U.S. Efforts to Deport Chinese (Late 19th–Early 20th Century)

The U.S. used a series of exclusionary laws and enforcement measures to restrict, detain, and deport Chinese immigrants:

1. Page Act (1875) – Barred "undesirable" immigrants; effectively targeted Chinese women (assumed prostitutes).
2. Chinese Exclusion Act (1882) – Suspended Chinese labor immigration for 10 years; denied naturalization; required certificates for re-entry.
3. Geary Act (1892) – Extended exclusion; required all Chinese residents to carry certificates of residence (internal passports); failure = deportation.
4. McCreary Amendment (1893) – Allowed deportation without judicial trial; habeas corpus restricted.
5. Scott Act (1888) – Prohibited re-entry of Chinese laborers who left (even with certificates); stranded 20,000+ abroad.
6. Immigration Act of 1924 – Set Chinese quota at 105/year; barred "aliens ineligible to citizenship" (all Asians).
7. Enforcement: Angel Island detention (1910–40) – weeks/months of interrogation; "paper sons" fraud detection; raids, informants, bounty hunters.

These laws institutionalized racial exclusion; repealed only in 1943 (magnuson Act) with tiny quota; full equality came with 1965 Immigration Act.