Alien land laws facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

Alien land laws were a set of rules in the United States that tried to stop certain immigrants from owning land. These laws mainly targeted people from Asian countries, especially Chinese and Japanese immigrants.

The laws used tricky language. Instead of saying "Chinese" or "Japanese," they talked about "aliens ineligible for citizenship." This was because a law from 1870, the Naturalization Act of 1870, only allowed white people and African Americans to become U.S. citizens. So, if you couldn't become a citizen, you couldn't own land.

These laws were found in more than a dozen states. They were finally declared unconstitutional (meaning against the U.S. Constitution) by the Supreme Court in 1952. Even after that, some of these old laws stayed on the books for many years, even if they weren't used anymore.

Why These Laws Started
- Fear of Asian Immigrants
- Japanese Immigrants and New Laws
Where These Laws Existed
Important Court Cases
See Also

Why These Laws Started

Fear of Asian Immigrants

As more Asian immigrants came to the U.S., some people became worried. American businesses had first brought Chinese immigrants to work cheaply on railroads, in mines, and on farms. But by the late 1800s, many white Americans feared that Asian immigrants would take their land and jobs.

Newspapers and politicians spread the idea of a "Yellow Peril." This was a scary idea that Chinese and other Asian immigrants were a threat to white people's way of life and money. Groups who favored only native-born Americans, called nativists, worked hard to stop Asians from getting citizenship rights, like voting. They also pushed for laws to reduce, and then completely stop, immigration from China with the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882.

Japanese Immigrants and New Laws

When Chinese immigration stopped, Japanese people started coming to the U.S. They came from Japan, which had recently allowed its citizens to travel abroad. Many Japanese immigrants, including those who had worked on Hawaiian sugar plantations, moved to farms in Western states. They became successful farmers, often renting land.

The quick rise in Japanese immigrants and their success in farming led to similar anti-immigrant feelings. Following the pattern of the anti-Chinese movement, anti-Japanese groups first limited Japanese immigration with the Gentlemen's Agreement of 1907. Then, they stopped East Asian immigration completely with the Immigration Act of 1924.

Another law, the Cable Act of 1922, made things even harder. It said that American women born in the U.S. would lose their citizenship if they married men who couldn't become citizens (like Asian immigrants). During this time, alien land laws became a common way to stop Asian immigrants already living in the country from settling down permanently.

Where These Laws Existed

Many states had their own alien land laws. Here are some examples:

California's Laws

1879 - California changed its constitution. It said that only white people or people of African descent could own land.
1913 - California's Alien Land Law stopped people who couldn't become citizens from owning property. It also said they couldn't rent land for more than three years.
1920 - More rules were added to the 1913 law. Any rental agreement with an ineligible alien became illegal. Also, companies owned by ineligible aliens couldn't buy land.

Florida's Laws

2008 - Voters in Florida said no to removing an alien land law.
November 2018 - Voters approved removing the law.

Minnesota's Laws

1887 - Minnesota limited land ownership to citizens or those planning to become citizens. Companies with more than 20% foreign ownership couldn't buy land.
1897-1911 - Later, some exceptions were made. Foreign-owned companies could hold land if they sold it to "actual settlers" or used it for real business.

Nebraska's Laws

1841 - The Preemption Act allowed settlers to claim up to 160 acres of land. But they had to be citizens or planning to become citizens.
1862 - The Homestead Act let settlers claim up to 160 acres if they lived and worked on the land. Again, they had to be citizens or applying for citizenship.
1904 - The Kincaid Act, another homestead law, allowed claims of up to 640 acres. It had the same citizenship rule.

Oregon's Laws

1859 - Oregon's constitution said that no "Chinaman" could own property in the state.
1923 - After several tries, Oregon passed a law like California's. It limited land rights to citizens and those who could become citizens.
1945 - Oregon passed a law that stopped Issei (first-generation Japanese immigrants) from working on or even living on farms owned by their children. This law was later found unconstitutional by Oregon's Supreme Court in 1947.

Texas's Laws

1891 - Texas passed a law stopping foreigners or foreign-owned companies from holding property for more than six years. This law was later removed as unconstitutional that same year.
1892 - A new law extended the time limit to ten years and removed the rule against foreign-owned companies.
1921 - Texas went back to rules similar to the 1891 law. It again stopped foreign-owned companies from getting property and reduced the time limit to five years.

Washington's Laws

1886 - After a time of violent protests where Chinese people were forced out of Seattle, Washington Territory made a rule. It stopped foreigners who couldn't become citizens from owning property.
1889 - A new rule was added. It said foreigners had to truly intend to become citizens to buy property.
1921 - A land bill like California's was passed. It stopped ineligible foreigners from renting land.
1923 - The 1921 law was expanded. It even stopped U.S.-born children of immigrants from holding land for their parents.

Utah and Wyoming's Laws

1943 - Utah and Wyoming passed alien land laws. These states had camps where Japanese Americans were held during World War II. The laws aimed to stop former camp residents from settling in these states. Arkansas, which also had such camps, passed a similar law specifically against "Japanese or a descendant of a Japanese."

Other States with Laws

1921 - Arizona and Louisiana passed alien land laws. New Mexico voters approved a change to their state constitution, stopping ineligible foreigners from owning property.
1923 - Idaho and Montana passed alien land laws.
1925 - Kansas and Arkansas also created their own laws limiting property rights.

Important Court Cases

Many people challenged these unfair laws in court. Here are some key cases:

Yamashita v. Washington (1902) — Takuji Yamashita was not allowed to become a lawyer because he couldn't become a citizen. The court agreed with the state.
California v. Harada (1918) — The court sided with Jukichi Harada. He and his wife bought a home in the names of their three American-born children. The court said the children had the right to own property because they were citizens.
Ozawa v. United States (1922) — Takao Ozawa wanted to become a citizen. He argued that Japanese people were "white" and should be allowed. The Supreme Court disagreed.
Yamashita v. Hinkle (1922) — On the same day as the Ozawa case, the Supreme Court supported Washington's alien land law, which Takuji Yamashita had challenged.
Estate of Tetsubumi Yano (1922) — The California Supreme Court said that a non-citizen parent could manage farmland owned by his Nisei (U.S.-born) daughter.
Webb v. O'Brien (1923) — The Supreme Court upheld a ban on certain farming contracts. Many Issei used these contracts to get around California's alien land act.
Porterfield v. Webb and Terrace v. Thompson (1923) — In these two Supreme Court cases, bans on renting land to ineligible foreigners in Washington and California were found to be legal.
Washington v. Hirabayashi (1925) — Washington's Supreme Court ruled that land bought in a Nisei's name, but mostly managed by an Issei-owned company, should go back to the state.
Oyama v. California (1948) — The Supreme Court ruled that Fred Oyama's rights were violated. California tried to take land that Oyama's non-citizen father bought in his son's name. However, the court did not fully strike down the 1913 and 1920 alien land laws at this time.
Takahashi v. California Fish and Game Commission (1948) — Torao Takahashi, a Japanese immigrant fisherman, was denied a fishing license after being released from a camp in 1945. He successfully challenged a state law that said foreigners who couldn't become citizens couldn't get a commercial fishing license.
Fujii v. California (1952) — The California Supreme Court finally ruled that California's 1920 Alien Land Law, and others like it, went against the "equal protection clause" of the 14th Amendment. This part of the Constitution says everyone should be treated equally under the law. This ruling made alien land laws illegal.
Masaoka v. California (1952) — Three months after the Fujii decision, the California Supreme Court again ruled against California's Alien Land Law.