--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Somebody who was born in this country who…" description: "\"Somebody who was born in this country who visited China would later face difficulty getting back in to the USA. We have to keep in mind that the strugg..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/936/iris-chang-17261_america_somebody-who-was-born-in-this-country-wh_812989.png" --- # Somebody who was born in this country who visited China… ![“Somebody who was born in this country who visited China would later face difficulty getting back in to the USA. We have to keep in mind that the struggles of the Chinese against these exclusion laws really laid down the foundations of civil rights law.” quote by Iris Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/936/iris-chang-17261_america_somebody-who-was-born-in-this-country-wh_812989.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/936/iris-chang-17261_america_somebody-who-was-born-in-this-country-wh_812989.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/936/iris-chang-17261_america_somebody-who-was-born-in-this-country-wh_812989.png) > “Somebody who was born in this country who visited China would later face difficulty getting back in to the USA. We have to keep in mind that the struggles of the Chinese against these exclusion laws really laid down the foundations of civil rights law.” [Iris Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-chang/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote links historical Chinese exclusion laws to the foundation of civil rights law, highlighting how past oppression informs modern legal protections. **In simple terms:** Past exclusion shaped today’s civil rights. Key Takeaway Recognize historical struggles to protect current freedoms. Themes history justice rights immigration law Mood analytical somber hopeful Type historical educational When to use this quote - Legal studies - immigration policy debates - civil rights activism - educational curricula Key Concepts Civil rights evolution legal precedent social memory Questions to Reflect On - What lessons from past exclusion can guide current policy? - How do we balance remembering pain with celebrating progress? A Different Perspective Historical context can be oversimplified, ignoring nuanced motivations. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) [Born](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/born/) [China](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/china/) [Chinese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chinese/) [Chinese Exclusion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chinese-exclusion-281758/) [Civil Right](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/civil-right/) [Civil rights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/civil-rights/) [Country](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/country/) [Difficulty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/difficulty/) [Exclusion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exclusion/) [Exclusion Laws](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exclusion-laws-281760/) [Faces](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faces/) [Foundation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/foundation/) [Law](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/law/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Rights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rights/) [Rights Law](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rights-law-281761/) [Struggle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/struggle/) [Struggles Chinese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/struggles-chinese-281759/) [Usa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/usa/) ## Related quotes > [In much the same way Ip Man embodied the struggles of the Chinese people, I wanted Gong Er to represent the changing role of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wong-kar-wai/in-much-the-same-way-ip-man-embodied-the-struggles-of-the-chinese/) [Wong Kar-wai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wong-kar-wai/) > [“In the leadup to the election of 1876, swing votes were tied to the issue of Chinese immigration in the same way that immigration…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-see/in-the-leadup-to-the-election-of-1876-swing-votes-were-tied-to-the/) [Lisa See](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-see/) > [“In 1882, Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act. No Chinese immigrants were allowed. They said it would be for ten years.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-hunter/in-1882-congress-passed-the-chinese-exclusion-act-no-chinese/) [Elizabeth Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-hunter/) > [“As a Chinese American growing up in a largely white world during the 1920s and 1930s, a sense of social marginalization marked her formative…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-m-ward/as-a-chinese-american-growing-up-in-a-largely-white-world-during-the/) [Stephen M. 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International…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-williams-jr/us-law-and-international-human-rights-law-have-radically-diverged-in/) [Robert A. Williams, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-williams-jr/) > [Ancient Egyptian women had rights under the law. They could own land. Many were literate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bettany-hughes/ancient-egyptian-women-had-rights-under-the-law-they-could-own-land/) [Bettany Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bettany-hughes/) > [When we get to wishing a great deal for ourselves, whatever we get soon turns into mere limitation and exclusion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/when-we-get-to-wishing-a-great-deal-for-ourselves-whatever-we-get/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [We had 90 percent rates, but nobody paid them. And so you had all these exemptions, exclusions, shelters, all this kind of stuff. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-santorum/we-had-90-percent-rates-but-nobody-paid-them-and-so-you-had-all-these/) [Rick Santorum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-santorum/) > [ \[I\]f in other sciences we should arrive at certainty without doubt and truth without error, it behooves us to place the foundations of knowledge… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-bacon/i-f-in-other-sciences-we-should-arrive-at-certainty-without-doubt-and/) [Roger Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-bacon/) > [The ultimate goal of radical politics is gradually to displace the limit of social exclusions, empowering the excluded agents (sexual and ethnic minorities) by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/slavoj-i-ek/the-ultimate-goal-of-radical-politics-is-gradually-to-displace-the/) [Slavoj Žižek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/slavoj-i-ek/) > [The essence of worldliness is exclusion of God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-jacobsen/the-essence-of-worldliness-is-exclusion-of-god/) [Henry Jacobsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-jacobsen/) ## More by Iris Chang > [Whatever is not commonly seen is condemned as alien.