Asiatic Exclusion League

Organized May 14, 1905, in San Francisco, the Asiatic Exclusion League (AEL) was a white supremacist group committed to ending the immigration of Asians to the United States. Although Japanese immigrants were the primary target, the league opposed the immigration of all Asians, including Koreans and Hindu Indians. Delegates from 67 groups participated in the founding of the league, but organized labor, fearful of losing jobs, was at the forefront. By 1908, the league claimed 100,000 members and 238 affiliated organizations. The AEL's influence was not limited to California. Members successfully lobbied on the national level as well, and discriminatory laws that were a legacy of the AEL remained in effect until the 1960s.

Emigration from Japan was rare before the late 19th century. Thus, it wasn't until after 1884, when pressure from Hawai'i sugar plantation owners resulted in an increase in exit visas, that Japanese began immigrating to Hawai'i and, in smaller numbers, to California. By 1890, 2,000 Japanese resided in the United States, excluding those in Hawai'i, which was not a territory of the United States until 1900. The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 had barred all Chinese immigration, and the Japanese evoked the same prejudices and fears that had led to that legislation. Differences in religion, language, and physical appearances exacerbated the fears of substantial job losses, particularly in agriculture and related industries.