One Mighty and Irresistible Tide: The Epic Struggle Over American Immigration, 1924-1965
by Jia Lynn Yang
One Mighty and Irresistible Tide is about how immigration law has changed over the decades, primarily between 1924 and 1965 but also more recently.
Jia Lynn Yang studies the men in positions of power that determined what American immigration law should resemble. She shares their upbringing, private letters, and the context in which they acted.
Yang emphasizes the racist immigration policies limiting the number of Asians and Jews welcomed into America. What struck me more than anything was the blatant racism of all immigration laws throughout this time.
Recent immigration laws attempt to reunite families instead of only encouraging immigrants with desirable skills. Yang notes that since the mid-to-late 1800s, America has not had a higher proportion of its population born abroad. There has never been a greater absolute number of immigrants than there is today.
That’s the America I know. Any changes seem un-American to me.
But as a New Yorker, perhaps my opinions are out of sync with the rest of the country. I count as my close ancestors immigrants of the Italian wave. Before that, the Irish. My wife is foreign, and I am currently an immigrant where I live.
I tend to see immigration favorably, but Yang is not recounting political preferences, she tells history how it was. I was surprised to read Yang’s opinion that conservatives are more historically literate about American immigration law than progressives. I suppose I’ve run up against the border of my own echo chamber here.
One Mighty and Irresistible Tide is unmistakenly academic. The back and forth of once mighty (and now forgotten) men is tiresome. I will never remember the names nor the impact of these men. Nor do I desire to. I am content to be familiar with the overarching view that American immigration law changes and has racist roots. And that it has never changed easily.
The America I grew up in is historically unique, and I think the better for all its immigrant blood. I’m happy about that.
But if America already has an historically high number of immigrants it is doubtful that immigration laws will be further liberalized.
Whatever my opinion, Yang is correct to say that when you begin to limit immigration, you need a system that chooses who is worthy and who isn’t. As long as politicians control who can live in America, policies will leave some people out.
If knowing the history of immigration law is important in your life, go ahead and read Jia Lynn Yang’s book. Otherwise, I’d look for something shorter and more to the point.
What do you think? Did you read Yang’s book?