Speech #740185071

I have shown. Mr. Chairman. in numerous newspaper articles that I have written for some of the great newspapers of this country that our unemployment was caused largely by immigration. My purpose in showing this was not to arouse hatred against our foreignborn people. nor to subject them to any character of persecution. It was natural for them to come to the United States where they could secure freedom and a higher standard of living. But I do condemn the policy and law which permitted them to enter. and I have pointed out in detail the serious results of immigration in an attempt to persuade the Congress to adopt a firm and permanent policy that will prevent this in the future. There are today 50 percent more persons out of work in the United States than in all Europe. In Europe unemployment shrank by 8.000.000 last year. -While we have given haven to 8.000.000 aliens---given them jobs or supported them on relief--8.000.000 employable Americans are jobless. In a remarkable degree it appears that European nations have recovered and brought about reemployment in proportion as we have taken over their surplus population. Figures from the International Labor Office in Geneva covering the year 1934 show: Germany reduced unemployment by 671.897 that year. and she has sent us 665.000 immigrants since the armistice. England put 188.614 back at work that year171.801 of her citizens had come here since the war. Italys reliefrolls reduction was 238.235. and of her crowded population 250.000 came to our shores in a decade. Is it any wonder. therefore. that we have 1.500.000 aliens on public and private relief and that approximately 6.000.000 aliens are holding jobs that would be filled by our own citizens if these aliens had not been imported to America? By aliens. let me make it clear that I am speaking of unnaturalized foreignborn people in the United States. Since I have been in Congress I have done everything in my power to stop the importation of foreign labor and to deport undesirable aliens. That the campaign I have vigorously waged has been successful Insofar as legal entries are concerned can be proved by the immigration statistics. Before I came to Congress immigrants were entering this country legally at the rate of about 400.000 a year for the 10year period prior to 1931. Since 1931. due to our insistence that the consuls reject all applicants who were likely to become public charges. legal entries have been reduced to a few thousand each year. Of course. this does not take into account the illegal entries who have continued to enter in large numbers. but it does show that substantial progress has been made. In addition to this. the record will show that I led the fight in opposition to the Dickstein bill. which would have virtually destroyed our immigration and deportation laws. We defeated this bill on the floor of the House and defeated similar measures which would have greatly weakened our present restriction. Due to the strong opposition of powerful groups.