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11 Geo. Immigr. L.J. 859 (1996-1997)
Eugenics, Family & (and) Immigration Law in the 1920's

handle is hein.journals/geoimlj11 and id is 869 raw text is: EUGENICS, FAMILY & IMMIGRATION LAW IN THE 1920's RACHEL SILBER INTRODUCTION* Enough, Enough! we want no more Of Ye Immigrant from a foreign shore Already is our land o'er run With toiler, beggar, thief and scum. If war and blood we would avoid There must be no delay but of one accord That our lovely shores you shall no longer use As a dumping ground for foreign refuse.' Some of the most contentious debates in early twentieth century Congres- sional sessions centered around the issue of immigration policy; specifically, the extent to which the United States should allow immigrants into the country. Two concepts permeated late nineteenth and early twentieth century conceptions of citizenship thus affecting immigration policy. The first con- cept, the science of eugenics, came into prominence in the United States between the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, as the study of heredity and the relationship between genetics and the quality of the individual. The second concept, the importance of the family as the founda- tion of the citizen and society, was embraced by the United States early in its history and remained prominent in community thought. This paper will examine these two concepts, how they altered immigration policy in the United States during the 1920's, and how the eugenics approach ultimately dominated immigration policy at the expense of women. Part one will delve into the backgrounds of these issues, examining trends in early twentieth * B.A., The American University, 1995; J.D. Candidate, Georgetown University Law Center, May 1998. Dedicated to my grandmother, Ruth Negrin, whose stories of her immigration to the United States inspired this paper. Born in 1924, the year that the quota law which excluded her mother's entry from the United States was passed, she has been a source of constant encouragement and affection. Thanks also to Tom Dobbins, for his tireless assistance and invaluable editorial comments. 1. Prescott Farnsworth Hall, Ye Immigrant, in ALLAN CnAsE, THE LEGACY OF MALTHUS: THE SocIAL COSTS OF THE NEW ScmNTIFIc RACIsM 139-40 (1977). Hall was a well known eugenicist from the early 1900's.