts, Irish, German,Welsh, French, Dutch, Scandinavians and smaller proportions of other nations.

England, as opposed to Spain, encouraged colonization and very rarely interfered in therunning of the new colonies. This tolerant attitude, concerning the inner-workings of thecolonies, was not matched by a similarly tolerant attitude on the part of the Englishsettlers themselves.

The first two main targets of their intolerance were the Scots-Irish (coming from Ulster)and the Germans. The context of this intolerance changed, being followed by African-Americans, Italians, Chinese, Jews, Mexicans, etc.

From the earliest times, we can trace a type of paradox. On the one hand, America

welcomed settlers to work the new lands, on the other hand, such strangers were oftenabused.

It has also been noted that the outburst of discrimination tended to coincide with periodsof crisis or difficulty in American history (conflicts, wars, economic problems).

Those who settled Jamestown in 1607, mostly English, had to face multiple hostileconditions, and hostile neighbors. Ultimately, the salvation of Virginia, came from thegrowing of tobacco, which necessitated a lot of labor force, in the form of indenturedservants and later on slaves. The northern colonies, especially Massachusetts, wereformed on different grounds. The colonists here were driven by religious impulses, and in

their case, we can speak of two distinct groups.

The first one, that of the pilgrims, who came first (aboard the Mayflower) and thePuritans, who came a little bit later. The pilgrims founded the colony of Plymouth Rock,whereas the puritans founded Massachusetts-Bay colony. The pilgrims, in mentality,were separatists, striving to sever all ties with the mother country and its religiousinstitutions. The puritans, however, believed, that by coming to the new world, they couldattempt a reformation of the Church of England.

Hard work and individual accomplishments were the main traits being sought by thesecolonists.

These colonists were followed by a different type of settlers, enjoying benefits from theBritish crown. This was the case for the future colony of Maryland. The land was grantedby Charles I to one of the members of his court, Lord Baltimore, who was a Roman-Catholic. In 1649, a Toleration Act was enacted, granting religious freedom to allinhabitants of the colony.However, 5 years later, a protestant legislator in Maryland repealed the act, and Catholicswere denied legal protection.


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During the Cromwell period, emigration to America was mostly discouraged. TheEnglish colonists in America had to figure out alternative means to populating the landsand obtaining work force. One such source of population was the importation of blackslaves. This activity was sanctioned by the British crown, through a monopoly granted in1662, to the Royal African Slave Company.

Another method of populating the land, was what William Penn did, after foundingPennsylvania in 1680. He went directly to England to recruit settlers. He intendedPennsylvania to be a place of refuge for all those persecuted by religious reasons, orotherwise. This colony became a safe haven for Quakers, a religious minority persecutedboth in England, and in the American colonies, particularly in Massachusetts, whereseveral Quakers were put to death for their beliefs.

A large number of Lutherans, particularly of German origin, settled in America as well,mainly in Pennsylvania. These new settlers refused to blend in with the rest of thepopulation, keeping mostly to themselves, continuing to speak German, and in large,

maintained to their own culture. Benjamin Franklin himself spoke against theseisolationist German settlers.

The Scots-Irish on the other hand, were not discriminated against in Pennsylvania, butthose protestant Scots-Irish, who went to Massachusetts or New Hampshire, were metwith a rather chilly reception. Although they represented a minority, from all points ofview, the Scots-Irish left their mark on the American society to this day. Wherever theywent, the Church and the School-house followed. They placed great emphasis oneducation and the spreading of knowledge.

Many of the first schools in the new world, had been founded by Scots-Irish ministers.Unlike the Germans, the Scots-Irish were more willing to embrace the dominant Anglo-American culture.

In addition, we have a fairly large number of French protestant immigrants, also knownas Huguenots. They settled in almost any colony, preferring the port-cities. The majorityof them were professionals (skilled merchants, tradesmen, craftsmen). Of all groupscoming to America, they were the most willing to adapt to the new environment. Theirassimilation largely occurred through inter-marriage.

In terms of size, two other significant groups can be mentioned. The Dutch, who settledmainly around New York and New Jersey, and the Scottish people, who preferred NewJersey and the South, are representatives of immigrant groups, who held on to theirculture and traditions for several generations. The Dutch were exceedingly clannish andisolationists. The Scotts were not quite as extreme, but they tended to welcome newsettlers from their home country, and organized community life in a way that allowedthem to sever ties with other colonists. The Scotts made their mark in the organization oftrade and the development of mining.In terms of religious beliefs, the majority of Scotts were Presbytarians.


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As for the American south, the dominant influences were Mexican and to a lesser degree,Spanish. This territory did not become a part of the United States until the 19 th century,and when it did, it brought its own Hispanic subculture to the diversity.

The Spanish migration did not involve the migration of families. The Spanish explorers

were almost inevitably followed by priests and soldiers. The first mission of suchexplorers was that of converting local populations, whatever or wherever they were. Theywere also the ones to introduce ranching and farming in the area of California. Thesecontinued to be the important components of the regional economy.

The Louisiana region also became a part of the United States in the 19 th century, beingdominantly of French origin. The French attempts to colonize Louisiana in the 17 th

century resulted in a limited number of colonists, most of them soldiers, whereas in the18th century, prisoners were sent to work in Louisiana, together with indentured servants.Most of the colonists were of course men. Part of Louisiana was acquired by Spain in1763, and the Spanish introduced the farming model of Texas into this area as well. This

is how slavery was introduced into this area.

After the War of Independence, we notice new waves of immigrants to the New World.English and Scottish dominated these new waves in the mid 18 th century, going mostly toNew York, Pennsylvania and Virginia, and they frequently came as indentured servants.They were of course the answer to the labor-shortage problem of the colonies. They wereoften skilled workers (carpenters, shoemakers, tailors, bakers, etc.)A large number of convicts also came to America during this period.

