Final answer:
Nativism is a policy that favors native inhabitants over immigrants. This movement had an impact on U.S. immigration policies, especially in the 1920s, with nativist groups pushing for restrictive immigration laws. President Grover Cleveland vetoed a literacy test law, countering the nativist trend and maintaining a more inclusive stance.
Step-by-step explanation:
Nativism is a policy of favoring native inhabitants over immigrants. The nativist movement in the United States, particularly in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, was characterized by a preference for Americans with older family trees, particularly those of white, Anglo-Saxon, and Protestant background, over more recent immigrants from Central and Southern Europe, as well as other regions. These nativists sought to preserve their vision of America's identity and opposed immigration that they believed would dilute or undermine their cultural and societal norms.
During the 1920s, nativism had a significant influence on America's immigration policies. Nativist groups such as the American Protective Association and the Immigration Restriction League pushed for legislation that would limit the inflow of immigrants, especially those they did not consider part of the traditional white Anglo-Saxon Protestant majority. They successfully stirred up sentiment against immigrants, associating them with fears of foreign threats and using incidents such as political assassinations to fuel their argument.
Contrastingly, President Grover Cleveland vetoed a law that would require immigrants to pass a literacy test, opposing the nativist movement's goals. Cleveland framed his decision in the language of egalitarianism, seeing America as a land of opportunity for all who were willing to work, despite pressure from business interests that benefited from cheap immigrant labor.