America banned Muslims long before Donald Trump

[guillaumeb]

Speaking of white privilege, it is important to understand that melanin, or the lack of it, was and is not the only factor to consider when discussing "whiteness".


From the article:

The Naturalization Act of 1790, which limited citizenship to “any alien, being a free white person,” drastically restricted the ability of Muslims to become citizens. The requirement meant that immigrants seeking lawful residence and citizenship were compelled to convince authorities that they fit within the statutory definition of whiteness. Arabs, along with Italians, Jews and others, were forced to litigate their identities in line with prevailing conceptions of whiteness — which fluctuated according to geographic origin, physical appearance and religion. Courts unwaveringly framed Islam as hostile to American ideals and society, casting Muslim immigrants as outside the bounds of whiteness and a threat to the identity and national security of the United States.

The bolding is mine.


And:

Indeed, the first court ruling to grant naturalization to an Arab-born Muslim was for a Saudi man, in Ex Parte Mohriez, in 1944 — and, even then, based only on the finding that Arabs should be considered part of “the white race.”
Despite the Mohriez decision, the Naturalization Act remained the law of the land until 1952, and restrictive immigration quotas stayed on the books.

To read more:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/trumps-anti-muslim-stance-echoes-a-us-law-from-the-1700s/2016/08/18/6da7b486-6585-11e6-8b27-bb8ba39497a2_story.html?utm_term=.2c437aeee69d

This is covered by Khaled Beydoun in his brilliant book American Islamophobia. He builds on Edward Said's idea of Orientalism to show how Muslims are also part of the other that white Americans are taught to fear.

[TimeSnowDemos]

1. Absolutely

And of course America's police has always been hyper violent and lawless.

If you're a minority, you're a target, if you're poor, you're a target. This has long been the truth in America.

[guillaumeb]

5. The police in the colonies and later in the US were designed as slave patrols.

A major part of the need for an armed populace.

[Fred Sanders]

2. NEVER so blatant and open and normalized bigotry re: Muslims....in over 200 years...good point.

[guillaumeb]

6. Agreed, and the bigotry extended

to all labelled as non-white.

[oberliner]

3. This is not true

This article seems to conflate Arabs with Muslims.

[guillaumeb]

4. It is factually correct.

Muslims were forbidden to become naturalized citizens. Prior to 1944, there were a few exceptions...……. for Christian Arabs.

[oberliner]

7. Between 1878 and 1924, Muslim immigrants from the Middle East, particularly from Syria and Lebanon

arrived in large numbers, with many settling in Ohio, Michigan, Iowa and even the Dakotas.

http://www.pbs.org/opb/historydetectives/feature/islam-in-america/

[guillaumeb]

8. But they could not become naturalized citizens.

The point.

[oberliner]

9. But in the title of the OP you posted, you wrote that America "banned Muslims"

But the PBS link said that Muslims immigrated to the US during that period, so doesn't that mean they were not banned?

[guillaumeb]

10. The title is the title.

But in the first citation, it is explained that Muslim immigrants could not become naturalized citizens.

It did not say that they could not immigrate here.

I suggest a rereading of the article and that will clear up your confusion.

Have a good evening O.

[oberliner]

11. Thanks for the response

I'll read the article again more closely.

Perhaps I also need to read up about naturalization in general.