 Alien Enemies Act (1798) |
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This is one of four acts known collectively as the Alien and Sedition Acts. These acts were passed by a Federalist-controlled Congress applied restrictions to immigration and speech in the U.S. They were highly controversial and contributed to the Federalist defeat in the election of 1800. After 1802, only the Alien Enemies Act remained in force, and has continued to be invoked during times of war. In 2025, the President invoked the Alien Enemies Act to expedite the exportation of Venezuelan suspected gang members.
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| Alien Friends Act (1798) |
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This is one of four acts known collectively as the Alien and Sedition Acts. These acts were passed by a Federalist-controlled Congress applied restrictions to immigration and speech in the U.S. They were highly controversial and contributed to the Federalist defeat in the election of 1800. After 1802, only the Alien Enemies Act remained in force, and has continued to be invoked during times of war.
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| Alien Registration Act (1940) |
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This act, also known as the Smith Act, required all non-citizens entering and living within the U.S. to register their alien status with the government. It also set criminal penalties for advocating the overthrow of the U.S. government. This law was written to address concerns about subversive activities on the eve of American involvement in World War II.
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 Alien Registration Form for Kit Chun (1940) |
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The Alien Registration Act of 1940 required all non-citizens entering and living within the U.S. to register their alien status with the government by completing an Alien Registration Form. The AR-2 form included a questionnaire and a requirement that fingerprints be taken at the time of registration. This act, also known as the Smith Act, was written to address concerns about subversive activities on the eve of American involvement in World War II.
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| Angell Treaty (1880) |
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The Angell Treaty of 1880 amended the Burlingame Treaty of 1868 and sought to regulate, limit, and suspend the arrival of Chinese laborers to the United States. Article Three of the treaty established a clause stating that Chinese subjects experiencing violence and mistreatment on U.S. soil should be entitled to protection by the U.S. government.
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| Applegate v. Luke (1927) |
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After the Phillips County Chancery Court struck down Arkansas' Alien Land Act of 1925 as unconstitutional, Attorney General H. W. Applegate appealed the case to the Arkansas Supreme Court. Justice T. H. Humphreys upheld the lower court's ruling, arguing that the alien land law violated Section 20 of the the Declaration of Rights in the State Constitution.
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| Arkansas Alien Land Act (1925) |
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This act was passed by the Arkansas General Assembly in 1925 to restrict the ability of aliens ineligible for citizenship to acquire, possess, enjoy, use, cultivate, occupy, and transfer real property, or any interest therein," unless specified in treaties.
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| Arkansas Declaration of Rights (1874) |
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This excerpt from the Declaration of Rights in the 1874 (and current) Arkansas State Constitution contains the language prohibiting the distinction between resident aliens and citizens in regard to property.
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| Asian Americans Confront U.S. Law and Policy: A Case Study of the Vietnamese Impact on Defining the "Refugee" |
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This teaching module looks at the role Vietnamese migrants played in creating the current status of refugees, featuring a webinar with Linda Ho Peché, project director for the Vietnamese in the Diaspora Digital Archive.
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| Asian Immigrants' Fight Against Discriminatory Alien Land Laws |
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This module examines the history of anti-Asian/Japanese alien land laws in the 1920s United States, focusing on one lawsuit by Chinese immigrant Lum Jung Luke that brought down Arkansas' Alien Land Act.
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| Burlingame-Seward Treaty (1886) |
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In the wake of the Second Opium War (1865-60), United States Secretary of State William Seward and the U.S. Minister to China Anson Burlingame negotiated what became known as the Burlingame Treaty of 1868. The treaty established trade ports for the U.S. in China, opened Chinese consuls in the U.S., and permitted the free immigration and travel of Chinese immigrants to the United States under the "the most-favored nation principle."
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| Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 |
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The Chinese Exclusion Act barred Chinese laborers from entering the United States, with exceptions granted for merchants, students, or diplomats.
