Transcript United States Government - Guthrie Public Schools / Overview

A Nation of Immigrants
Key Terms
alien, resident alien, non-resident alien, enemy
alien, illegal alien, amnesty, private law
Find Out
• How does the United States classify noncitizens?
• How has immigration policy in the United States
changed over time?
A Nation of Immigrants
Understanding Concepts
Cultural Pluralism How has immigration policy
contributed to the diversity of cultures in the
United States?
Section Objective
Describe immigration policy and explain how it
has changed over time.
By 2000, over nine percent of the population
of the United States was born in other
countries. More than 7 million Mexican
Americans were included in this category,
making Mexican nationals the largest group
in our nation’s foreign-born population.
I. Immigrants and Aliens (pages 387–388)
A. Immigrants come to a new country intending
to live there permanently; aliens live in a
country where they are not citizens.
B. The federal government classifies aliens into
five categories:
1. resident aliens
2. nonresident aliens
3. enemy aliens
4. refugees
5. illegal aliens
I. Immigrants and Aliens (pages 387–388)
C. Protections of the Bill of Rights, such as
freedom of speech and assembly, apply to
aliens as well as citizens.
D. Aliens cannot vote; most are exempt from
military duty and serving on juries.
I. Immigrants and Aliens (pages 387–388)
I. Immigrants and Aliens (pages 387–388)
What responsibilities do aliens have to
the U.S. government?
They must pay taxes, obey the laws, and be
loyal to the government.
II. Immigration Policy (pages 389–390)
A. In 1882 Congress began to fully use its
power to regulate immigration, and it
imposed many restrictions during the next
four decades.
B. The Immigration Act of 1924 sharply lowered
the number of immigrants who could arrive
each year and favored those who came from
northern and western Europe.
C. The Immigration Reform Act of 1965 changed
immigration policy by fixing a ceiling on
countries in the Eastern Hemisphere and a
different ceiling on those in the Western
Hemisphere, as well as creating a
complicated system for preferential treatment
of selected immigrants.
II. Immigration Policy (pages 389–390)
D. The Immigration Reform and Control Act of
1986 was passed to stem the tide of illegal
immigrants and to allow illegal immigrants to
become permanent residents and citizens.
E. The Immigration Act of 1990 was passed to
revise the 1965 immigration law, putting
limits on the flood of immigrants from Asia
and Latin America, and to open immigration
to Europeans who had been adversely
affected by the 1965 law.
F. The 1990 immigration law reduced the total
annual immigration slightly, encouraged
immigrants with special skills, and set up
special categories for special immigrants like
close relatives of United States citizens.
II. Immigration Policy (pages 389–390)
What do you think should be the goals of
the United States immigration policy?
Answers will vary. Students should consider
the historic issues of immigration policy.
Checking for Understanding
1. Main Idea Use a graphic organizer like the one
below to analyze the purposes of the
Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986.
stem the tide of illegal immigrants, provide a
way for illegals to become residents, punish
employers of illegals
Checking for Understanding
Match the term with the correct definition.
___
G alien
___
C resident alien
___
A non-resident
alien
___
F enemy alien
___
E illegal alien
___
D amnesty
___
B private law
A. a person from a foreign country
who expects to stay in the United
States for a short, specified period
of time
B. applies to a particular person
C. a person from a foreign nation who
has established permanent
residency in the United States
D. a general pardon to individuals for
an offense against the government
E. a person without legal permission to
be in a country
F. a citizen of a nation with which the
United States is at war
G. a person who lives in a country
where he or she is not a citizen
Checking for Understanding
3. Identify refugee.
A refugee is a person fleeing a country to
escape persecution or danger.
Checking for Understanding
4. What are the five categories of aliens according
to United States law?
The five categories are resident alien,
non-resident alien, enemy alien, refugee,
and illegal alien.
Critical Thinking
5. Making Inferences What changes in attitudes
toward immigration does the Immigration Act of
1990 reflect?
Possible answer: The law favors skilled,
educated immigrants, reflecting a desire to use
immigration to the national advantage.
Cultural Pluralism Every community has
a unique ethnic history. When did people of
various ethnic and racial groups begin to
come to your community? Research your
community’s immigration history at the
local library. Draw a time line showing how
your community grew and when each
group began to arrive.