Speech #900235405

Mr. Speaker. surely it is not necessary to remind this House of the great contributions to the United States made by Irish immigrants and their sons and daughters. Before the 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act. Ireland was allotted a generous annual immigration quota17.756 places. Ireland did not ask for this quota. and did not use many of the available places. Prior to 1965. Irish immigration averaged about 7.000 yearly. The provisions of the 1965 act. while generally doing a service by abolishing the old national origins quota system. unintentionally harmed Ireland. We did not know when we passed the act that this would be the result. and we need to act promptly now to remedy this defect. Tables supplied by the State Department in 1965 predicted that the provisions of the 1965 act would cause Irish immigration to level off at about 5.200 a year. But in fact. it has already dropped to less than 2.000. and the State Department now predicts that it will fall to less than 1.000 annually after this July. when the 1965 act is fully in effect. H.R. 16593. which I have cosponsored. does not reimpose a quota for Ireland. or for any other nation. It simply provides that the immigration level from any nation is not to fall below threefourths of its former average rate. if there is a demand for that many places. This will not harm nationalities who were aided by the 1965 preference system. it will simply protect those few countries like Ireland. which were sharply hurt. or which stand to be hurt after July 1. 1968. It Is the responsibility of the Congress to take steps to Insure that we are not discriminating against a country whose sons have done so much for the United States.