History of Deportation

The American Historical Association (AHA) hosted a Congressional Briefing offering historical perspectives on United States deportation policies and practices. The briefing took place on Thursday, March 13, at 9:00 a.m. ET in Rayburn House Office Building Room 2075.

The recording of the briefing is available to watch on C-SPAN. Access the handout developed for the briefing in the AHA Resource Library. And C-SPAN has developed a lesson plan around the briefing.

Panelists Hidetaka Hirota (Univ. of California, Berkeley), Ana Raquel Minian Andjel (Stanford Univ.), and Yael Schacher (Refugees International), with moderator James Grossman (American Historical Association), discussed history of policies related to immigration and deportation throughout US history. Topics included the origins of deportation policy, the post-WWI “Palmer Raids,” mass deportations of Mexican Americans during the 1930s and 1950s, evolving policy changes around asylum, and other issues.

The AHA’s Congressional Briefings series seeks to provide Congressional staff members, journalists, and other members of the policy community with the historical context essential to understanding contemporary issues. The sessions are strictly nonpartisan and avoid advancing particular policy prescriptions or legislative agendas. For more information, please visit the AHA’s website.