During the 7-years war, Catholics were accused for various reasons, and werediscriminated against. John Adams himself was a devout anti-Catholic. They, like theJews, had no right to vote, and they were prohibited from becoming doctors in certaincolonies.

In New England, we have an overwhelmingly English heritage, with a few minoritygroups, such as Scottish, Scots-Irish or French Huguenots. In the Southern colonies, wehave a large black population, coexisting with English, Germans, Scotts or FrenchHuguenots. The most diverse colonies of the time, however, were the middle-colonies,especially New York and Pennsylvania.

The majority group appreciated the labor of the newcomers, and expected them to absorbexisting customs while leaving behind their ethnic heritage. This tendency wouldcontinue after the War of Independence.


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Virginia

Tobacco was the main economic provider in this area. The plantations required asignificant labor force, provided mainly by indentured servitude.Indentured servants signed up to work for no pay, for a period between 4 and 7 years, in

exchange for expense coverage of sea passage.Large fractions of the labor force were also made out of black slaves or Europeanconvicts. The British crown understood the importance of slaves, so they were notopposed to slave-trade.On April 10, 1606, a group of knights, gentlemen, merchants and other adventurers,grouped under the name of the Virginia Company, with the goal of forming the colonyitself, The drive behind the efforts was both religious and economic.

The Charter of 1606 divided Virginia into two tracts of land, each administered by twobranches of the Virginia Company, the London Company in the Southern colony, and thePlymouth Company in the Northern colony.

A council of 13 people in London was represented of another 13 people in the colonythemselves, forming a type of mirror-councils. The first 3 ships set sale in December of1606. Aprox. 104 passengers came aboard these ships, and formed the colony ofJamestown. 13 of them were the council members. The first act of the council was toremove the leader of the fleet, Captain John Smith from council membership, formutinous acts during the voyage. John Smith, however, was reinstated in June 1607, andplayed an important role in the survival of the colony.

These first settlers were ill-equipped. Added to this, they encountered harsh condition,resulting in the deaths of many of the initial colonists. Only 38 survived the first year.

The rest of the colonists were saved by the arrival of a supply ship from England. In1608, another ship arrived, bringing skilled laborers and servants.

The investors of the Virginia Company petitioned the King for a new charter, one thatwould detail a more efficient system of government in the colony. In 1609, the Kinggranted a second charter, by which the Virginia Company became a Joint StockCompany, whos council members were appointed by the King. The charter alsoprovided for the appointment of a governor, the first being Lord Delaware.

A third charter was issued by the crown in 1611, primarily with the purpose oflegitimizing territorial expansion. The period after this third charter marked the transition

from Joint ownership to private ownership of land. It was also in this period that Virginiadiscovered tobacco, and the population of the colony was slowly growing.

In 1618, 600 colonists were living within the colony. Almost non-existing natural growthand high death rates during the Atlantic crossing were the main reasons that prevented thepopulation growth, along with disease and tensions with the natives. All these problemseventually brought the downfall of the Virginia Company, brining about its bankruptcy.


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The king issued a new charter, by which the Monarchy had greater control over thecolony.

The migration from rural to urban areas in England was one of the main reasons causingthe interest in emigration to America. This migration caused poor crops and rapid

population growth. As such, many of the English colonists were originally from London.The government itself encouraged people to migrate.

Regarding the indentured servants, the largest proportion was made out of younger males.The proportion of women increased towards the end of the 17 th century, but there werestill at least two times as many males living in Virginia.

Upon completion of their term, these servants were sometimes given a small amount ofmoney and a set of new clothes, in order to mark them as free men.

The convicts, however, pre-dated the indentured servants, arriving in for the first time in

1617. The patterns for the migration of convicts were similar to those of indenturedservants. Most convicts had to serve a 7 year contract. The majority of them were male,and older than other groups, such as servants.

As for the slaves, they became part of the colony in the early 17 th century, but the firstslaves coming here were not considered chattle, meaning property of the owner. Thistransition from a large proportion of servants towards the majority of the black slavesoccurred towards the end of the 17th century.

The institution of slavery was soon adopted in other colonies, such as South Carolina orGeorgia, where cotton was being grown. Laws limiting the freedom of Africans wereadopted in many of these colonies. Thus, chattel slavery become the symbol of theVirginia immigration.

During this period, the relations with the natives were tense. Conflicts resulted in thedisappearance of the Roanoke colony, and nearly led to the destruction of the Jamestowncolony. The first violent clash between the two came in 1622, when the colonists, drivenby their desire for expansion and their beliefs in moral superiority met the natives tryingto defend their own land. A series of treaties were signed with certain native tribes, andlater on, trade relations also developed.

The unfortunate consequence of these peaceful relations was that the colonists introducednew diseases among the natives.

The relationship between the settlers and natives in Virginia became the model for otherregions of settlement as well. Similar patterns can be encountered in North and SouthCarolina and Georgia.


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The Massachusetts model

These immigrants were mostly evading religious persecution. They were no longerexplorers or adventurers. They were puritans, on a religious mission. Their goal was toform a covenant, a kind of community, in which only those who promised to respect

religious norms were accepted.

Membership in the Massachusetts colony, as such, was given entirely on religiousgrounds. This is why the population grew considerably slower than in the Virginia model.The governing authorities were made out of elected free men. Being so keen onpreserving religious purity, exclusion policies were often put in effect. Expulsion,deportation or even execution was common in the case of those transgressing.

The Massachusetts Bay colony also had its foundation on a commercial company. ThePlymouth Plantation was founded in 1620, by the members of the Mayflower.The Massachusetts Bay Company, which founded these journeys, was succeeded by the

New England Company, organized in 1628, as a joint stock corporation.

The Massachusetts Bay charter was the fundamental act on which the colony was based.It included specifically religious measures and purposes. Unlike the Virginia Company,The Massachusetts Bay Company agreed to come and live in New England, to helpsupervise the affairs.

There was no separation between the state and religion within the company, a factexpressed by John Winthrop in his Model of Christian charity.

