US Immigration Analysis

The history of US Immigration has been defined by evolution of reasonable caution into fear mongering discrimination. The late 19th century Gold Rush attracted Chinese laborers during the fall of the Qing dynasty, a time of instability in China. The immigration of Asian people to the US was not welcome, as made clear by the Naturalization Act of 1870, which prohibited the naturalization of Asian people on the grounds that they were unable to assimilate. The implication of this law, that they were barred from voting and political participation, as well as the alien land laws passed in dozens of state made it impossible for the Chinese people to become part of the society. As a response to the influx of workers in the West, the Page Act of 1875 prohibited the entry of competing contract laborers from Asia by classifying them as “undesirable”. This functioned to protect American jobs from immigrant labor but created increasing discrimination against Chinese people by the American working class. They were often used by politicians

Among these are cheap labor; the money saved from hiring illegal immigrants at a lower wage can be spent producing more for consumption. Immigration also increases the amount of consumers, meaning more money going towards business, a key formula for economic prosperity. The US has always prided themselves on being a “melting pot” and demonstrating the best qualities of diversity. The freedom of religion and expression outlined in the first amendment has facilitated the integration of culture. As a nation built on immigration, the benefits are crucial to our identity as a people. This is put forth by James Madison when he says, “America was indebted to immigration for her settlement and prosperity. That part of America which had encouraged them most had advanced most rapidly in population, agriculture and the