The Magna Carta, signed in 1215 in England by a group of barons seeking to rein in the tyranny of King John, is the foundation and inspiration for many basic rights that Americans hold dear today, including due process, trial by jury, habeas corpus, and freedom from arbitrary governmental authority. The document was once looked upon as defining the inherent rights of English citizens and was later used by English colonial subjects to break free from colonial rule. The Magna Carta, over the course of history, has been the cornerstone of many important documents, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the U.S. Bill of Rights, and is justly revered as an international symbol of the rule of law and individual liberties.
Although our country’s fundamental principles trace their roots to the Magna Carta, the rule of law has not always ensured equal treatment for everyone under the law. In 1882 Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act and restricted immigration into the United States of an entire ethnic group for the first time in American history. The Chinese Exclusion Act and ensuing legislation remained the law of the land until Congress finally repealed it in 1943, preventing generations of people from Asia from legally immigrating to the United States. Only three years ago, in 2012, the House of Representatives unanimously passed a bipartisan resolution introduced by Congresswoman Judy Chu of California to formally express the regret of the House of Representatives for the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 and other legislation that discriminated against people of Asian origin in the United States.
