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The dark history of the Chinese Exclusion Act - Robert Chang

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In 1882, the United States Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act, the first federal law that restricted immigration based explicitly on nationality. In practice, the Act banned entry to all ethnically Chinese immigrants besides diplomats, and prohibited existing immigrants from obtaining citizenship. Robert Chang details the lasting impact the Act had on immigrant rights and freedoms.

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The U.S. Supreme Court in Chae Chan Ping’s case announced a doctrine that came to be known as the plenary power doctrine. Under this doctrine, when will the Court generally defer to the decisions made by the executive and the legislature?

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Meet The Creators

  • Educator Robert Chang
  • Director Mohammad Babakoohi, Yijia Cao
  • Narrator Jack Cutmore-Scott
  • Storyboard Artist Mohammad Babakoohi
  • Animator Mohammad Babakoohi, Elahe Baloochi
  • Compositor Poorya Goodarzi
  • Art Director Mohammad Babakoohi, Yijia Cao
  • Sound Designer Mohammad Babakoohi
  • Music Jian Nanyin
  • Director of Production Gerta Xhelo
  • Editorial Director Alex Rosenthal
  • Producer Bethany Cutmore-Scott
  • Editorial Producer Dan Kwartler
  • Production Coordinator Abdallah Ewis
  • Script Editor Alex Gendler
  • Fact-Checker Eden Girma

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