From 65438 to the 1970s, a large number of Chinese workers came to California to build railways. The picture shows the bronze carving "Pioneer" set up by the people of California to commemorate the contribution of Chinese workers to economic prosperity. (Ding Gang/photo) According to the latest statistics of the American Immigration Research Center, the United States has ushered in the largest immigration tide in history. In the past 400 years, tens of millions of residents from various countries have entered the United States with capital, technology and knowledge. It was under their impetus that the United States gradually became stronger. Known as the "ethnic melting pot", the United States is a typical immigrant country, and its immigration history can be traced back to 1620. In the past 400 years, the United States has become a mixture of 100 ethnic groups. Even the Statue of Liberty standing in new york was 1886 immigrated from France to the United States. Immigrants came across the ocean with their dreams to this ideal land. There have been several major immigration waves in American history. It is no exaggeration to say that immigrants created America, developed and changed America. Attracting immigrants was the most important diplomatic task in the early days of the founding of the United States. The population of the United States is only 3.9 million. Except for about 760,000 blacks, almost all of them are white, and most of them are from Western Europe. Concerned about the Napoleonic Wars in Europe and the domestic employment environment, several governments in the early days of the founding of the United States were full of doubts about immigration policies, and once formulated some policies to restrict immigration. During the period of 18 15, the average number of European immigrants to the United States was only about 3,000 per year. After the Napoleonic Wars, Europe regained peace. With the demobilization of a large number of soldiers, the unemployment problem in European countries is becoming more and more serious, and the number of immigrants to the United States is increasing year by year. At this time, the United States also changed its policy of restricting immigration because of the needs of domestic construction. 1938+0848 After the European Revolution, the wave of emigration to the United States became higher and higher. From 1820 to 100 in 1920, the United States accepted about 33.5 million immigrants, forming a century-long immigration tide in the United States. The first migration climax called "the Great Migration Movement" by American historians occurred in 100. During this period, the total number of immigrants reached 5 million. Immigrants mainly come from western Europe and northern Europe, among which about 2 million Irish and 0.7 million Germans, and a large number of African slaves are sold to the United States. At the same time, some immigrants came from Asia, mainly from China, and they came to the United States to look for gold. The second migration climax is from18,61. About 5 million immigrants came to America. After the end of the Civil War, the United States ushered in the peak of industrialization, and the demand for labor was strong. In order to attract European immigrants to the United States, President Lincoln lobbied Congress to pass the immigration encouragement bill in 1864. Secretary Seward even sent a notice to American diplomats in Europe. They are required to take attracting European immigrants as their most important diplomatic task. In order to recruit skilled workers from Europe to work in the United States, some enterprises also send delegations to Europe for recruitment. They advertise in many European newspapers and issue pamphlets. Describe the attractive prospects of the United States for Europeans who want to immigrate. Some enterprises also provide necessary travel expenses for Europeans who want to immigrate to the United States. The third climax was from 188 1 to 1920, and the number of immigrants soared to 23.5 million. The migration peak is 1907, reaching 1285000. Asian immigrants are excluded. The growth of "old immigrants" from northwest European countries such as Britain, Germany and Sweden is limited, while the growth of "new immigrants" from southeast European countries such as Italy and Russia is rapid. After these three immigration climaxes, the total population of the United States exceeded 65.438 billion for the first time from 654.38+0820 to 654.38+0920. The number of immigrants accounts for more than 20% of the annual population growth in the United States. Immigration changed the fate of America. These three waves of immigrants in American history have not only had a far-reaching impact on the formation of American national character, but also made the United States rise rapidly in just over a hundred years, replacing Britain as the world's number one economic power, laying the foundation for becoming a world superpower in the future. It can be said that the wave of immigration has made the United States strong. In the wave of immigration, the United States enjoyed success and got thousands of unskilled workers from Europe. According to statistics, during the period of 187 1- 1892, about 23% of the immigrants from western