By the end of the nineteenth century, immigrants across the globe sought to enter the United States in search of new opportunities. Ellis Island was a central hub through which these people, most of whom were Europeans from poorer regions, had to pass in order to inspect their health and criminal records (Pegler-Gordon, 2021). Public officials were assigned to this location in order to search new arrivals’ belongings and assess their medical status. However, there were numerous different reasons for banning an individual from entry. The history of Ellis Island demonstrates the impact of exclusion policies, the outcome of which is not well-understood by people.
The impact of Ellis Island’s operations was immense due to the sheer number of arrivals passing through it. In the early 1900s, thousands of people were allowed entry into the United States daily via Ellis Island (Pegler-Gordon, 2021). However, the result of such migration was both positive and detrimental. Citizens and authorities grew wary of newcomers, which led to the creation of several laws that limited annual acceptance per country, making interviews with immigrants take a different tone depending on their ethnicity (Pegler-Gordon, 2021). This notion did not account for trade skills these people might have possessed properly.
However, there was a positive outcome of this island’s operations as well. Not many people realize that the influx of travelers was the reason why New York grew into one of the central economic hubs of the United States. The majority of arrivals were given entry into the United States, while only one to three percent were denied (Pegler-Gordon, 2021). Many of these immigrants traveled from the island to New York, which significantly boosted the city’s economy.
In conclusion, due to several laws prohibiting the entry of groups of individuals due to their ethnicity or current situation, the United States might have improved its diversity further, although arrivals were numerous nonetheless. They settled across the Eastern coast and significantly boosted the country’s economy with proficiencies obtained at their homelands. Newcomers filled many job positions, created businesses, and introduced their cultures to Americans.
Reference
Pegler-Gordon, A. (2021). Closing the golden door: Asian migration and the hidden history of exclusion at Ellis Island. The University of North Carolina Press.