A Gentlemen's Agreement is an understanding that certain terms will be observed without the necessity for a formal treaty or law. Such agreements occur between governments or between individuals.
In 1907 an understanding was formed between the United States and Japan. The understanding was that Japan should issue no passports to her people for passage to the United States as immigrant laborers. This gentlemen's agreement was broken when the United States passed the Immigration Act of 1924, which excluded Asiatic immigrants.
Other gentlemen's agreements involve the exclusion of members of certain races or religions from residential areas or from businesses.
