Lessons from Our Chinese Exclusion Act

The U.S. is heading down a familiar path by banning entry from Muslim nations. In the 1870s, a growing tide of Americans turned against Chinese laborers. The Chinese were hated for taking American jobs—primarily gold mining and building a transcontinental railroad.
Like Americans today who won’t work in fruit and vegetable fields doing back-breaking work, most Americans in the 1870s wouldn’t work the jobs that the Chinese did (and did with vigor and gratitude). And they were hated for being so different-- different in language, appearance, diet, and customs.
So, in 1882, America passed a law that excluded ALL Chinese nationals. Like today, that meant that no one could enter from China—if they were on a boat that landed in San Francisco, for example, they were thrown in jail or kept in a brig on the ship until they boarded an outbound vessel. 
This exclusion included Chinese who were born in the U.S.-- people who were visiting China, often to find a wife or husband, before returning to the U.S. (Compare to yesterday when foreign nationals with "permanent legal status" were denied re-entry.)
For the Chinese who remained, they were required to register (see picture above).
That might be a next step for Muslims in America.
Interesting aside: Why do we see Chinese restaurants in so many small towns in America? The Chinese Exclusion Act also prohibited Chinese nationals from being employed. The concept here was to force Chinese to self-deport-- and many left.
However, if the Chinese owned a business, they were exempt. 
So, these industrious people opened two types of businesses all across America: restaurants and laundries. This spared them from deportation. And Americans supported these businesses, putting prejudice aside for a good meal and starched shirt.
Concluding Note: Who was the president who signed the Chinese Exclusion Act into law? He was very popular on that October date in 1882…. Chester Arthur.
How does history remember him? Far less than the people he victimized.
When did the Chinese Exclusion Act end? 1943, with passage of the Magnuson Act.

The law was promoted as the path to economic prosperity—but America suffered the Depression of 1893, a fact that we should remember as head down this path of exclusion.