Waves of immigration and several changes in immigration law from the mid 1860s to the late 20th century

Document Type:Essay

Subject Area:History

Document 1

For instance, African Americans, who came to the country as from the 17th century to the 19th century came in as slaves and there were hundreds of thousands of them. Similar to many events or historic actions, immigration was not accepted by all and even to date, some groups within the country still resist the immigration to the United States. There were backlash to immigration as early as the 1800s and that has remained similar to date. The backlash was mainly on the impact that immigration had on the social and economic development within the region and based on a number of scholars and historians; the impact was viewed as being negative. However, as far as the impact that immigration had on the social and economic status of the country, the country has benefited greatly from the immigration.

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Therefore, as it is evident, there have been a number of changes that took place within the country as far as immigration is concerned, and most of them have been to make sure that immigration is legalized. The waves of immigration within the country began as early as the 15th century. For instance, the very first wave of immigration began as early as the 1500s, where the first Europeans came to the country including the French and the Spanish. They established settlements in the United States until the English came and established a permanent settlement in 1607 within the current location of Jamestown, Virginia2. This was the very first immigration wave to the country and could have been considered as the one that brought about colonization.

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The waves of immigration within the country took place at certain intervals and saw a rise in the American population greatly. This impacted aspects such as the social factors and economic status of the country and at certain periods, the government implemented laws and Acts to govern the immigration. Implementation of the laws was meant to curb the rates of immigration, and it began as early as the first wave where there was the realization of sentiments against immigrants within certain regions that consisted of native-born Americans. The current residents of the country saw the increased immigration as a source of competition for jobs and also interference of their social way of life such as religion. Immigrants such as the Catholics were viewed as an interruption to the social life of the country and parties such as the anti-Catholic American Party5.

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There was an increase in immigration patterns as immigrants came in large number, impacting the economy and social lives of those that were already there. The reason as to why America is known as the Free World is mainly because of the fact that there is a large number of immigrants, most of them have their own social beliefs. As far as the economy is concerned, immigrants, immigration laws and the backlash on immigration has steered it forward greatly. In conclusion, the rates of immigration within the United States have played a great role in the increase in the population of the country, impacting both the social and economic life within the country. The native-born Americans have embraced the cultures of those that lived there, integrating them with theirs, an aspect that has brought about diversity.

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