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Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 (Hart-Celler Act)

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The 1619 Project is Wrong on the 1965 Immigration Act

Nikole Hannah-Jones gives the credit for ending quotas to civil rights reformers. The truth is a bit more complicated.
by Zaid Jilani via The American Conservative on September 21, 2020

Fifty Years On, the 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act Continues to Reshape the United States

An analysis of the significance, unintended consequences, and implications ofthe 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act fifty years later.
by Muzaffar Chishti, Faye Hipsman, Isabel Ball via Migration Policy Institute on October 15, 2015
Over the next 50 years, Asians will surge past Latinos to become the largest group of immigrants heading to the U.S., according to a new study. Above, a naturalization ceremony in New York City in 2013.

The Law That Created Illegal Immigration

Discussion of the Hart-Cellar Act that was passed 50 years ago.
by Jane H. Hong via Los Angeles Times on October 2, 2015
Lyndon B. Johnson signing the 1965 Immigration Act.

The Contradictory Legacy of the 1965 Immigration Act

A law designed to repair flaws in the fabric of American justice also created new ones.
by Erika Lee via What It Means to Be American on September 29, 2015

Remarks at the Signing of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965

President Lyndon B. Johnson, Liberty Island, New York, October 3, 1965.
by Lyndon Baines Johnson via LBJ Presidential Library on October 3, 1965
Lyndon Johnson.

Special Message to the Congress on Immigration

In early 1965, President Johnson made the case to Congress for comprehensive immigration reform.
by Lyndon Baines Johnson via The American Presidency Project on January 13, 1965
Silhouettes of Energy Secretary Chris Wright, President Donald Trump, and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum in the Oval Office in the dark.

The Making of Emergencies

For centuries, theorists of liberal governance have worried about how emergencies can unfetter executive power. Trump has given those fears new urgency.
by Caroline Elkins via New York Review of Books on February 16, 2025
graph of historic immigration data

How America Tried and Failed to Stay White

100 years ago the U.S. tried to limit immigration to White Europeans. Instead, diversity triumphed.
by Eduardo Porter, Youyou Zhou via Washington Post on May 15, 2024
Nikki Haley speaking at the White House.
partner

The Asian American Presidential Nominee Who Blazed a Path for Nikki Haley

What the differences between Hiram Fong and Nikki Haley tell us about changes to the GOP.
by Vivian Yan-Gonzalez via Made By History on February 8, 2023
Farmers working in an orchard.
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The Unlikely Supporters of a Bill That Would Increase Guest Workers

The history of guest worker programs should give pause to supporters of the Farm Workforce Modernization Act.
by Matt Garcia via Made By History on December 14, 2022
Colorful illustration of two groups of people in pink boxes. The people on the left have brown skin, and those on the right have lighter skin.

Inventing the “Model Minority”: A Critical Timeline and Reading List

The idea of Asian Americans as a “model minority” has a long and complicated history.
via Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment on December 15, 2021
Image of an Asian American face obscured by visual effect that it has been sliced and distorted

Searching for Coherence in Asian America

In “The Loneliest Americans,” Jay Caspian Kang asks whether Asian American identity can be rescued from people like him.
by Marella Gayla via The New Yorker on October 20, 2021
Men lined up on a set of stairs.

Who Is "Essential"?

On the need to rethink the U.S. immigration and refugee policy, which was shaped as part of Cold War strategy.
by Mae Ngai via Perspectives on History on August 21, 2020
An outline of the United States filled with black figures who are outlined by a continuous white line.

"Other": A Brief History of American Xenophobia

The United States often touts itself as a "nation of immigrants," but this obscures the real story.
via Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment on July 11, 2020
President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the Immigration and Naturalization Act of 1965 on Liberty Island in New York Harbor.

The Nativist Tradition

Two recent books put the reemergence of anti-immigrant sentiment in the Trump era into historical relief.
by Joel Suarez via Dissent on July 6, 2020
Elizabeth Warren at a debate podium.
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Why Family Separation Is So Central to Trump’s Immigration Vision

Strengthening family ties has been key to overcoming nativism — and in 2020, it can do so again.
by Maddalena Marinari via Made By History on December 21, 2019

Manufacturing Illegality

Historian Mae Ngai reflects on how a century of immigration law created a crisis.
by Mae Ngai, Peter Costantini via Foreign Policy in Focus on January 16, 2019

Trump’s Move to End DACA and Echoes of the Immigration Act of 1924

By ending DACA, President Trump seems to be trying to resurrect a national immigration policy defined by racial engineering.
by Jelani Cobb via The New Yorker on September 5, 2017

The Real History of American Immigration

Trump's break with tradition may be good or bad, but it's definitely different.
by Joshua Zeitz via Politico Magazine on August 6, 2017

A Brief History of America’s ‘Love-Hate Relationship’ With Immigration

Donald Trump’s restrictive plan is reminiscent of legislation from 100 years ago.
by Alan M. Kraut, Priscilla Alvarez via The Atlantic on February 19, 2017

Not Who We Are

The U.S. is neither a land of nativists nor a haven for immigrants. Since the founding, the truth has lain somewhere in between.
by Paul A. Kramer via Slate on February 3, 2017

200 Years of Immigration Data Put Trump's Ban into Context

In light of President Trump's temporary ban on immigration from seven Muslim-majority nations, we take a look at larger immigration trends.
by Alan M. Kraut via STAT on January 31, 2017

37 Maps That Explain How America Is a Nation of Immigrants

It's impossible to understand the country without knowing who's been kept out, who's been let in, and how they've been treated once they arrive.
by Dara Lind via Vox on January 12, 2015
Folk singer Tom Glazer performs in July 1965 for nearly 400 children enrolled in Head Start centers at Saratoga Square Park in Brooklyn, N.Y. (AP)

Evaluating the Success of the Great Society

Lyndon B. Johnson's visionary set of legislation turns 50 years old.
via Washington Post on May 17, 2014
Painting representing the Great Migration: African Americans going through gates to Chicago, New York, and St. Louis.

The Changing Definition of African-American

How the great influx of people from Africa and the Caribbean since 1965 is challenging what it means to be African-American.
by Ira Berlin via Smithsonian on February 1, 2010

Great Migration Debates: Keywords in Historical Perspective

The use of the word "immigrant" in contemporary debates often reflects a lack of understanding of U.S. immigration history.
by Donna Gabaccia via Social Science Research Council on July 28, 2006
Soldier at the US-Mexico border.

Trump’s Doubly Flawed "Invasion" Theory

How Trump's migration-as-invasion theory might serve as a pretext for claiming vast presidential powers and upending constitutional norms.
by Elizabeth Goitein, Katherine Yon Ebright via Just Security on February 19, 2025
Von Trapp family from "The Sound of Music," (1965).

How the Family From Everyone’s Favorite Musical Actually Came to America

And why so many people remember the tale so differently.
by Rebecca Brenner Graham via Slate on January 26, 2025
Kamala Harris waving to the audience in front of American flags.

What Does Caste Have to Do With Kamala Harris?

This election year, two women of South Asian descent—Kamala Harris and Usha Vance—take center stage. What can their identities tell us about their approach?
by Tanvi Misra via Harper's Bazaar on September 26, 2024
People holding signs for Trump and for deportation, in front of an American Flag.

How Immigration Became a Lightning Rod in American Politics

Anti-immigrant think tanks and advocacy groups operated on the margins until Trump became president. Now they have molded not only the GOP but also Democrats.
by Gaby del Valle via The Nation on September 25, 2024
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