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| Criminal Docket, Sweetwater County Rock Springs Precinct, September 1885 |
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A Coroner’s Inquest investigated the murders of Chinese mine workers in Rock Springs, Wyoming Territory, in September 1885. While 16 white miners were arrested for participation in the massacre, no one was ever held legally responsible.
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| Dear Colleague Letter (2025) |
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This letter, sent to the departments of education in all 50 states, summarizes the Trump administration's position on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). While the letter does not carry the force of law, it states that any institutions of higher education who do not comply with the administration's interpretation of existing nondiscrimination requirements may lose federal funding.
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| Displaced Persons Act (1948) |
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The first U.S. policy regarding refugees, the Displaced Persons Act of 1948 only allowed for European people displaced by World War II to enter the United States as refugees. Despite the 1948 United Nations Universal Declaration on Human Rights providing broad definitions for refugees, the United States continued to use narrow geographically or politically specific definitions for refugees until 1980.
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| Dow v. United States (1915) |
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In Dow v. United States, the Court of Appeals ruled that people from Southwest Asia could be considered white and were eligible for citizenship. This decision came seven years before the Supreme Court ruled that migrants from Japan and India were not white enough to be eligible for citizenship.
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| Estimate of Property Loss Sustained by the Chinese in their respective camps at Rock Springs (1885) |
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In the wake of the 1885 Rock Springs Massacre, a U.S.- Chinese commission made up of politicians, ambassadors, and diplomats arrived in Wyoming Territory to collect testimony and tally the loss of property among Chinese laborers. The property lists accounted for individual property ownership, as well as property held in common by the Chinese miners.
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| Executive Order 10925 - Establishing the President's Committee on Equal Employment Opportunity (1961) |
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This executive order by President John F. Kennedy directed government contractors to use affirmative action to ensure people of any "race, creed, color, or national origin" were given equal treatment and opportunity for employment. This executive order also established the President's Committee on Equal Employment Opportunity.
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| Executive Order 11246 - Equal Employment Opportunity (1965) |
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This executive order enacted by President Lyndon B. Johnson was repealed by a January 2025 executive order from Donald Trump. The original order was written to ensure equal opportunity in government employment and limit discrimination based on race. It required employers to furnish documentation of nondiscriminatory practices upon request.
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| Executive Order 11478 - Equal Employment Opportunity in the Federal Government (1969) |
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This executive order from President Richard Nixon ensured the continuation of affirmative action and increased directives to limit discrimination in the workplace. Nixon added that this order intends to prevent discrimination based on sex as well as race.
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| Executive Order 14151 - Ending Radical And Wasteful Government DEI Programs And Preferencing (2025) |
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This executive order by President Donald Trump directs the Office of Management and Budget to terminate all mandates, policies, programs, preferences, and activities relating to diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility. It also requires federal agencies to report a list of all employees in DEI positions within 60 days. As a result, these employees were terminated.
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| Executive Order 14160 - Protecting the Meaning and Value of American Citizenship (2025) |
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This executive order by President Donald Trump aims to end birthright citizenship if a mother is in the United States illegally or the mother is in the U.S. temporarily and the father is not a citizen.
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| Executive Order 14173 - Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity (2025) |
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This executive order by President Donald Trump takes aim at diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility initiatives in private institutions, especially institutions of higher education receiving federal funding. It also revokes several longstanding executive orders related to equal employment opportunity and affirmative action.
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| Gonzales v. Williams (1903) |
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Gonzales v. Williams is one of a series of cases decided by the Supreme Court addressing the status of U.S. territories known as the Insular Cases. This case determined that while people from Puerto Rico were not citizens of the United States, they were also not "aliens." This case labelled those in unincorporated territories as U.S, nationals instead of citizens.
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| Grover Cleveland Speech Regarding Chinese Immigrant Workers (1886) |
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President Grover Cleveland's 1886 speech discusses the anti-Chinese violence at Rock Springs, Wyoming Territory. In it he argues that the United States is not responsible for this violence.
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