We can distinguish 4 distinct groups of inhabitants:

1.) Free men people who could vote for the Governor, Magistrates and Deputies;they were a minority in terms of numbers;

2.) Church members they were not free men, and as such, did not have the right tovote; their number was also quite small;

3.) Those who took an oath of fidelity to the colony they shared the colonys aims,but were neither free men, nor Church members; they were the majority;

4.) Those who didnt take an oath of fidelity they were living in the colony, butwere not a part of it;

In contrast to the Virginia colonies, the New England colonists came mostly as part of

family groups.The colonists were independent farmers (owners of larger areas of land), poorer farmers(owners of small parcels of land), and craftsmen or artisans, many of which wereweavers.Servants in the New England colonies were not indentured, meaning they were not boundto any contract.


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As for motivation, economic pressures (poor harvests, the collapse of the textile industry)were a big push factor for immigrants, as well as religious reasons. However, even thepoorest immigrants from the South-Eastern part of England had enough capital to start alife of their own.The pilgrims no longer wanted to reform the Church of England, but wanted total

separation from it. The organization model for the New England Church was acongregational one, being open only for those who could demonstrate that they wentthrough a conversion and could be saved.The threat of persecution was also an important push factor, even though most of theimmigrants did not previously face immediate personal harm.After Cromwells revolution, the push factors mostly disappeared, and as such, migrationstopped after the 1640s. This caused a serious economic depression in the colonies, as aresult of a lack of labor force.After 1650, the situation improved, but the number of immigrants coming remained lowfor the rest of the century.

In New England, the colonists had every incentive to convert the native population, asopposed to the Virginia colony. The most important missionary was John Eliot.Some natives agreed to convert, did so for a combination of material and spiritualreasons. They were moved into praying towns, communities formed out of convertednatives, and received material benefits in the same way the colonists did. In the case ofKing Philips War, some praying towns joined the side of the Indians.

Although the relations with the natives were friendly at first, they deteriorated during the17th century. The culmination of these disputes was King Philips War. The conflict wasbrought about by resentment towards conversion efforts, a new treaty by which thecolony was taking more and more land, and the fact that the Indians realized that soonthere would be too many colonists, making the goal of defeating them impossible.

In the mid 1630s, a conflict known as the Pequot War, represented the end of the Pequottribe as a nation. All of the 800 Pequot Indians were killed during the clash with thecolonists.

As the policies of the colonists were aggressive towards all those that did not share thereligious beliefs of the colonies, some cases of deportation and exclusion occurred.Shipmasters transporting Quakers were severely sanctioned, especially financially.

Quakers who returned after expulsion were even executed. Roger Williams expresseddoubts about the Massachusetts Bay Charter, questioned the authority of civil magistratesand was considered to be an extreme separatist, and as such faced expulsion himself. Heeventually left Massachusetts and founded the colony of Rhode Island.

The Antinomian controversy centered on the figure of Ann Hutchinson. She and herfollowers were excommunicated and later moved on to Rhode Island.


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The third threat to Massachusetts came from the Quakers. They represented a radicalEnglish sect, who brought their beliefs with them to New England. The Quakerspracticed what appeared to be an extreme form of Antinomianism. As such, they were athreat to the civil and religious norms within the Massachusetts Bay colony. They toowere banished, and moved on to Rhode Island or Pennsylvania. Some even returned to

the Massachusetts Bay colony, and faced execution.

The Pennsylvania model

Pennsylvania was the vision of its founder, William Penn, who intended this colony to bea safe haven for Quakers from England could live in peace. The idea of religious freedomis fundamental to the colony.

William Penn himself was a Quaker. His father had been an admiral in the British navyand a close aid to King Charles II. It was Penns belief that only by fleeing to America

could the members of his religious sect survive.

In 1680 he petitioned King Charles II for a charter, giving him a territory west of NewJersey and north of Maryland. The charter was issued in 1681, giving him the right todetermine the form of government and the distribution of land, but laws could be madeonly with the advice and approval of the free men in the assembly.

He became the first governor of Pennsylvania. Following events in England, especiallythe Glorious Revolution of 1688, the new sovereigns refused to revoke the charter whichplaced the colony under royal rule. Penns charter was restored in 1694, and in 1701 acharter of privileges was adopted, which stipulated that the council was eliminated, and

the responsibility for governing fell on to the legislative assembly.

William Penn appointed land agents to advertise his new colony. For this reason, thepopulation of Pennsylvania from the start was more diverse, including Scottish andWelsh Quakers. Rapid immigration brought many new people in a short period of time.There were 9000 people in 1690, and aprox. 21000 in 1700. The most important townwas Philadelphia. The province expanded by incorporating the current-day state ofDelaware, which meant that the colony now had access to the ocean through theChesapeake Bay, and the area included many Dutch settlers.

One of the most important acts passed by the assembly was to naturalize all residents

living in the territory covered by the charter. A new naturalization law gave thegovernment the power to naturalize any alien. In 1740, the British parliament enactedlaws to make a uniform naturalization provision for the colonies. This law also stipulatedthat Catholics who had resided there for 7 years could be naturalized.

Approximately 9000 Germans settled in Pennsylvania during this time. After the war thatended in 1763, the flow of German immigrants increases. The Germans and the Britishbrought a lot of religious diversity to Pennsylvania, which meant that there was no single


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dominant group. In fact, only 15% of the population was of Quaker religion. The largestgroup was presbytarian, then German-Reformed, Lutherans, Dutch-Reformed, Anglicans,Baptists.

The first slaves came in 1684 and 30 years later, almost 30% of Philadelphias population

was slaves. It was only in the 18th

century that Quakers took a very firm stand againstslavery.

Unlike in Massachusetts, Penn did not give a lot of importance to converting the natives.The colonists believed that the best method of conversion was by the power of example.Penn himself had a very tolerant attitude towards the natives, and they enjoyed goodrelations, even though not all colonists shared the same tolerant views.

