2. Severely restricting migration from unfamiliar countries in the aftermath of the First World War, the Emergency Quota Act imposed a harsh cap on immigrants that lasted for decades despite being supposed to only be temporary
With the end of World War One, the destruction caused by the conflict, the resultant dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian and Ottoman Empires, as well as the Russian Revolution and ongoing Civil War, the United States faced a significant increase in migration from Europe. Seeking to escape the social and economic turmoil of Europe, these arrivals, comprised heavily of Jews escaping persecution in Eastern Europe, fueled a resurgent wave of nativist sentiment in American politics. Sponsored by Republican Representative Albert Johnson of Washington State, the Emergency Quota Act, also known as the Emergency Immigration Act of 1921, was introduced to address public concerns.
Passed without a recorded vote in the House and by 90-2-4 in the Senate, the bill restricted the number of immigrants admitted per country annually to three percent of residents from that country already living in the United States at the time of the 1910 census. Consequently favoring countries with a historical record of migration, namely white western Europeans, the act reduced the number of new immigrants admitted from 805,228 in 1920 to just 309,556 in 1921-1922. Intended only as a temporary measure, the National Origins Formula quota system remained in place until it was exchanged under the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965.