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PREFACE T his book is a narrative history and analysis of fundamental law of U.S. immigration policy: the forces that shaped it both its short- term and long-term impact on the flow of immigration to the United States since it was enacted in 1965 how and why major changes were made to it which organizations and actors have played and play important roles in determining immigration policy its transformative impact on American culture, economics, politics, and society and where immigration is likely headed in the future. It is also about the dynamic eth- nicity of America. Immigration is an extraordinarily complex process. Crafting immigration policy is likewise complex, often contentious, and for many observers of American politics and policymaking, at times obtuse and frustrating. The impact of immigration is enormous and filled with dramatic human interest. America has absorbed a diverse array of ethno-religious groups that have profoundly shaped and re-shaped the country. A host of interest groups developed within the American political scene to advocate for or against immigration reform measures. Organized labor, as exemplified by the American Federation of Labor–Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), long advocated to restrict immigration, but then essentially flipped their position on the matter after enactment of the 1965 act. Church groups, such as the Catholic Legal Immigration Network and the Church World Service, have for some decades strongly supported compre- hensive immigration reform measures. Ethnic groups, like the League of Latin American Citizens, used the federal courts to adjudicate on the issue of immigration and on the impact of immigration policy on their members.