Immigration to US Flashcards
(33 cards)
What was America’s immigration policy before the 20th century?
An open-door policy welcoming European immigrants to fuel industrial growth.
What triggered the shift in attitudes towards immigration in the 1920s?
Fear of revolution, isolationism, social fears, racism, and economic anxieties.
What was the most immediate and significant cause of anti-immigrant policies?
Fear of revolution following the Russian Revolution and the Red Scare.
What global event sparked fear of political radicalism in the U.S.?
The 1917 Russian Revolution.
What was the Red Scare?
A period of panic over communism and anarchism infiltrating the U.S.
Which groups were mainly targeted during the Red Scare?
Immigrants from Eastern and Southern Europe.
What 1919 event intensified fear of revolution?
A nationwide bomb plot targeting officials, including Attorney General Palmer.
What were the Palmer Raids (1920)?
Over 6,000 immigrants arrested, many jailed or deported, often without trial.
How did businesses use Red Scare fears?
To suppress unions and justify anti-immigrant sentiment by linking immigrants to socialism.
Why was fear of revolution the most significant factor?
It caused immediate federal action like mass arrests and deportations.
What is isolationism in the context of 1920s America?
A desire to avoid foreign entanglements, extending to culture and immigration.
How did isolationism influence immigration policy?
It led to the Emergency Quota Act (1921) and the National Origins Act (1924).
What did the Emergency Quota Act (1921) and the National Origins Act (1924) do?
Restricted immigration, favoring Northern and Western Europeans.
How did WW1 contribute to isolationism?
Anti-German sentiment led to bans on the German language and culture in schools.
Why is isolationism the second most important factor?
It made anti-immigrant laws long-term and institutional.
What did many Americans associate immigrants with in the 1920s?
Crime, disease, and urban disorder.
Why did immigrants become scapegoats for social issues?
Overcrowded slums and rising crime were blamed on immigrant communities.
What was the Sacco and Vanzetti case?
Two Italian immigrants executed for robbery and murder with little evidence — widely seen as biased.
What measures were taken due to social fears?
Local housing restrictions and increased surveillance in immigrant neighborhoods.
Why are social fears the third most significant factor?
They reinforced hostility but did not lead to federal actions like deportations.
Which groups were most targeted by racial prejudice in the 1920s?
Southern and Eastern Europeans, Jews, and Catholics.
What pseudoscientific belief influenced immigration attitudes?
Racial hierarchy theories claiming some groups were inferior.
How did the KKK influence immigration policy?
It portrayed immigrants as threats to American values and gained political influence.
Why is racism the fourth most significant factor?
It shaped attitudes but relied on political fear to become law.
