Immigration Act of 1965
"Welcome to the land of the free"
Importance
This act, also known as the Hart-Cellar Act , not only allows more individuals from third world countries to enter the US (including Asians, who have traditionally been hindered from entering America), but also entails a separate quota for refugees.
President Lyndon Johnson
"This bill that we will sign today is not a revolutionary bill. It does not affect the lives of millions. It will not reshape the structure of our daily lives, or really add importantly to either our wealth or our power. Yet it is still one of the most important acts of this Congress and of this administration [as it] corrects a cruel and enduring wrong in the conduct of the American nation."
Signing of the Act
President Lyndon Johnson signed the act at the foot of the statue of liberty as a symbolic meaning.