Chinese Exclusion Act (text)

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  • Chinese Exclusion Act (text)

Dublin Core

Title

Chinese Exclusion Act (text)

Subject

[no text]

Description

This is the text of the Chinese Exclusion Act. It was the first legislation to severely restrict immigration.
The act targeted skilled and unskilled laborers, who native-born workers claimed, drove down wages and competed for jobs. Several classes of Chinese immigrants including students, merchants, and diplomats were exempt, but the law required that if they left the United States, they must obtain a certificate to re-enter. Chinese legal residents could not become naturalized citizens.

The Chinese Exclusion act was renewed in 1892 and made permanent in 1902. Only during WWII, when China was an ally of the U.S. against Japan, was Chinese Exclusion repealed in 1943. However, only a small number (105) of Chinese immigrants were allowed each year. In 1965, Congress passed the Immigration Act that allowed a maximum of 20,000 immigrants from any one country.

Creator

U.S. Congress

Source

An act to execute certain treaty stipulations relating to the Chinese. May 6, 1882; Enrolled Acts and Resolutions of Congress, 1789-1996; General Records of the United States Government; Record Group 11; National Archives. U.S. National Archives and Records Administration. http://www.ourdocuments.gov/doc.php?doc=47

Publisher




Date

1882-05-06

Contributor

[no text]

Rights

Public Domain.

Relation

Hand-written Copy of Chinese Exclusion Act

Format

.PDF, 72 kb

Language

eng

Type

[no text]

Identifier

Immigration_20

Coverage

[no text]

Document Item Type Metadata

Text

[no text]

Original Format

Federal law

Citation

U.S. Congress, "Chinese Exclusion Act (text)," in The World at the Fair, Item #84, http://uclawce.ats.ucla.edu/items/show/84 (accessed June 19, 2013).