No, Your Ancestors Didn’t Come Here Legally

*Some of you may have seen this over the holiday. But in case you missed it, this is a good counter to the “my grandma came here legally” immigration argument. VL

By Ben Rialton, Talking Points Memo

Prior to 1875’s Page Act and 1882’s Chinese Exclusion Act, there were no national immigration laws. None. There were laws related to naturalization and citizenship, to how vessels reported their passengers, to banning the slave trade. Once New York’s Castle Garden Immigration Station opened in 1855, arrivals there reported names and origins before entering the U.S. But for all pre-1875 immigrants, no laws applied to their arrival. They weren’t legal or illegal; they were just immigrants.

Click HERE to read the full story.

[Photo by Cocoabiscuit/Flickr]

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