Race: Immigration control

Race: Immigration control

- Before the first world war the USA had no restriction on immigration and so had become a 'melting pot' of races and nationlities. 

- There were more religions in the USA than in any country in the world.

- Some Americans were alarmed at the amount of immigrants in the swelling cities. 

- In the 25 years before 1914 the vast majority of immigrants were coming from southern eastern europe. 

- They were mostly catholic and spoke languages that seemed bewildering to the eastern states that spoke mostly German and English.

- There was a growing feeling that these recent immigrants were less educated…