Anti-Asian laws and policies

A brief overview of anti-Asian laws from the late 1800s and early 1900s.

Naturalization Act of 1870

The Naturalization Act of 1870 extended naturalization rights to "aliens of Africian nativity and to persons of African descent." However, the law denied the ability to becoming a naturalized citizens to all other groups of non-whites, particularly Asians.

Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882

The Chinese Exclusion Act prohibited the entry of Chinese laborers into the United States. Certain "exempt" classes of Chinese people (merchants, students, teachers, travelers, and dipolmats) were still permited to enter the country. This was the first time in US history that the federal government enacted such broad race and class based restrictions on immigration.

Gentlemen's Agreement of 1907

An informal agreement between Japan and the United States that restricted the inflow of Japanese immigrants in exchange for desegregating public schools in San Fransisco. The agreement was an attempt by President Theodore Roosevelt to address California's growing anti-Japanese sentiments and appease a growing world power in Japan.

1913 Alien Land Law (CA)

This California state law allowed "aliens ineligible for citizenship," a category that only included Asian immigrants, to lease land for only three years. It also barred them from purchasing land. By 1923, Washington, Colorado, Arizona, Texas, Oregon, and Idaho all had similar laws.

The Immigration Act of 1917

Also known as the Literacy Act, this law implimented a literacy test for all immigrants seeking to enter the United States. These literacy tests were primarily aimed at European immigrants and were administered in the immigrant's native language. The law also included language that barred immigration from "idiots," "imbeciles," "epileptics," and "anarchists."

The law also created an "Asiatic barred zone," which prohibited immigration from India, most of Southeast Asia, the Pacific Islands, Asiatic Russia, and Middle East. Japan and the Philippines were excluded from the barred zone.

The Immigration Act of 1924

Also known as the Johnson-Reed Act or the Asian Exclusion Act, the Immigration Act of 1924 limited the number of immigrants allowed into the United States through a national origins quota.

It included a provision excluding anyone who by virtue of race or nationality was ineligble for citizenship. Exisiting laws already excluded Asian immigrants from becoming naturalized citizens. As a result, the Act prevented Asians that were not already barred from entry, notably the Japanese, were no longer able to immigrate to the United States.

Executive Order 9066

Issued on February 19th, 1942 by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Executive Order 9066 (EO 9066) allowed for the forced removal and relocation of over 120,000 people of Japanese descent from areas along the West Coast. Over two-thirds of them were American citizens.

Executive Order 9102

Issued in March 1942, Executive Order 9102 created the War Relocation Authority (WRA), the federal agency reponsible for the removal, relocation, and imprisonment of Japanese Americans who were subject to EO 9066. The WRA constructed and oversaw 10 incarceration sites across the country.

References

Cherstin Lyon. "Alien land laws," Densho Encyclopedia https://encyclopedia.densho.org/Alien%20land%20laws

Cherstin Lyon. "Immigration Act of 1917," Densho Encyclopedia https://encyclopedia.densho.org/Immigration%20Act%20of%201917

Lee, Erika. 2017. "Immigration, Exclusion, and Resistance, 1800s-1940s." In Finding a Path Forward, Asian American and Pacific Islander National Historic Landmarks theme study. Edited by Franklin Odo. U. S. Government Publishing Office.

National Archives. 2023. "Chinese Exclusion Act (1882)." Last modified January 17, 2023. htpps://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/chinese-exclusion-act

National Archives. 2024. "Restricting Immigration from Asia and the Pacific, 1870s to 1950s." Last modified July 18, 2024. https://www.archives.gov/research/aapi/immigration

Office of the Historian. 2016. "The Immigration Act of 1924 (The Johnson-Reed Act)." Milestones in the History of U.S. Foreign Relations - Office of the Historian (state.gov)

Shiho Imai. "Gentlemen's Agreement," Densho Encyclopedia https://encyclopedia.densho.org/Gentlemen's%20Agreement

Shiho Imai. "Immigration Act of 1924," Densho Encyclopedia https://encyclopedia.densho.org/Immigration%20Act%20of%201924