There were some tensions with the natives around 1750, but none were very serious.Penn was interested in maintaining relations with the Indians by the means of treatieswhich allowed the colony to expand.

Pennsylvania introduced the concept of cultural pluralism in early America. Somecolonial proprietors followed Penns example of recruiting Europeans, and began theirown campaigns to bring various ethnic groups to America. The British crown itselfencouraged this, as the overpopulation of Britain was no longer an issue. Scottish andIrish emigration grew, while the British emigration diminished.

The registration of foreigners was made into a law in 1727, because of problems with theincreasing number of German speakers. Benjamin Franklin himself was critical of theGermans and their refusal of learning English. He actually argued that the Germans wereposing a threat to the colonys security, and like many politicians, he was trying to stir upthe population against the immigrants, in order to achieve political advantages.

No German was permitted to occupy public office, unless both he and his family spokeEnglish. Legal documents written in German were considered invalid. German printinghouses were suppressed. The importation of German books was prohibited.

In conclusion, Pennsylvania is the place of origin of two traditions: it is the birth place ofsolid pluralism, that celebrates diversity and acknowledges the contributions of variousimmigrant groups, and it is also the birthplace of intolerance against foreigners.


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Immigration following the American Revolution

Following the period of the American Revolution, we notice a high increase in thenumber of immigrants, because of:

- industrial revolution- the doubling of the European population between 1750-1850- periods of religious persecution- revolutions- relaxation of immigration restrictions- revolution in transportation

Groups of Mexicans, French Canadians and Chinese are added to the already existingsources of immigration.

Approximately 500.000 people came to America. The newly written constitution stated

nothing about immigration, and with the exception of some federal laws passedbeginning with 1790, the regulation of immigration was mostly left in the responsibilityof states.

The majority of the people arriving in America in this period were Germans, Scots-Irishand especially French (after the French revolution), who mostly settled in Philadelphia,Baltimore, New York and Charleston.

One interesting feature about these French, is that many of them belonged to the upperclasses.

A number of Irish and Scottish radicals also accompanied these immigrants.

These new immigrants weakened old ethnic communities, and sped up theAmericanization processes.

The Irish started arriving in the 1840s (a total of 1 million people came during this wave,with about 4 million Irishmen during the entire century), most settling in New York andBoston. The Irish were closely followed by the Germans, who came from agriculturalregions in Southern Germany, their total numbers reaching 4 million by the end of the19th century.

Scandinavians also arrived in large numbers, especially after the civil war.

All these waves were determined by a combination of economic issues at home, and afavorable reception in America, something referred to as the American Fever.

Other groups coming in the 19th century, included Welsh, Dutch, French-Canadians,Chinese and German-Russians.


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The discovery of gold caused a large number of Chinese to cross the ocean. This createda large number of social problems within the United States.The Chinese had no intentions of learning English, and kept mostly to themselves,making their integration difficulty.Following the treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo, about 70.000 Mexicans were also integrated

and given citizenship.

States and large companies hired advertisers to go to Europe and persuade people tocome to America, providing a large and cheap labor-force.A national immigration convention was convened in Minneapolis, in 1870, and delegatesthere petitioned the congress to set up the National Immigration Bureau.

The major immigration point in America, was of course, New York. It accounted for 70%of the immigrants, receiving them in special facilities. They appeared first at CastleGardens, and later on, at Ellis Island.

The federal government introduced pieces of legislation, forcing immigrants to register,and provide details on their backgrounds, point of origin, occupation, etc.This process started in 1890, and continued through the 20th century.

The period between 1756 and 1763, is known in Europe as the 7 years War, whereas inAmerica, it is known as the French-Indian war.

Immigration slowed down during the conflict, but the number of people coming toAmerica grew again after the peace treaty.

France gave up all of Canada in favor of Britain, as well as all its territories East of theMississippi. Florida was also given up by Spain, in favor of Britain. The Britishpossessions in North-America became increasingly larger.

Despite these successes, the cost of the war for Britain was significant, and the king wastrying to make up for the losses by taxing the colonies. Here lie the seeds for theAmerican Revolution. Added to this, the concerns of economic competition within thecolonies also emerged.Several British governors advised the king to forbid settlements in the west, partly toavoid conflicts with the Indians, and to keep them close to the Trans-Atlantic tradingroutes.

The proclamation of 1763, by which the British authorities closed the area west of theAppalachians to European settlements, was enacted. The city of Boston, reaching 50.000inhabitants, was beginning to become overcrowded.

The royal governors in the colonies were also instructed not to accord naturalizationrights to newcomers, or give them free land. At the same time, Britain continued to send


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convict ships to the colonies and prohibited the attempt of several colonies to prohibit theslave-trade.

Several revolutionaries had negative sentiments against the immigrants. Many of themconsidered that the solution to population growth was a high fertility rate, rather than the

acceptance of immigration. The Declaration of Independence reflects these concerns.

The Philadelphia Congress used a number of tricks to persuade British soldiers to desertand become American citizens, promising them land and naturalization. Approximately3000 of them took up the offer.

Immigration picked up again in 1783, and between 1783 and 1820, approximately350.000 Europeans arrived, and some other 50.000 from the Caribbean. These numbersincluded 200.000 Irish, 90.000 English, Scots and Welsh, 35.000 Germans and 16.000French.

Slavery was still the main source of labor in the South, and the number of slaves arrivingin the 18th century was aprox. 300.000. At this time, the growth in the number of slaveswas done by natural means, and less by importation.All states adopted legislation preventing the transportation of convicts.

The founding fathers were worried, that the Europeans coming from monarchies, couldnot understand the essence of democracy. Others feared that they would compromise thevery fabric of the nation.Jefferson suggested that the new-arrivals should be integrated as quickly as possible. Themost easily available tool was language. The challenge was to integrate groups that spokedifferent languages, into a nation that spoke only one. A shared language was believed tobe the engine of the New Republic.The final choice was set upon English, but a different English than the one used inBritain.

