Chinese Exclusion Act
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This article is about the former U.S. law. For the similar Canadian law, see Chinese Immigration Act of 1923.
The Chinese Exclusion Act was a United States federal law signed by President Chester A. Arthur on May 6, 1882. It was one of the most significant restrictions on free immigration in U.S. history, prohibiting all immigration of Chinese laborers. The act followed revisions made in 1880 to the U.S.-China Burlingame Treaty of 1868, revisions that allowed the U.S. to suspend Chinese immigration. The act was initially intended to last for 10 years, but was renewed in 1892 and made permanent in 1902. It was finally repealed by the Magnuson Act on December 17, 1943.
