Charles Crocker, an American railroad executive, hired Chinese people willing to labor for money, because he was desperate for workers. The Chinese…
One challenge that the immigrants face in this story is that they are thought of as inferior by Americans, or "demons" as they have begun to refer to them. Demons are not accepting of differences; therefore the Chinese are looked down upon, and don't get equal rights and privileges. For example, Moon Shadow's grandmother tells him that his father traveled to America to work as a laundryman before he was born. She tells Moon Shadow that gold, in the Land of the Golden Mountain, is everywhere and men can scoop it up by the bucket-full. When he asks why his father does not get enough gold to return home, his grandmother replies, "Demons roam the mountain up and down and they beat up any of our men who try to get the gold" (6). She mentions that they are allowed to take only a small pinch of it, and only if they do all of the hard, grueling labor that they are told to do. This quote proves that Chinese (Tang) people are belittled. They are forced to work like slaves. Good-paying jobs are very difficult for them to find. They must also be careful when choosing them. Moon Shadow states, "There was plenty of money to be made among the demons, but it was also dangerous" (1). This states that though there are many job opportunities in America, the lives of Chinese people are sometimes put at risk. This would almost certainly not have…
Also they created many job opportunities by creating vineyards for agriculture, trenches, establishment of manufactures, in which it provided more employment for those whites of higher class. The Chinese were welcomed at moment in time, until America went into an economic depression in 1873, and the jobs became decreasing, so in result the anti-Chinese organization did not want them at all. It all resulted in the establishment of the Chinese Exclusion Acts and the extensions of them, so they could get deported back to China, and the only way the Chinese could prevent that from happening was to obtain a certificate of proof to be allowed in America. However, only the Chinese whom were from the higher class: such as teachers, students, travelers, etc. had the opportunity to do so, but still it was a difficult task to obtain through the Chinese Government. It appeared to be that the ultimate decision in regard of the acts was not economical as the Congress would state, but it was more of racist factorial; although, the economic factors sure did play part, because from the exclusion of the Chinese decreased in the capital that masters and employers would receive when the Chinese provided cheap labor. “But even if the Chinese are prohibited from becoming a part of our body of citizens, it would be both impossible and unkind, at this time when China is looking to the United States for help and guidance in the formation of the new republic, to prevent the Chinese from coming to our country to travel and study and learn from us.” (WELLBORN,…
This was all made possible by the Burlingame treaty of 1868 which allowed full diplomatic relations and free immigration from China to US. Due to the civil war, many American employers looked for cheap labor and there was a motive to reach out to the Chinese as replacements towards blacks on plantations. But as the Chinese population grew, more and more the way Americans viewed them also grew, only it grew negatively. White laborers found the growth as a threat to them, since they were “taking their jobs”. Sound familiar to a particular ethnic group from today? Many Americans then started to form the anti Chinese sentiment. Most of the sentiment was in the pacific coast of the United States. The strongest sentiment was in California because of the gold rush. One man who was against the immigration was named Denise Kearney, who was born in Ireland. Once he reached the United States he realized how many chinese workers there were here. Because of this, he made speeches, and in every speech he began with ¨The chinese must go!¨ Which is hypocritical since he himself is an immigrant from ireland. People then elected him as the secretary of the anti-chinese sentiment of california, later known as the working men of california. The working men of California then caused destruction and death to the chinese. Whites then began to believe that Chinese labor was also a threat to…
Their perseverance through harsh weather, cruel working conditions, and poor pay could not be under appreciated. The sacrifices made by the Chinese have truly shaped our nation as we know it today and their importance to our advancement is unprecedented.…
The Chinese came to the United States for opportunities, thus they could bring affluence when they return back to their homes. Referring back to the 19th century of China, Qing dynasty, those who had private business or worked for the…
