Speech #680076565

Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the committee. in speaking against this bill I desire to make it clear that my opposition is not to the administrative features of the bill. but to that provision which limits the number of quota immigrants who can enter this country in any one year to 100 and 2 per cent of the number of foreignborn individuals of a particular nationality residing in the United States as determined by the census of 1890. instead of using the census of 1910 as the quota basis. The administrative features are. for the most part. a great improvement over those contained in the present law. and that part of the bill which grants exemption in favor of parents. husbands. and wives. and children Is especially commendable from a humanitarian standpoint. I recognize the importance of some restriction upon immigration. at least until the present disturbed economic conditions of the world have quieted down and until this country has had an opportunity to more completely assimilate those people who have already taken up their residence among us. But I believe that this should be done according to American principles and without discrimination against the nationals of any country or group of countries. The principal argument of the committee in Its report in favor of numerical restriction of immigration is that we should prevent foreigners from coming into our country faster than we are able to assimilate and Americanize them. and at the same time they present a bill which will have the effect of slowing up the Americanization of those nationals of foreign countries who are already among us. It is my opinion that this bill. in so far as it discriminates against the nationals of the countries of southern Europe by taking the census of 1890 as a basis for the quotas to be admitted. fails completely in its avowed purpose of Americanizing our foreignborn population. We tell the immigrant when he arrives upon our shores that you have now arrived in a land of liberty and equal opportunity. where all people are treated alike and without discrimination. He is asked to live under a Constitution based upon these principles. He is taught the evils of class legislation. and he Is rightly looked down upon if he does not enter into the spirit of our institutions. We expect him to become a thoroughly American citizen. and now by the provisions of section 10 of this bill we are attempting to put Into the law a provision which says to a very large group of those people. who are already naturalized or about to become so. that we do not consider you particularly good citizens and are. therefore. materially reducing the number of your kind that may come into this country hereafter. It must be apparent to every fairminded Member of this House that this is the worst kind of discrimination against a large class of individuals and absolutely opposed to our American ideas of equality and justice. Is it not also apparent that a law of this kind will not have the effect of Americanizing our foreign born more rapidly but. on the contrary. will have the opposite effect and cause them to doubt our sincerity. to lose faith In the fairness of our Government. and to lose their desire to become loyal American citizens? In discussing the reasons for limiting admission of quota Immigrants to 2 per cent of our foreignborn population based on the census figures of 1890. instead of 3 per cent based on the census of 1910. the committee said in its original report: An impelling reason for the change is that It is desired to slow down thMe streams of the types of immigrants which are not easily assimilated. Naturalization does not necessarily mean assimilation. The naturalization process can not work well with the continued arrival in large numbers of the socalled new immigration. The new type crowds in the larger cities. It Is exploited.