However. the Attorney General would have to find that such action was not contrary to the national interest. safety. or security. Mr. Speaker. a modernization of our Nations immigration laws is long overdue. The basic statutory limitation of the entrance of foreignborn persons to this country was enacted in 1924. Its national origin quotas are based on the ancestry percentages of our 1920 population. Since its birth in the Declaration of Independence. the American ideal has been a magnetic attraction to the peoples of the world. Lady Libertys lamp has guided millions to our shores from their foreign homelands. Now. we find that changes in the world are making our controls on immigration discriminatory. the cause of personal hardship to tens of thousands of our fellow citizens. and inconsistent with the fundamental tenets of this democracy. Therefore. it is for us. the elected Representatives of this Nation. to move with passionate regard for the proud history of immigration which has made America a superior society and correct the deficiencies dotting our immigration statutes. Let us give new meaning to those words of Emma Lazarus inscribed on the Statue of Liberty: Give me your tired. your poor. Your huddled masses. yearning to breathe free.
Keywords matched
immigration national origin quota