America's immigration story has always been contentious

Two hundred and fifty years of American history have produced this enduring truth: Every generation has debated immigration — and every generation has been made stronger because of it.

From the first days of our settlement by Europeans, there has been resentment of the next arrival from the Old World. The Naturalization Act of 1790, one of the first laws passed by a nation barely a decade old, began to place restrictions on who would be welcomed as citizens.

By the mid-1800s, Irish and German immigrants who arrived in America experienced a serious backlash from those long-established citizens who feared the character of the country would now be changed by these newcomers. By the end of that century, Ellis Island would open with a mission to welcome new and even larger waves of immigrants but with established rules that would seek to meld compassion with order — regulations with responsibility. In doing so, the island would welcome those who would bring an extraordinary work ethic to their new home, further strengthening a nation of immigrants.

Yet successfully transiting Ellis Island was not a foregone conclusion. Poor health and suspect politics were among the reasons the immigration officers would assign you to the next steamship back to Europe. About 2% of immigrants, or between 120,000 and 250,000 people, were denied entry at Ellis Island during its years of operation. No wonder it was called the “Island of Tears.” Many a dream was dashed inside its Great Hall.

And yet people kept arriving in search of a better life, freedom and the opportunity to succeed. They would work in factories, build our cities, harvest the crops that would feed a growing and diverse nation. Many of their descendants moved to Long Island in post-World War II America.

Still, the country pushed back on who would be admitted. The Immigration Act of 1924 established national origin quotas explicitly designed to limit immigration from southern and eastern Europe — Italians, Jews and Slavs among them. Asians faced an even higher bar following laws passed in Washington.

The more recent chapters of America’s immigration history also record the collective angst by which we approach this issue. The Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965, which abolished the old draconian quota system, was opposed by those who feared it would change the demographic face of the nation.

It is a concern that echoed even before our first citizens heard the Declaration of Independence read aloud in a village square. Yet each time our America comes back from this debate stronger, smarter and more dynamic than before because of the enormous contributions of legal immigrants seeking to better themselves and the lives of their families.

Today, the debates over border security, undocumented immigrants here on Long Island and across the country, and pathways to citizenship continue as those issues are unresolved — and because they are rooted in our past. This part of our national DNA is abundantly clear at Ellis Island, a sacred location that can claim to have welcomed the ancestors of as many as 40% of all Americans today.

If the past is prologue, America will continue to question, debate and argue far into the future how we tend the open door that has always defined this nation of immigrants. That will remain part of our strength.

This Guest Essay reflects the views of Nasser Kazeminy, chairman of the Ellis Island Honors Society, based in Franklin Square.