Congress passes Chinese Exclusion Act barring Chinese laborers

President Chester A. Arthur signs the Chinese Exclusion Act on May 6, 1882. The law suspends immigration of Chinese laborers and blocks many Chinese immigrants already in the United States from becoming citizens.\n\nSupporters frame the law as protection for white workers and communities. The statute becomes the first major federal law to exclude a specific immigrant group by nationality and race.\n\nThe event belongs in the racism timeline because Congress builds racial exclusion directly into federal immigration law and citizenship policy.