In addition to language, education played a very important part in Americanization. Bypreaching American values in school, a unified republic could be forged.

Regarding rights given to immigrants, we have 3 factions:

- those who wanted to restrict naturalization- those who wanted to allow naturalization- those in the middle, who wanted a period of adjustment before allowing

naturalization

These debates led to the adoption of the 1790 Naturalization Law. This act stipulated thatanyone who had resided in the country at least 2 years, could become citizens, if theydemonstrated they were people of good character and took an oath to the New Republic.Citizenship was only given to free white men, so Asians and Africans were not givencitizenship.


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Maryland also required its applicants to declare their faith in any form of Christianreligion.

The international context, especially the radicalism of the French revolution, forced areconsideration of immigration in America. The American authorities feared that the

fleeing French immigrants would bring various sorts of ideals and mentalities. The arrivalof these French coincided with the Whisky Rebellion.

The Federalists used the Whisky Rebellion, in order to throw the blame on immigrants,accusing them of instigating violence, primarily Irish immigrants. The result of thesedebates was the Naturalization Act of 1795.

The period of 2 years was raised to 5 years. They also had to prove that they had beenliving in the state where they have applied for at least 1 year. Additionally, naturalizationcould occur only following an act of Congress.

The next few years were characterized by rising tensions. The conflicts in Europe werecause for concern, and Congress was considering even more restrictive legislation. Theidea was that all aliens should be registered, and the 5 year period should be extended.

The new Naturalization Act in 1798 raised the 5 year period to 14 years. No person whowas a citizen or subject of any nation with which the United States was at war at the timeof application could be admitted as citizen.All white aliens were required to register with the closest district court.

Congress also passed the Alien Act of 1798, part of the Alien and Sedition Acts. TheAlien act gave Congress the authority to deport immigrants. The grounds for deportationwere purely ideological. The acts were supposed to expire in 1801. By that time, theinternational context had changed. The threat from France diminished after Napoleoncame to power. The elections of 1800 were fueled by these Acts, and as a result, theRepublicans captured both houses of the senate.

The new government revised the naturalization laws, in the spirit of the Pennsylvaniamodel. The residency requirement was reduced to 5 years in the Naturalization Act of1802, but the registration requirement was maintained. Naturalization was still limited tofree white men. Naturalization of Africans would not become reality until 1817, and itwas only in 1952 when Naturalization became truly color-blind.


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Period of Nation-Building (1820-1880)

Between 1820 and 1860, the New World received about 5 million immigrants. Thenumbers declined during the Civil War period, but immigration resumed shortly after (2.7million in the 1870s).

These immigrants came primarily from Europe, more exactly Britain, Ireland, Germanyand Scandinavia. A large number of Mexicans also joined, especially after the Mexican-American War. Towards the end of the period, an increasingly large number of Chinesealso immigrated.

Most of these new immigrants came as free workers. Indentured servants were no longera means for attracting immigrants. These new arrivals were in agreement with thePennsylvania model of immigration. Reactions to these new arrivals started to appear, inthe spirit of the Massachusetts model.Those who were concerned with the purity of the nation formed various associations, and

even anti-immigration political parties. The manifestations of the Virginia model in thisperiod can be seen in the contract-labor system, that brought hundreds of thousands ofChinese workers to America.

We speak about almost 300.000 people, who have been invited to do all kinds of dirtyand dangerous works, such as mining, building railroads, or even farming.

The regulation of immigration in this period started with the Passenger Act of 1819. Allship captains were required to provide a list of passengers to the Customs Office inAmerica. This list included their names, sex, occupation, age and country of origin.

During this period, the last traces of Feudalism disappeared, and the Industrial Agebrought about a Capitalization process. The main push factor for emigration was aneconomic one. The emblematic case for this was the emigration of the Irish. The potatoblight of this period caused serious famine. Approximately 55% of the Irish populationleft to America during the 1850s (about 1.5 million Irishmen).Economic conditions also explain the mass-migration of Germans. Similar factors alsopushed Scandinavians, especially Swedish and Norwegian people. Once immigration toAmerica became the rule in a certain community, a chain-reaction process began, thatcaused many more to emigrate.

The opportunities people in America had, far exceeded any European counterpart forthese people. Very many of the immigrants have had experience with farming andworking the land, they easily found opportunities in a rapidly-expanding country.

The Land Act of 1820 allowed the purchasing of land of at least 80 acres for the price of1.25$ per acre. This allowed very many immigrants to purchase land for almost nomoney at all.


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At this time, Texas was a contested territory between Mexico and America. Thesedisputes were the sparks that started the Mexican-American War, which had severalphases:

- the first phase started in 1835 when the Americans won the battle of Gonzales

- following this victory, Texas was declared independent, on the 2nd

of March, 1835- the Mexicans retaliated by winning the famous battle of the Alamo- the Battle of San Jacinto in April 1836 followed, with Texas becoming

independent, and finally joining the United States in 1845- United States declared War on Mexico in May 1846 (by this time, California was

also an issue of debate)- Following these events, the Americans pushed and eventually captured Mexico

City; the Mexicans had little choice but to accept the peace-treaty (Treaty ofGuadalupe-Hidalgo of 1848), giving up the areas that form todays Arizona,Nevada, Wyoming, etc.

The treaty specified that Mexicans had the right to choose between Mexican or Americancitizenship. They had one year to make up their minds. Whoever had not taken a decisionin time, would be granted American citizenship. Many of the Mexicans chose to becomeAmerican citizens, and as such, America gained a significantly large Mexican populationin the period following the war.

Large-scale immigration from China was triggered by the Californian Gold-Rush. TheChinese immigrants mostly came from South-East China. The factors determining themto migrate included natural disasters, crop failures, rapid population growth and militaryconflicts.

