On October 3, 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed a law that sought to overturn four decades of discrimination. The National Origins Quota System, which had been in effect since 1924, determined which immigrants should be allowed to come to the United States based solely on their national origin. The 1965 Immigration Act changed all this by making individual work skills and relationships with current U.S. citizens the criteria for immigration. President Johnson captured the essence of this exciting change by declaring that "those who can contribute most to this country--to its growth, to its strength, to its spirit--will be the first that are admitted to this land.\