This is all great fact-checking and true until you get to the late 19th century to the mid 20th when the US started incorporating immigration quotas as a way of restricting mostly non-white immigrants. But also to an extent people like Jews and Italians. 1/

By the time my Italian ancestors immigrated to the US (1910-1930) there were plenty of rules, but they were mostly aimed at Asians and blacks and Europeans often found ways around the rules. Which means getting here “legally” was a biased process meant to keep out POC. 2/