Emergency Quota Act of 1921

E38907

The Emergency Quota Act of 1921 was a U.S. immigration law that sharply limited and skewed immigration by imposing national-origin quotas favoring northern and western Europeans, reflecting the era’s strong nativist sentiment.


Statements (48)
Predicate Object
instanceOf United States federal immigration law
quota-based immigration law
administrationBy United States Department of Labor
alsoKnownAs Emergency Immigration Act of 1921
Per Centum Limit Act of 1921
annualNumericalLimit approximately 357,000 immigrants per year
country United States
disfavoredRegion Eastern Europe
Southern Europe
duration intended as temporary emergency measure
effect institutionalized national-origin quotas in U.S. immigration policy
restricted immigration from southern and eastern Europe
sharply reduced overall immigration to the United States
shifted the composition of immigrants toward northern and western Europeans
effectiveDate 1921-06-03
enactedBy United States Congress
excludedGroup immigrants from Asia already barred under earlier exclusion laws
exemption immigrants from countries in the Western Hemisphere
professionals such as professors
students
temporary visitors
favoredRegion Northern Europe
Western Europe
followedBy Immigration Act of 1924
geographicScope U.S. federal immigration system
historicalContext First Red Scare
nativism in the United States
post–World War I era
influenceOn Immigration Act of 1924
inspiredBy concerns about postwar unemployment
fears of radical political movements
pressure from nativist organizations
legalDomain immigration law
legislativeChamber United States House of Representatives
United States Senate
policyType restrictionist immigration policy
precededBy Immigration Act of 1917
purpose to establish national-origin quotas for immigrants
to limit immigration to the United States
quotaBasis 3 percent of the number of foreign-born persons of each nationality in the United States according to the 1910 census
quotaYearReference 1910 United States Census
reflectsIdeology nativism
racialized conceptions of national origin
relatedTo Immigration Act of 1917
replacedBy permanent quota system under the Immigration Act of 1924
signedBy Warren G. Harding
signingDate 1921-05-19
timePeriod 1920s

Referenced by (4)
Subject (surface form when different) Predicate
Emergency Quota Act of 1921 ("Emergency Immigration Act of 1921")
alsoKnownAs
Nativism in the United States
associatedWithPolicy
Immigration Act of 1917 ("Immigration Act of 1921")
followedBy
Immigration Act of 1924
replaced

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