Existing comment:
New Communities
Federal legislation in 1965 changed the nation's immigration laws. Congress abolished the national origins formula dating from 1921, which favored northern European immigration. It replaced the formula with a preference system that focused on employment skills and family relationships with US citizens. The changes led to a flow of people from nations that had not previously been major sources of immigration.
In the 1960s and 1970s, the DC metro area became a destination for people from Central and South America, the Caribbean, the Philippines, Vietnam, and China. These arriving immigrants established community-based organizations and institutions, and local networks of support and information, that provided a foundation for those who came later. Newly arrived immigrants often relied upon certain kinds of jobs to gain entry to the local labor market, but many also came in search of educational opportunities. |