184: Border Patrols: Policing Immigration in America

On the heels of what may have been the biggest single-day sweep
of undocumented immigrants last week in Mississippi, this week
the Trump administration released a new "Public Charge" rule. The
idea of a public charge – an individual who isn’t considered
capable of self-sufficiency – became a part of U.S. immigration
law after the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882. The new rule will
make it harder for immigrants who fail the public charge test to
obtain a Green Card. 


 


Efforts to curb immigration in the U.S. are nothing new. This
episode from BackStory’s archives looks at the origins of illegal
immigration and how the government’s deportation powers have
grown over time.


 


Image: Detention pen--on roof of main building, Ellis Island,
where emigrants held for deportation may go in fine weather.
Circa 1902. Source: Library of Congress


 


BackStory is funded in part by our listeners. You can help keep
the episodes coming by supporting the show:
https://www.backstoryradio.org/support