Some Chinese returned to China after earning sufficient amounts of money. However,only 1/3 of the Chinese immigrants returned to their homeland. Most of them settled inthe San Francisco area, and many were merchants. They owned grocery-stores,restaurants, etc. They were followed by workers destined for the gold-mines.

Another wave occurred during the building of the Trans-Continental railroad. A smallernumber of Chinese immigrants provided services in growing Chinatowns, in various bigcities, and they were also employed as domestic servants.

The growing number of Chinese and the competition they represented led to a Congressinvestigation, begun in 1877. The American Congress wanted to know how many theywere, what situation they had, etc. The investigation revealed that many of them came ascontact laborers, which meant that their employers covered their expenses, in exchangefor a certain period of labor. This resembled the process of indentured servitude. Many ofthem were able to return to their families, once their contract was over. They were notable to pay off their debts to their employers, they were forbidden by law to bring overtheir families, and they could not become citizens.


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A large number of prostitutes also immigrated. These women were kidnapped orpurchased from China, especially from Hong-Kong, and were taken to work in Americanestablishments by force.

Economic reasons are fundamental to the Federal Governments decision to limit or put

an end to Chinese immigration. The first step in this process was in 1875, when a lawwas passed, forbidding contract labor, and the culmination came in 1882, with theadoption of the Chinese exclusion act. This act banned any Chinese to come to the UnitedStates.

Those who were opposed to immigration complained that the new arrivals threatenedpublic welfare, health and safety. The vast majority of immigrants were very poor, andusually unskilled. They developed slums, and were often the cause of outbreak of manydiseases, such as cholera. Statistically, many immigrants constituted over 50% of theprison inmates of the time.

The Know-Nothing part was formed in the 1840s, in New York. The elections of thetime brought to power many of the representatives of the party. They were opposed bothto immigration and to the rights of women. They were also against going to war overslavery, and believed that the right to vote should only be given to the patriotic ones.They also argued that the differences between Americans and immigrants were clear andcould not be erased. Their position was to forbid immigrants entirely.

Their political influence succeeded in reducing immigration, especially from Ireland andGermany. Their political career was short-lived, however.

Generally speaking, the Germans, who came as skilled tradesman, had an easier timeadapting, despite the fact that they did not know the language. The Irish-Catholicpeasants had a harder time adapting. All of the European groups, however, adapted ratherwell to the new environment, but in different time-frames.

The Irish were more likely to settle in eastern cities, while the others moved westwardsand settled on farms. The Irish in the east had a particularly hard time. For non-Irishimmigrants, language adaptation was the greatest challenge. Many schools providededucation in German. Ethnic associations helped newcomers adjust, providing financialand moral support.

Immigrants of this time had an important role in defining the American character, and asin the previous age, many different approaches characterized the admission andsettlement of foreigners. In general, immigrants were received based on the Pennsylvaniamodel. The same cannot be said regarding the Mexicans or Chinese, where the Virginiamodel was applied.


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Immigration restrictions and ethnic conflicts (1900-1924)

Up until this time, those who supported the idea of a safe haven within America, hadprevailed, in front of voices that were opposing immigration. The first restrictive law hadbeen passed in 1875, excluding prostitutes and alien convicts from entering the country.

However, these groups were minor in size, and as such, the scope of these laws wasrather narrow.

In 1882, we have a more comprehensive law, excluding the mentally ill and allowingonly those that could demonstrate a prospect for the future. In 1884, the legislationalienated contract laborers. The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 was the first large-scalelegislation that eliminated an entire ethnic group. While no similar laws were passedconcerning the Japanese, the Gentlemans Agreement Act of 1907 implied that Japanwould promise to restrict working visas for workers aiming to travel to the UnitedStates.

Hostility towards ethnic groups was just part of the problem. The conflicts between themajority of the population and the newcomers also concerned religion, especially Roman-Catholics. The battleground of these disputes mostly took place in schools, where thepredominant orientation was protestant. The Catholics, as such, developed their ownschools. Antisemitism thrived in this period as well.

The opposition to immigration as far as economic reason was linked to unfaircompetition, because these immigrants were willing to work for a lot less money. Theywere also regarded as potential strike-breakers.

The new-arrivals, coming from Southern and Eastern-Europe, were considered

undesirable and even hostile towards American values. The literacy test was introducedas a consequence.

In 1903, a law was signed, excluding anarchists from entering the country. In 1907, arestriction was enforced, excluding people with physical or mental defects, that affectedtheir capacity to make a living.

The Dilingham commission produced a large report, stated that new immigrants weremore ignorant, more unskilled, more inclined to crime and more willing to accept a lowerstandard of living than previous immigrants. The report also suggested that restrictinglegislation could be based on a percentage of each nationality group already in the United

States.

Following these ideas, in 1913 Congress voted for another literacy test, but President Taftrefused to sign it. President Woodrow Wilson opposed the restriction policies again, butthis time, Congress used constitutional powers, and succeeded. The Russian Revolutionof 1917, legitimizing communism added to the fears of Americans.


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The Ku Klux Klan returned in 1915, when they adopted their new stature in Georgia. Theclan quickly became the largest organization of the 1920s. A sinister connection betweenimmigrants and alcohol was also created.

The response of immigrants to this hostility had various effects. Some changed their

names, others were afraid to speak up in public and give away their origin, andintellectual and ideological racism reached new heights in the 1920s (for example, thesupporters of the eugenics movement).

The new immigration restrictions place a ceiling on immigration from Europe, with theEmergency Quota Act of 1921. In concrete terms, the law limited, for a one year period,the members of each nationality were limited to 3% of the foreign-born of that group inAmerica, based on the 1910 census. As such, the maximum number of people arrivingfrom Europe would be aprox. 360.000.

This law was extended twice, in 1922 and 1923, before the Johnson-Reed Immigration

Act of 1924. This was the final version, cutting the number to 2% of each group, basedon the 1890 census.

