A Brief History of Immigration Law
In 1819, Congress enacted the nation’s first significant immigration legislation and in 1864 immigration policy became under federal control rather than left up to each state. In 1882 the Chinese Exclusion Act was established to prevent the entry of Chinese. By the late 1880s prostitutes, convicts, and those who were likely to become public charges (dependent on public assistance) were denied entry and provisions for expulsion were adopted. In 1891, the Bureau of Immigrations was established and administered all immigration policy.
The early 1900s brought millions of immigrants to the United States in search of new opportunities. Immigration laws were updated to quantify the number of immigrants permitted entry into the U.S. During this time political radicals, polygamists, psychopaths, illiterates, alcoholics, and those who could not speak English were denied entry. In the height of the World Wars, less than a half million foreigners migrated to the United States.
The 1950s saw a new, dramatic increase in immigration and in 1952, Congress set up the basic structure of our legal immigration policy. These laws established a set number of immigrants who would be granted legal status and the emphasis was placed on allowing a family to sponsor foreign family members, employers to sponsor skilled workers, and providing asylum for political refugees. In 1986, after decades of growing public concerns, immigration laws began to change with the implementation of making it illegal for employers to hire illegal aliens and gave amnesty to more than three million illegal aliens. Generally speaking, the 1990s was a period of a decline in efforts to control immigration. A number of fences and patrolled areas were controlling some immigration from the south, but the borders were not “closed.”
In 2001, as a result of the terrorist attacks of 9/11, immigration laws changed dramatically. Driver’s licensing and financial account requirements changed along with enforcement of employment verification processes. Because nearly 40 percent of illegal immigrants are estimated to have been in the U.S. legally, on a visa or green card that lapsed, laws regarding documentation and citizenship were bolstered. Both Border Patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) had a dramatic rise in funding and employees to help enforce immigration laws at the border and with residents. Local immigration laws changed to include harsher punishments, including deportation, for immigrants involved in criminal activity.