Europe and northern Europe were skilled workers, who brought steel, textiles and other industrial technologies. It became an important technical force in the American industrial revolution. Samuel slater, who was praised as "the father of American manufacturing" by the seventh American President Jackson, immigrated to the United States, successfully copied high-efficiency cotton spinning machines and established cotton mills in the United States, which sounded the horn of the American industrial revolution. Alexander bell, the inventor of the telephone, and Samuel Morse, the father of the telegraph, are also descendants of immigrants or immigrants. Immigrants from China, Japan and the Philippines in Asia brought agricultural and horticultural skills, while Italian immigrants made great contributions to municipal construction technologies such as gas, electricity and tap water. Among these immigrants, 85% are between the ages of 14 and 44, and most of them are men. These immigrants are in their prime. It provides labor for the cotton textile industry, mining industry and construction industry in the United States. Irish, Germans, Italians and Nordic people are the main forces of tunnel and railway engineering in the eastern United States. In the "westward movement" that changed the early political structure and social outlook of the United States, the role of Chinese workers cannot be underestimated. In this movement centered on railway construction, China laborers sacrificed their blood, sweat and lives. Under extremely difficult and harsh conditions, the western section of the Trans-Pacific Railway was successfully completed. Up to now, a metal plaque inscribed in Chinese can be seen along the California railway, which reads "California Railway, North-South Link, China Spirit, Dedication". As Crocker, who advocates recruiting workers from China, said, "This railway can be completed in time. To a large extent, this is due to the poor and despised working class in China-because of their loyalty and hard work. " This sentence later became a famous "one-word history" in the history of American immigrants. During the American Civil War, immigrants also contributed to saving the Union and abolishing slavery. 1848 after the European revolution, a large number of German immigrants with military experience came to the United States. Many of these German immigrants were called "1848" and became the backbone of supporting communist party and Lincoln. They helped organize the federal army and defended the system to the death. The most famous is Major General Carl Schurz, who moved to the United States in 1852 after the failure of the German Revolution. He took an active part in the anti-slavery movement 186 1 year, he was appointed as the American special envoy to Spain. After the civil war broke out, he volunteered to lead the army. In order to encourage German immigrants to support Lincoln, he also went to American States to give speeches, with a total journey of nearly 40,000 kilometers. The wave of immigration triggered a counter-current of xenophobia. In the immigration tide that lasted for more than 100 years, immigrants have experienced one kind or another of exclusion. As far as the American government is concerned, its immigration policy is not static. From 18 15 to 1882, the United States government implemented a completely free immigration system. However, since 1882, great changes have taken place in American immigration policy. Laws restricting and excluding immigrants have been introduced one after another. For example, it is forbidden for idiots and weak-willed people to enter the country. After 1920, the United States completely ended the era of free immigration and began to implement a quota-based restrictive immigration policy. Due to the contradiction of employment, religion and race, during the period of 1880- 1920, American xenophobia reached its peak. China, Japanese, Jews, Italians and Hungarians have all become targets of arbitrary exclusion and persecution by local American workers and immigrants from northwest Europe. What's more, in May of 1882, the US Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act which specifically prohibited Chinese workers from entering the United States. It was not until 6 1 year later that the bill was abolished. During this period, the American Patriot Union and the American Alliance, which were composed of Native Americans and immigrant Protestants from northwest Europe, came into being. Among them, the American Conservation Association, founded by 1887, has the greatest influence and fanned the flames everywhere. The arrival of new immigrants was attributed to the social and political corruption, lagging municipal construction, rising crime rate and declining people's living standards in the United States during this period. After World War II, with the rationalization of American people's attitude towards immigrants, the contribution of immigrants to the United States was gradually recognized by most Americans. As US Secretary of Labor Zhao Xiaolan said, "The United States should thank immigrants for their contributions. The huge wave of immigrants has brought rich cultural heritage to the United States and provided impetus for its development. "