how the immigration act of 1965 changed the face of america when the u.s. congress passedand president lyndon b. johnson signed into lawthe immigration and naturalization act of 1965, the move was largely seen as symbolic. "the bill will not flood our cities with immigrants, lead supporter sen. edward ted kennedy (d-mass.) told the senate during debate. it will not upset the ethnic mix of our society. it will not relax the standards of admission. it will not cause american workers to lose their jobs. that sentiment was echoed by johnson, who, upon signing the act on october 3, 1965, said the bill would not be revolutionary: it does not affect the lives of millions  it will not reshape the structure of our daily lives or add importantly to either our wealth or our power. but the actalso known as the hart-celler act after its sponsors, sen. philip hart (d-mich.) and rep. emanuel celler (d-n.y.)put an end to long-standing national-origin quotas that favored those from northern and western europe and led to a significant immigration demographic shift in america. since the act was passed, according to the pew research center, immigrants living in america have more than quadrupled, now accounting for nearly 14 percent of the population. ted kennedy, along with attorney general and sen. robert kennedy (d-n.y.), were both proponents of the bill, in part to honor their brother and also because it was consistent with their general interest in civil rights and international cold war politics, chin adds. i think every sensible person in 1965 knew that the sources of immigration would change, chin says. the more fundamental change, and the more fundamental policy, was the articulation by many legislators that it simply did not matter from where an immigrant came; each person would be evaluated as an individual. that kind of argument was novel, but consistent with the anti-racism of the voting rights act of 1965 and the civil rights act of 1964.
United States