The second part of the inter-war period brought some changes to the pattern ofimmigration. Tensions in Europe gave serious cause for concern. A number of Germansfled to America during the 30s. Until 1939, the policy of Nazi Germany was to allow asmany Jews to leave. The number of Jews that could be accepted to America wasrelatively small. Among the notable people fleeing to the United States we can nameAlbert Einstein, Thomas Mann, Bela Bartok or Henry Kissinger. They were allowedentry, because of the contributions they could bring.

As far as the Japanese are concerned, the Executive Order 9066 issued by Roosevelt inFebruary 1942, approximately 100.000 Japanese, some of them native citizens, wererelocated into specially created camps, where conditions were often distressful. Thegovernment also retained all their belongings.

The interwar and World War II period

The two immigration models most affected by restrictions were the Pennsylvania andVirginia models. The limitation of the number of immigrants led to even more seriousproblems during the Great Depression, mainly connected to the number of unemployedpeople.

In 1932, emigration was almost 3 times higher than immigration. Approximately 30.000people came to the country, and almost 100.000 left. Internal migration also played animportant part, many blacks moving from the rural south to the urban north.The Okies moved from the region known as the dust-bowl (a region covering the statesof Oklahoma and Kansas) to California. Approximately 1.5 million blacks moved tocities such as Chicago, New York or Philadelphia.


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As the threat of war became more and more present, a few changes in immigration-policies occurred. During WWII, the Bracero program allowed some Mexicans to comeand work in the United States, representing a reconsideration of the Virginia model,under which between 4 and 5 million Mexicans came to the United States.

After the outbreak of the war, America also adopted a series of special Bills, in order toadmit refugees from Nazi persecution, and those who were fleeing Communism.

Congress reconsidered immigration policy in 1952, and this first reconsiderationconcluded that nothing should be changed.

The population dislocations continued in the 1930s. Mussolinis rise to power, the rise ofNazi Germany and the Spanish Civil war were the main causes for migration.

The conference of Evian in 1938 debated the problem of Jewish refugees, as well as

matters regarding other nations. The aim was the creation of an organization, TheInternational Committee of Refugees.

The limitation of national quotas and the concern of the state department that new arrivalscould become a public charge became major issues during the Great Depression.

Jewish applicants for refuge had to provide legal documentation of their good moralcharacter. This was of course an impediment for them, and reinforced the difficulties ofreaching America. Still, America was still the leader in terms of refugee-acceptance.

Two events are also notable, specifically the Wagner-Rogers legislation and the incidentinvolving the ship St. Louis.

In February 1938, Senator Robert Wagner and Congress-woman Edith Rogers introduceda resolution to authorize 10.000 foreign visas for children 14 or under, who lived inGermany or territories annexed by Germany. Several members of Congress were willingto vote for the Bill, only if the number of admitted children was included in the national-quota limits. It was eventually adopted in this form, children being given priority foradmission, under existing quotas.

In 1940, the Attorney-General of the United States, issued a directive permitting the entryof unaccompanied children from European countries that were subject to attack. Themajority of these children came from Britain. This policy of evacuating children onlylasted for a few months, until a refugee ship carrying children was torpedoed by Germanforces.

The St. Louis ship sailed from Hamburg in 1939, carrying approximately 1000 German-Jews, who were heading for Cuba. Not being accepted into Cuba, the captain of the St.Louis sailed for the United States, hoping to receive admittance based on humanitariangrounds. Being denied for the second time, the ship was forced to return to Europe.


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Britain, the Netherlands, Belgium and France accepted these refugees. More than half ofthe passengers aboard the St. Louis lost their lives in the Holocaust. Anti-semitism, fearof economic conditions, diplomatic issues and a general lack of political will of theUnited States government caused this black spot on American reputation.

States such as California or Texas had some quotas for Mexican-immigrant quotas in the1920. They allowed a small number of Mexicans to enter legally and work, on thecondition that they worked in agriculture or industry, and at the end of their contract, theywould return to Mexico.

Immigration of Mexicans decreased during the Great Depression, but after the outbreakof World War II, Congress was persuaded to re-open the borders for Mexicans. Thenegotiations between the American and Mexican governments began in 1942. Theagreement known as the Bracero program was signed in 1942.

Between 1942 and 1945, about 220.000 Braceros entered the United States to work in

agriculture. In 1950, President Truman established a commission on migratory labor, toexamine the impact of the Bracero program. What they discovered was that there wereabout 1.000.000 Mexicans working in the United States, about of which 80% were illegalimmigrants. The commission recommended that agriculture workers benefited from thesame protection as industrial workers, and that efforts should be made to prevent illegalmigration. Congress decided to renew the Bracero program, motivation that Cold-Warconflicts required access to foreign workers.The renewal was signed in 1952, and an average of 400.000 Mexicans came in everyyear, while illegal immigration continued without any difficulties. The Bracero programremained in place until 1964.

A 1945 report of the State Department estimated that there were about 20 to 30 millionwar refugees and displaced people in Europe. Under these circumstances, PresidentTruman signed a directive in 1945 to facilitate the emission of war-refugees into theUnited States.

In 1947, president Truman supported new legislation to permit the entry of 200.000displaced people. In 1950, the Displaced Persons Act was amended, to increase thenumber of available visas to 450.000. The 1954 Refugee Act gave free entry to 200.000refugees, outside existing quotas. The McCarran-Walter Act was adopted by congressover president Trumans vito, restricting immigration and introducing national-originquotas for Asians, and lifting the bars to the naturalization of Asians and their exclusionfrom immigration.

In September 1957, the Refugee-Escapee Act was adopted, permitting allocation of visanumbers that had not been used in the Refugee-Relief Act.

The 1950 Internal-Security Act barred admission to any foreigner who had ever been amember of the Communist Party, or any other totalitarian party.


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Although the door to immigration was not closed completely, we see a shift in policies,based on the Virginia and Massachusetts models. We also witness the roots of large-scaleillegal immigration, which would grow in later years and pose several other problems.

