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The effects of immigration restriction laws on immigrant segregation in the early twentieth century U.S

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  • Xu, Dafeng

Abstract

Several immigration restriction laws, passed in the background of anti-immigration populism in the early 1920s, put an end to the period of “open borders” in the U.S. In this paper, I use the linked county sample in the early twentieth century to examine how immigration restriction laws led to different trends in segregation across groups. Difference-in-difference estimations show that all immigrant groups followed similar trends in segregation before the passage of immigration laws; afterwards, segregation among immigrants from more restricted countries declined relative to segregation among immigrants from less restricted countries. I then construct linked census samples at the individual level, and study mechanisms behind de-segregation. I find two possible mechanisms: (a) limitations on new arrivals; (b) selection on return migration. Further analyses suggest that de-segregation might not benefit immigrants’ socioeconomic assimilation.

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  • Xu, Dafeng, 2020. "The effects of immigration restriction laws on immigrant segregation in the early twentieth century U.S," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 48(2), pages 422-447.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jcecon:v:48:y:2020:i:2:p:422-447
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jce.2019.10.004
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Immigration restriction; Law; Immigrant segregation; Early twentieth century; U.S;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J1 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics
    • N3 - Economic History - - Labor and Consumers, Demography, Education, Health, Welfare, Income, Wealth, Religion, and Philanthropy
    • N9 - Economic History - - Regional and Urban History
    • R1 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General Regional Economics

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