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-chang/whatever-is-not-commonly-seen-is-condemned-as-alien/) [Iris Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-chang/) > [The spoken word vanished with the wind. Likewise, the unrecorded life disappears as if it never existed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-chang/the-spoken-word-vanished-with-the-wind-likewise-the-unrecorded-life/) [Iris Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-chang/) > [There isn't much in the way of pure communist spirit, because the whole nation seems to be engaged in capitalistic enterprises. Much of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-chang/there-isn-t-much-in-the-way-of-pure-communist-spirit-because-the/) [Iris Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-chang/) > [For some reason, I seem to be bothered whenever I see acts of injustice and assaults on people's civil liberties. I imagine what I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-chang/for-some-reason-i-seem-to-be-bothered-whenever-i-see-acts-of/) [Iris Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-chang/) > [I have to finish this book tour of almost 30 cities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-chang/i-have-to-finish-this-book-tour-of-almost-30-cities/) [Iris Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-chang/) > [Almost all people have this potential for evil, which would be unleashed only under certain dangerous social circumstances.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-chang/almost-all-people-have-this-potential-for-evil-which-would-be/) [Iris Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-chang/) > [“Looking back upon millennia of history, it appears clear that no race or culture has monopoly on wartime cruelty. The veneer of civilization seems…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-chang/looking-back-upon-millennia-of-history-it-appears-clear-that-no-race/) [Iris Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-chang/) > [There isn't much discussion of ruling class in America even in Boston, probably one of the most class-conscious cities in the country?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-chang/there-isn-t-much-discussion-of-ruling-class-in-america-even-in-boston/) [Iris Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-chang/) > [Your first duty as a writer is to write to please yourself. And you have no duty towards anyone else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-chang/your-first-duty-as-a-writer-is-to-write-to-please-yourself-and-you/) [Iris Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-chang/) > [They probably do have an Asian Barbie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-chang/they-probably-do-have-an-asian-barbie/) [Iris Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-chang/) > [Its a wonderful thing to see a segment of our population that is open and eager to learn more about Chinese culture. It has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-chang/its-a-wonderful-thing-to-see-a-segment-of-our-population-that-is-open/) [Iris Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-chang/) > [I don't mind solitude. I love talking to other people, but I do need my space.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-chang/i-don-t-mind-solitude-i-love-talking-to-other-people-but-i-do-need-my/) [Iris Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-chang/) > [Now, most of the new immigrants coming to this country are from Asia as opposed to Europe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-chang/now-most-of-the-new-immigrants-coming-to-this-country-are-from-asia/) [Iris Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-chang/) > [Please believe in THE POWER OF ONE. One person can make an enormous difference in the world. One person - actually, one idea -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-chang/please-believe-in-the-power-of-one-one-person-can-make-an-enormous/) [Iris Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-chang/) > [I received an honorary doctorate for my work. Maybe one of these works is considered the equivalent of a Ph.D.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-chang/i-received-an-honorary-doctorate-for-my-work-maybe-one-of-these-works/) [Iris Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-chang/) [Explore all 37 Iris Chang quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-chang/) ## More America quotes > [The costs of the Bush-Obama wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now estimated to run as high as $4.4 trillion - a major victory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-costs-of-the-bush-obama-wars-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-are-now/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [Well, The Day the Earth Caught Fire was a story... I don't if anybody knows what it is but it was about... in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-guest/well-the-day-the-earth-caught-fire-was-a-story-i-don-t-if-anybody/) [Val Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-guest/) > [So here's what I want you to know, and here's what I want all our men and women in uniform to know: Because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/so-here-s-what-i-want-you-to-know-and-here-s-what-i-want-all-our-men/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Today, the world looks to America for leadership. And America looks to its Corps of Marines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/today-the-world-looks-to-america-for-leadership-and-america-looks-to/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [The image of blacks usually is one of people who are suffering from hunger, unemployment, and poverty. The idea of them as agents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/the-image-of-blacks-usually-is-one-of-people-who-are-suffering-from/) [Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/) > [ I'll smoke, I'll cough, I'll get the tumors, I'll die, deal? Thank you America. \[salutes\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/i-ll-smoke-i-ll-cough-i-ll-get-the-tumors-i-ll-die-deal-thank-you/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) > [America is a democracy and has no Hitler, but I am afraid for her future; there are hard times ahead for the American people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/america-is-a-democracy-and-has-no-hitler-but-i-am-afraid-for-her/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [I'm gonna bring America together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/i-m-gonna-bring-america-together/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [In the nineteenth century some parts of the world were unexplored, but there was almost no restriction on travel.:; Up to 1914 you did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/in-the-nineteenth-century-some-parts-of-the-world-were-unexplored-but/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [We need a system that serves our needs, not the needs of others. Remember, under a Trump administration it's called America first. Remember that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/we-need-a-system-that-serves-our-needs-not-the-needs-of-others/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [America, you're sending girls a mixed message. On one hand, you're saying to have positive body image and love who we are; on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adora-svitak/america-you-re-sending-girls-a-mixed-message-on-one-hand-you-re/) [Adora Svitak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adora-svitak/) > [You live overseas, you see these exotic places and you want to know about them. But, weirdly, it also made me homesick for all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-jennings/you-live-overseas-you-see-these-exotic-places-and-you-want-to-know/) [Ken Jennings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-jennings/) > [Freedom in every sense but primarily political sense, a rise in repression that stems from a repression of sexuality. 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