American immigration between the 20s and the 60s reflected both sides of the

Massachusetts model, positive ones, such as admitting refugees, both war and political,and negative ones, such as the restrictive measures targeting those whos ideologiesconflicted with mainstream American values.

The 1965 amendments and following changes

The amendments to immigration policy of 1965, revived the Pennsylvania model. Thetwo hemispheres had two different caps: 170.000 for the Eastern hemisphere, and120.000 for the western hemisphere.

In 1978, a global cap of 290.000 immigrants was established. To make sure that nocountry dominated these caps, a cap of 20.000 visas was issued for each country. In termsof eligibility criteria, priority was assigned to family members and employers. Theamendments resulted in the fact that the largest number of visas was provided for familyreunification.

The period of 1965 represents a shift in permanent immigration patterns. A shift fromEuropean origins to Asian and Latin-American origins can be noticed thereafter.

Kennedy was a big supporter of abolishing national origin quotas. He waited two years,until 1962, and in early 1963, he made it clear that he wished to reform immigration. He

called for the elimination of these quotas in an address to Congress. The fact that he wasassassinated put a hold to these proceedings. The proposed change was delayed foranother congressional season.

In 1964, in a State of the Union message, President Johnson outlined an ambitiouslegislative program, called the Great Society, in which he explicitly stated his supportfor advancing civil rights, and not just those of racial minorities, but also of the newimmigrants coming to the country.

The 1965 immigration bill represented a compromise on a number of issues, in order togain broad support. First of all, Congress was concerned that this legislation gave too

much authority to the president to allocate visas.Second, there was significant debate over settling a quota of immigration for the westernhemisphere. Third, labor unions were concerned that foreign workers would competeunfairly with American workers.

The Bill of 1965 placed responsibility for allocating visas within the Congress. Then,quotas established different figures for the two hemispheres, as well as per country limits.The bill also established 7 preferences for admission. 4 of them were for family


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reunification, and 3 for employment purposes. 75% of all visas were allocated to familyrelationships, and only 25% to labor categories.

The national origins quotas were finally eliminated after 45 years. The questionremained: what had changed?. The answer to this comes mainly from the Civil Rights

movement. Then, the 1960s were more optimistic times than the 1920s or the 1950s.Finally, in this period, the ethnic groups that had been most affected by national originsquotas had gathered considerable political power. There were quite a number of German-American, Jewish-American or Irish-American Congressmen.Last, but not least, these reforms were considered to be somewhat limited in scope. Therestill were limitations to the number of people that could come to the United States.

These amendments restored the Pennsylvania model and opened the way for the 4 th waveof immigration.

One of the slightly hidden purposes of the 1965 legislation was to discourage

immigration from the western hemisphere. These immigrants tended to settle in certainstates and areas.

Approximately 70% of these immigrants settled in Florida, Texas, New Jersey, Illinois orCalifornia. Among the fastest-growing groups of immigrants in American are the Asianimmigrants, especially from India, Korea and the Philippines. The other big group wasthe Mexican one.

Following 1965, about 75.000 of Mexicans came to the United States each year, most ofwhich arrived illegally. Another large group was coming from Jamaica, then theDominican Republic, and finally Cuba, where immigrants were considered to be politicalrefugees.

Certain national groups tried to get around the 20.000 limit, by coming to America withthe use of temporary work or study visas. This was especially true for smaller Asiancountries, such as Taiwan.

The preference given to family reunification triggered what we call chain-migration.This is most evident in the case of Asian countries, such as Korea.

The new immigration policies did not eliminate illegal immigration. In case of Mexico,Congress initiated the H-2 program. This was especially designed for workers in thewestern hemisphere to come to the United States on a temporary basis.

In 1918, the US census bureau estimated that there were between 3.5 and 5 million illegalimmigrants, out of which half were from Mexico. Following 1965, a new commissionwas created, the SCIRP (during the Carter administration). This new commission wasaiming to stop illegal immigration by sanctioning employers. The commission however,could not agree on what kind of identification was required.


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The commission unanimously recommended the legalization of those who were illegallystaying within the country. This legalization would be done gradually, priority once againbeing given to family reunification.

The commission therefore rejected the Virginia model, saying that illegal immigration

should not be tolerated, even if illegal immigrants did jobs that Americans were notwilling to do.

In 1985, the legislation put forward to Congress a plan to give permanent residence tofarm workers who had been engaged in seasonal agricultural work. These programs werenamed SAW (Seasonal Agricultural Workers) and RAW (Replacement AgriculturalWorkers).

This new Act, the IRCA, was signed into law in November, 1986. In brief, it focused onthe reduction of illegal immigrants, through a combination of improved border controland sanctions for employers who knowingly hired illegal immigrants. It also made it

easier for illegal immigrants to apply for citizenship, made it illegal to hire illegalimmigrants, but only if the employer knew that the person was in the country illegally.Employers were thus required to check identity and work authorization.

Under the new provisions of the IA of 1990, approximately 2.7 million people wereeligible for citizenship. The visa ceilings were increased to 700.000 visas per year for thefirst 3 years. Family and employment visas each had their own quotas (480.000 forfamily). Beginning with 1994, employment immigration received a quota of 140.000people. Diversity immigration received 55.000 visas.

The 1990 legislation imposed restrictions to temporary workers, such as the requirementto own a bachelors degree.

These policies, starting from 1965, represent a change in thinking and attitude towardsimmigrants. All these measures were adopted because immigration was considered to bein the best interest of the country. Moreover, permanent admission was preferred totemporary workers. Especially the immigration act of 1990 provided a form ofimmigration that emphasized family, skills and humanitarian interests.The consensus that helped pass the IA of 1990 did not last long. In a few years time, there-emergence of illegal immigration and concerns about the fiscal impact of legalimmigration challenged the Pennsylvania model once again.

history of american immigration

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