IRCA’s Impact on the Immigrant Rights Movement
“What happened in the 1980s, especially as a result of IRCA and in the 1990s and up until today, was a growth of the immigrants rights advocacy community where you had the establishment and the creation of many more groups to defend and advance the rights of immigrants. And that made all the difference in the world.”
Prior to the 1960’s, immigrant-serving organizations and advocacy efforts largely reflected the immigration patterns of previous decades, with a focus on migrants and refugees from Europe. This began to change with the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965, which undid the quota system that had prioritized European immigrants. Its family preferences, along with geopolitical disruptions, led to a significant increase in legal immigration from Latin America and Asia. The undocumented population also surged for the first time in the nation’s history.
As these shifts dramatically reshaped the demographics of the United States, the 1980’s and the passage of IRCA were pivotal moments for the immigrant rights landscape. Many of the individuals and organizations that helped shape IRCA went on to play key roles in the immigrant rights field over the next few decades. The infrastructure that developed during the IRCA implementation process, including the QDE’s, also laid the groundwork for many immigrant advocacy organizations and coalitions that are still active today, working to ensure that immigrant rights are an essential part of the civil rights and human rights agenda.
Anthony Romero, now the executive director of the ACLU but who was an intern at the ILGWU Immigrant Rights Project in 1987, describes how IRCA marked a change in the immigrant rights landscape.
Anthony Romero describes how immigrant rights came to be seen as an integral part of the broader human rights and civil rights agenda.
Wade Henderson describes how immigration policies evolved after World War II, and the connection with civil rights and human rights movements.
Muzaffar Chishti describes how the individuals and organizations involved in IRCA went on to lay the groundwork for the modern immigrant rights movement.