Back in 1921, the United States introduced immigration restrictions based on national quotas. There is also one key difference: Australian immigrants detained and deported in 1920s America were not admissible under US law, whereas it is perfectly legal to seek asylum. Prior to this point, white Australians had enjoyed a virtually unfettered right to roam the globe. As British subjects, who travelled on British passports, Anglo Australians could move at will around the still vast British empire. Photograph: AlamyAs objections to Australians’ detention mounted, politicians took up the matter in federal parliament.

Source: The Guardian November 20, 2017 00:57 UTC