Teaching the Holocaust and other Genocides

1921-1924

Immigration Laws 1921 and 1924

Emergency Quota Law of 1921

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled . . .

SEC. 2 . (a) That the number of aliens of any nationality who may be admitted under the immigration laws to the United States in any fiscal year shall be limited to 3 per centum of the number of foreign-born persons of such nationality resident in the United States as determined by the United States census of 1910… (b) For the purposes of this Act nationality shall be determined by country of birth, treating as separate countries the colonies or dependencies for which separate enumeration was made in the United States census of 1910…

Table Showing Impact of
Immigration Quotas

Immigration Act of 1924 (Johnson-Reed Act)

Sec. 11. (a) The annual quota of any nationality shall be 2 per centum of the number of foreign born individuals of such nationality resident in continental United States as determined by the United States census of 1890, but the minimum quota of any nationality shall be 100. (b) The annual quota of any nationality for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 1927, and for each fiscal year thereafter, shall be a number which bears the same ratio to 150,000 as the number of inhabitants in continental United States in 1920 having that national origin (ascertained as hereinafter provided in this section) bears to the number of inhabitants in continental United States in 1920, but the minimum quota of any nationality shall be 100.

Illustration for article "an alien anti-dumping bill" in The Literary Digest, May 7, 1921, p. 13,
reprinting a cartoon by Hallahan for
Providence Evening Bulletin

Excerpt from a speech by South Carolina senator Ellison Smith in support of the Immigration Act of 1924

Who is an American? … If you were to go abroad and someone were to meet you and say, ‘I met a typical American,’ what would flash into your mind as a typical American, the typical representative of that new Nation? Would it be the son of an Italian immigrant, the son of a German immigrant, the son of any of the breeds from the Orient, the son of the denizens of Africa? … Thank God we have in America perhaps the largest percentage of any country in the world of the pure, unadulterated Anglo-Saxon stock…It is for the preservation of that splendid stock that has characterized us that I would make this not an asylum for the oppressed of all countries, but a country to assimilate and perfect that splendid type of manhood that has made America the foremost Nation in her progress and in her power… [L]et us shut the door and assimilate what we have, and let us breed pure American citizens and develop our own American resources.

Discussion Questions

1. How does Smith define what it means to be an American?

2. What assumptions does Smith make about race, ethnicity, and national identity?

3. What historical context might have influenced this perspective on American identity?

4. How does the speaker’s vision of America compare to the idea of America as a “melting pot”?

5. What is the significance of the phrase “pure, unadulterated Anglo-Saxon stock” in the context of U.S. history?

6. What are the implications of the call to “shut the door” to further immigration?

7. How does this passage reflect broader debates about assimilation and multiculturalism in America?

8. What role do economic and political factors play in shaping attitudes toward immigration and national identity?

Task

It’s 1926 and “you” are running for a seat in the United States House of Representatives from a New York Congressional District. You are scheduled to deliver a speech to the voters of your district in which you outline your position on the issue of immigration, specifically on the 1921 and 1924 laws and their effects in America. Clearly outline your position (for or against) and explain why you take that position. Support your explanation with details ad analysis. Do NOT simply explain the provisions of the law.

Source

https://billofrightsinstitute.org/activities/ellison-durant-smith-shut-the-door-1924