Alien Friends Act

E332643

The Alien Friends Act was a 1798 U.S. federal law that empowered the president to detain and deport non-citizens deemed dangerous, and became infamous as part of a broader crackdown on political dissent.

All labels observed (1)

Label Occurrences
Alien Friends Act canonical 4

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (48)

Predicate Object
instanceOf Alien and Sedition Acts
United States federal statute
alsoKnownAs Alien Enemies Act
surface form: An Act Concerning Aliens
appliesTo aliens from nations at peace with the United States
non-citizens residing in the United States
constitutionalDebate raised questions about due process rights of non-citizens
raised questions about separation of powers
country United States of America
criticizedBy Democratic-Republican Party
criticizedFor being used to silence political opposition
threatening civil liberties
dateEnacted 1798-06-25
duration two years from enactment
empowered President of the United States
era Early national period of United States history
historicalContext Quasi-War
surface form: Quasi-War between the United States and France
influenced later debates over presidential power in national security matters
inForceUntil 1800-06-25
inspiredDocument Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions
surface form: Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions
jurisdiction United States government
surface form: federal government of the United States
language English
legalEffect expanded executive power over immigration and deportation
legislativeBody United States Congress
locationOfEnactment Philadelphia
surface form: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
mainProvisions authorized the president to deport non-citizens deemed dangerous to the peace and safety of the United States
authorized the president to detain non-citizens deemed dangerous to the peace and safety of the United States
mechanism granted broad presidential discretion to determine who was dangerous
officeHolderSigning President of the United States
opposedBy James Madison
Thomas Jefferson
partOf Alien and Sedition Acts
surface form: Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798
perception considered one of the most controversial laws of the early American republic
viewed as part of a broader crackdown on political dissent
politicalContext Federalist Party control of the federal government
conflict between Federalists and Democratic-Republicans
purpose to allow removal of foreign nationals considered a threat to national security
to suppress perceived subversive political activity
relatedLegislation Alien Enemies Act
Naturalization Act of 1798
Alien and Sedition Acts
surface form: Sedition Act of 1798
shortDescription 1798 U.S. law allowing the president to detain and deport dangerous non-citizens in peacetime
signedBy John Adams
status expired
subjectMatter civil liberties
immigration law
national security
temporalScope peacetime and quasi-war conditions
yearEnacted 1798

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (4)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Alien and Sedition Acts hasPart Alien Friends Act
Presidency of John Adams signed Alien Friends Act
Alien Enemies Act relatedTo Alien Friends Act