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Primary sourceDocument24 March 1934

Tydings–McDuffie Act

24 March 1934

A 1934 law signed by FDR that set a ten-year timeline for Philippine independence from the United States.

FDR signed this act into law, shaping US colonial policy toward the Philippines during his presidency.

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What it is

This is the Tydings–McDuffie Act, also called the Philippine Independence Act, passed by Congress and signed into law by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on March 24, 1934. It was written by Senator Millard Tydings and Representative John McDuffie.

Why it matters

The act established a process for the Philippines, then a US territory, to become independent after a ten-year transition period, leading to the Commonwealth of the Philippines and its first elected president, with figures like Manuel Quezon pushing for its passage. It also restricted Filipino immigration to the United States, revealing how independence and immigration policy were tangled together at the time.

Look closer

  • Why might a law granting independence also limit immigration from the country being freed?
  • What does the ten-year transition period suggest about how the US viewed its colonial responsibilities?
  • Whose voices from the Philippines are missing from this American-made law?

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