It was clear the Chinese did not fit into either black or white communities. The Delta Mississippi had always been a predominately biracial society. Most people think the Mississippi is black and white and are usually thrown off by a Chinese face with a Southern accent. It would have been easier for whites and blacks to classify the Chinese if they had also been laborers in the cotton field, but as mentioned earlier, the Chinese were quick to take advantage of an opportunity that would redefine their social standing in the Delta society and establish “their presence as businessmen in small grocery stores” (Jung, 17). The location of the grocery store and its customers dictated how people viewed the Chinese owner.…
The Chinese had begun immigrating to the United States after the conclusion of the Civil War, sometime during the post-Civil War period of Reconstruction. American expansion into the western region of the assisted…
Third we look at the Chines immigrant and their struggles after their move to the United Sates. Nearly 25,000 chines landed between 1849 to 1852 almost all of them young men who had signed labor contracts to work in the mines and railroads. They were treated extremely bad. Anti-Chines sentiment quickly developed. The white men could not deiced whom they disliked more the Chines immigrants or the slaves. In 1852 the governor, John Bigler proposed that legislatures restrict Chines immigration. Norman Aising, a naturalized American citizen and the leader of the Chines community of San Francisco, wrote an…
An influx of immigrants came to America in the early 1900s. An immigrant named Lee Chew traveled from China to America a few years prior to the 20th century. He worked as a servant for a few years before opening a partner business. According to "New Immigrant Experiences, Selection 3," "When I first opened a laundry, it was in company with a partner..." This depicts how Chew had adjusted to life in America without losing his ethnic identity. In China, there were no laundries; women had washed clothes in tubs. He was taught by American women how to launder, similar to all Chinese laundrymen in America. Chew had also learned English to communicate with Americans, but he was still able to speak Chinese. This demonstrates how America is a salad…
Many Chinese workers made their way to the United States around 1848 during the California Gold Rush. By 1880, there was approximately seventy-five thousand newcomers in the Golden State which was nine percent of the state’s total population. These numbers increased because of mining and the hiring of large labor forces to conduct work on the Transcontinental Railroad across the West. Employers viewed the Chinese as “cheap labor”, and for this reason, Americans welcomed them (Kennedy and Cohen 500). These Chinese workers, composed of mostly men, came from a background of poverty and turmoil in their homeland.…
In a resolution letter to congress from the AFL the unstated motive to denying Chinese immigrants from entering our country was not that they would increase crime or corrupt the political system but rather that they would consume much desired jobs (Document 1). The paranoia in the country people was evident in actions that they took to ensure the halt of immigration so that security could return to their lives. The fact that these new immigrants posed a threat to the U.S. economy through the consumption of jobs was more then enough reason for some nativist groups to oppose open…
While economic competition was a significant factor in passing the Chinese Exclusion Act in 1882, nativism became another influential factor. Americans started to feel threatened by the massive presence of Chinese immigrants in the United States. In Document C, the speech given to the working men of San Francisco was created to encourage Americans that they need to reclaim “their rightful” jobs, and it was proclaimed, “We should all understand that this state of things cannot be much longer endured.” It is evident that Americans are annoyed with Chinese immigrants claiming jobs, and they feel it is their obligation to accomplish their objective of regaining jobs to reclaim their national pride. Another example of nativism is established in Lee Chew’s autobiography.…
said that employers would hire no one else, but the Chinese if they were available due…
The fast life of the 1920’s had caught up to time; the Stock Market Crash of October 1929 occurred bringing down the entire economy with it. The Great Depression began the 1930’s bringing a new state of economic turmoil and tribulations for its people. Unemployment, lost savings, housing evictions, and starvation flooded the nation; however for Asian Americans this was the “cherry on top” their misery. Asian Americans were already facing prejudice and discrimination, with the Great Depression bringing mass unemployment rates they could not compete with the white Americans who were also out of work as well; the scarcity of jobs led to an even higher racial divide. America unforgivingly put Asian immigrants at the bottom of the racially stratified labor system.…