Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
The first book to show that racial exclusion was behind all of the United States' immigration laws--from Chinese Exclusion through the Trump presidency. While many Americans believe there have always been rules about who could enter the country, the reality is that the first national immigration law was not passed until 1875, ninety-nine years after the Declaration of Independence. As the first non-white Chinese immigrants arrived, Congress passed laws to ban them. In each era that followed, the fear of "the great replacement" of whites with non-white immigrations drove the push for more restrictions. Although the US is often mythologized as a nation of immigrants, the mainstreaming of anti-immigrant politics by Trump in 2016 was a reversion to the ugly norm of the past.
In White Borders, Jones reveals that since the arrival of the first slave ship in 1619, the English Colonies that became the US were based on the dual foundation of open immigration for whites from Northern Europe and racial exclusion of slaves from Africa, Native Americans, and, eventually, immigrants from other parts of the world. He exposes the connections between the Chinese Exclusion laws of the 1880s, the "Keep America American" nativism of the 1920s, and the "Build the Wall" chants of the 2010s. Along the way, we meet a bizarre cast of characters such as John Tanton, Cordelia Scaife May, and Stephen Miller who have moved fringe ideas about "white genocide" and "race suicide" into mainstream political discourse. This expos proves that while immigration crackdowns are justified as protecting American jobs and workers, they have always been about saving the fleeting idea of a white America.
Synopsis
The first book to show that immigration laws in the US have always been motivated by racial exclusion and the desire to save the idea of a white America. Former President Trump's racist anti-immigration policies, from the Border Wall to the Muslim Ban, have left many Americans wondering: how did we get here? In a sweeping historical study, Reece Jones reveals that though the US is often mythologized as a nation of immigrants, it has a long history of immigration restrictions that are rooted in the racist fear of the "great replacement" of whites with non-white immigrants. From the arrival of the first slave ship in 1619, the colonies that became the United States were based on the dual foundation of open immigration for whites from Northern Europe and racial exclusion of slaves from Africa, Native Americans - and eventually, immigrants from other parts of the world.
Connecting past to present, Jones reveals the links between the Chinese Exclusion laws of the 1880s, the "Keep America American" nativism of the 1920s, and the "Build the Wall" chants of the 2010s. Along the way, we meet a bizarre cast of characters such as John Tanton, Cordelia Scaife May, and Stephen Miller who have moved fringe ideas about "white genocide" and "race suicide" into mainstream political discourse. Through in-depth historical analysis, Jones explores connections between anti-immigration hate groups and the Trump administration, and the lasting impacts of white supremacist ideas on United States law.
Synopsis
"This powerful and meticulously argued book reveals that immigration crackdowns ... have] always been about saving and protecting the racist idea of a white America."
--Ibram X. Kendi, award-winning author of
Four Hundred Souls and
Stamped from the Beginning
"A damning inquiry into the history of the border as a place where race is created and racism honed into a razor-sharp ideology."
--Greg Grandin, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The End of the Myth Recent racist anti-immigration policies, from the border wall to the Muslim ban, have left many Americans wondering: How did we get here? In what readers call a "chilling and revelatory" account, Reece Jones reveals the painful answer: although the US is often mythologized as a nation of immigrants, it has a long history of immigration restrictions that are rooted in the racist fear of the "great replacement" of whites with non-white newcomers. After the arrival of the first slave ship in 1619, the colonies that became the United States were based on the dual foundation of open immigration for whites from Northern Europe and the racial exclusion of slaves from Africa, Native Americans, and, eventually, immigrants from other parts of the world.
Jones's scholarship shines through his extensive research of the United States' racist and xenophobic underbelly. He connects past and present to uncover the link between the Chinese Exclusion laws of the 1880s, the "Keep America American" nativism of the 1920s, and the "Build the Wall" chants initiated by former president Donald Trump in 2016. Along the way, we meet a bizarre cast of anti-immigration characters, such as John Tanton, Cordelia Scaife May, and Stephen Miller, who pushed fringe ideas about "white genocide" and "race suicide" into mainstream political discourse. Through gripping stories and in-depth analysis of major immigration cases, Jones explores the connections between anti-immigration hate groups and the Republican Party. What is laid bare after his examination is not just the intersection between white supremacy and anti-immigration bias but also the lasting impacts this perfect storm of hatred has had on United States law.