Chinese immigrants arrived in North America during the mid-1800s seeking work, but as gold became harder to find, hostility towards foreigners increased. In 1882, Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act, barring all immigration from China until its repeal in 1943.
The current uproar over immigration in America is not a new phenomenon. In the mid-1800s, significant numbers of Chinese immigrants arrived in North America, looking for work during the California Gold Rush and the construction of the country’s first transcontinental railroad. When gold was plentiful and laborers were in demand, newcomers were tolerated. However, as gold became harder to find, hostility to Chinese and other foreigners increased. In the 1870s, union leaders blamed depressing wages on Chinese workers, and anti-immigrant resentment followed. In 1882, Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act, which banned all immigration from China. The law was not repealed until 1943.
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The Chinese Exclusion Act was the first law ever passed by Congress that barred all members of a specific ethnic group or nationality from coming to the United States.
Even though Chinese made up only a small fraction of the US population in the 1870s and 1880s, Congress passed the bill ostensibly to address the demands of workers and quell concerns that the country’s “racial purity” was under threat.
A Supreme Court case in 1854 had ruled that Chinese, like African Americans and Native Americans, could not testify in court, making it impossible for Chinese immigrants to seek justice.
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