Final answer:
The Gentlemen's Agreement of 1907 informally ensured that the U.S. did not ban Japanese immigration in exchange for Japan not granting visas to emigrants, helping to ease growing tensions and maintain diplomatic relations between the two nations.
Step-by-step explanation:
The Gentlemen's Agreement of 1907 was an informal pact between the United States and Japan with significant implications for both countries' immigration policies and racial relations. While nativist sentiments in the U.S. were calling for the extension of exclusionary immigration laws to Japanese and Korean migrants, similar to those already applied to Chinese immigrants, the two countries reached a secret compromise. The United States agreed not to pass legislation that explicitly banned Japanese immigration. In return, Japan would not grant visas to its citizens seeking to emigrate to the U.S. Secondly, the federal government managed to persuade the San Francisco School Board to desegregate schools, limiting segregation to only Chinese children.
This agreement was crucial for maintaining diplomatic relations and easing growing tensions between the two countries after Japan's emergence as a significant power post the Russo-Japanese War. By steering clear of an official ban and keeping the agreement unofficial, Japan was able to save face on an international stage, proclaiming that its citizens were welcome to migrate to the West, and thus maintaining national dignity.
Therefore, the correct answer to the question of the importance of the Gentlemen's Agreement is that it eased growing tensions between the United States and Japan.