nativismtsw

__Nativism__
While few restrictions prevented immigration to the U.S. before 1900, interest groups did succeed in pressuring the federal government to exclude unwelcome immigrants. LIke prostitutes (mainly Asian women), convicts, contract laborers, the mentally ill, and the diseases. In some cases the government imposed a head tax on new arrivals. As a result of pressure from western states and nativist organizations, the federal government enacted laws that specifically targeted Asian immigrants.