Full Citation

Title: The Effect of Immigration Restrictions on Local Labor Markets: Lessons from the 1920s Border Closure

Citation Type: Journal Article

Publication Year: 2023

ISBN:

ISSN: 1945-7782

DOI: 10.1257/APP.20200807

NSFID:

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PMID:

Abstract: In the 1920s, the United States substantially reduced immigration by imposing country-specific entry quotas. We compare local labor markets differentially exposed to the quotas due to variation in the national-origin mix of their immigrant population. US-born workers in areas losing immigrants did not benefit relative to workers in less exposed areas. Instead, in urban areas, European immigrants were replaced with internal migrants and immigrants from Mexico and Canada. By contrast, farmers shifted toward capital-intensive agriculture, and the immigrant-intensive mining industry contracted. These differences highlight the uneven effects of the quota system at the local level.

Url: https://www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=10.1257/app.20200807

User Submitted?: No

Authors: Abramitzky, Ran; Ager, Philipp; Boustan, Leah; Cohen, Elior; Hansen, Casper W.

Periodical (Full): American Economic Journal: Applied Economics

Issue: 1

Volume: 15

Pages: f-164

Data Collections: IPUMS USA - Ancestry Full Count Data

Topics: Labor Force and Occupational Structure, Migration and Immigration

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