135th Anniversary of The Chinese Exclusion Act

May 6, 2017 marked the 135th anniversary of the Chinese Exclusion Act.  On May 6, 1882 the Chinese Exclusion Act was signed into law by President Chester A. Arthur.  The law was established to suppress Chinese immigration to the United States and to prohibit Chinese immigrants from becoming legalized citizens of the U.S.  "The Chinese exclusion law was the very first time in American history that immigrants were barred because of their race and class.  In 1882, when Congress passed the law, there were 39,600 men and women from China who arrived in the U.S.  Just three years later, there were only 22...," writes National Public Radio reporter Kat Chow in a May 5, 2017 article.  Chinese immigrants were drawn to the west coast after the Gold Ruse of 1849.  Chinese immigrants were instrumental in the construction of the Central Pacific railroad system from 1864 to 1869.

The Chinese Exclusion Act, the first major law restricting immigration to the U.S., was extended for another ten years through the Geary Act of 1892.  In 1902, the Chinese Exclusion Act became a permanent federal law.  In 1929, the National Origins Act expanded upon the precedent of the Chinese Exclusion and Geary Acts.  The National Origins Act capped overall immigration to the United States at 150,000 people per year and prohibited all immigration to the U.S. from Asian countries.  The Chinese Exclusion Act was eventually repealed in 1943 by the Magnuson Act - which was enacted since China was an ally with the U.S. against Japan during World War II.  Chinese immigrants were not completely welcomed into the United States until the Immigration Act of 1965, which eliminated all previous national-origins policies.

Although the Chinese Exclusion Act was originally designed as a temporary law it lasted for 61 years.  "The Chinese Exclusion Act set the groundwork for immigrant detention centers and the country's first large-scale deportation of a single immigrant group.  Specifically, the exclusion era brought an expansion of the federal government in terms of hiring more immigrant inspectors, whose responsibilities included working as interpreters and at the detention facilities," writes Chow.   

In 2012, the U.S. Congress passed a resolution formally apologizing to Chinese Americans for the establishment and usage of The Chinese Exclusion Act and other discriminatory practices.

Sources:
"As Chinese Exclusion Act Turns 135, Experts Point to Parallels Today" by Kat Chow - NPR News. May 5, 2017.
At America's Gates: Chinese Immigration During The Exclusion Era, 1882-1943 by Erika Lee.
http:ocp.hul.harvard.edu/immigration/exclusion.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_Exclusion_Act

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