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Article: Immigration Restriction
- Article from:
- Dictionary of American History
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2003 The Gale Group Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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IMMIGRATION RESTRICTION
IMMIGRATION RESTRICTION.
Although slaves are not usually considered immigrants, the first formal inhibition of immigration by the United States was the prohibition of the foreign slave trade in 1808, which still allowed slave "visitors" brought by foreign masters. Similarly, an 1862 law prohibited American participation in the coolie trade. But free immigration was unimpeded until 1875. U.S. policy was to welcome immigrants, who were needed to help fill up what Americans saw as a largely empty and expanding country. No one put this better than President John Tyler in his annual message of 1841: "We hold out to the people of other countries an invitation to come ...