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In a book of deep and telling ironies, Peter Schrag provides essential back- ground for understanding the fractious debate over immigration. Covering the earliest days of the Republic to current events, Schrag sets the modern immigration controversy within the context of two centuries of debate over the same questions about who exactly is fit for citizenship. He finds that fear—and loathing—of newcomers has provided one of the major fault lines of American cultural and political life. Schrag de- scribes the eerie similarities between the race-based arguments for restricting Irish, German, Slav, Italian, Jewish, and Chi- nese immigrants in the past and the arguments for restricting Latinos and others today. He links the terrible history of eu- genic “science” to ideas, individuals, and groups now at the forefront of the fight against rational immigration policies. Not Fit for Our Society makes a power- ful case for understanding the complex, often paradoxical history of immigration restriction as we work through the issues that inform and often distort the debate over who can become a citizen. Not Fit for Our Society The publisher gratefully acknowledges the generous support of the Anne G. Lipow Endowment Fund for Social Justice and Human Rights of the University of California Press Foundation, which was established by Stephen M. Silberstein. The publisher also gratefully acknowledges the generous support of William K. Coblentz as a member of the Fiterati Circle of the University of California Press Foundation. Not Fit for Our Society Nativism and Immigration Peter Schrag UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA PRESS Berkeley • Los Angeles * London University of California Press, one of the most distinguished university presses in the United States, enriches lives around the world by advancing scholarship in the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences. Its activities are supported by the UC Press Foundation and by philanthropic contributions from individuals and institutions. For more information, visit www.ucpress.edu. University of California Press Berkeley and Los Angeles, California University of California Press, Ltd. London, England © zoio by The Regents of the University of California Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Schrag, Peter. Not fit for our society : nativism and immigration / Peter Schrag.—ist ed. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-0-520-25978-2 (cloth : alk. paper) I. Emigration and immigration—Social aspects. 2. Emigration and immigration—Public opinion. 3. Emigration and immigration—Government policy. 4. Nativism. 5. Eugenics. 1. Title. JV6121.S35 2010 304.8—dc22 2009042976 Manufactured in the United States of America 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 II 10 10 987654321 This book is printed on Natures Book, which contains 50% postconsumer waste and meets the minimum requirements of ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992 (R 1997) {Permanence of Paper). For Ben and Yeung Mrs. Hutchinson, the sentence of the court you hear is that you are banished from out of our jurisdiction as being a woman not fit for our society, and are to be imprisoned till the court shall send you away. Governor John Winthrop at the examination of Anne Hutchinson at the Court at Newton, 1637 Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2017 with funding from Kahle/Austin Foundation https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780520259782