Government legislation

• The government didnt believe the new immigrants enriched the life and culture of the USA
• Open door began to close
• fear of immigrants/xenophobia increased
• Year of Literacy test Act:

  1917
• What was the Literacy test act?

  Immigrants had to pass a series of reading and writing tests. Many of the poorer immigrants had received no education and therefore failed the tests and were refused entry
• Year of emergency quota act:

  1921
• What was the Emergency Quota Act?

  A law which restricted the number of immigrants to 357,000 a year. It also set down a quota- only 3% of the total population of any overseas group already in the USA in 1910 could come in after 1921
• Year of national origins act:

  1924
• What was the national origins act?

  This law cut the quota down to 2%. This law was aimed at southern and eastern europeans immigrants. It also prohibited immigration from asia and this angered the chinese communities.
• Year was the immigration act:

  1929
• What was the immigration act?

  This made the quota of 1924 permanent and also restricted immigration to 150,000 a year