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Early Chinese Immigration
Term Paper ID:27505
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Discusses the patterns & nature of Chinese immigration in 19th century America. Compares & contrasts this history with contemporary immigration issues.... More...
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Paper Abstract:
Discusses the patterns & nature of Chinese immigration in 19th century America. Compares & contrasts this history with contemporary immigration issues.
Paper Introduction:
The Gold Rush in California after 1849 attracted people from all over America and from China. Many Chinese workers came before the Civil War to provide cheap labor for the building of the railroads. The system of immigration was made permanent with the National Origins Act of 1924, now based on the ethnic composition of the United States as reflected in the 1920 census, with entry limited to a small percentage of the number of people living in the U.S. (Takaki 7). The object of the law was also to favor certain kinds of immigrants and to keep out others. More immigrants were permitted from western Europe and fewer from southern and eastern Europe, and Asians were totally excluded, primarily to prohibit Chinese, Japanese, and Filipinos from acquiring U.S. citizenship. These restrictions would be relaxed after World War II.
Text of the Paper:
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citizenship. had much to do with theeconomic realities of American life at the time, with the Chinese servingas convenient scapegoats for local economic problems, as Ronald Takakinotes: The Chinese Exclusion Act was in actuality symptomatic of a larger conflict between white labor and white capital: removal of the Chinese was designed not only to defuse an issue agitating white workers but also to alleviate class tensions within white society (Takaki 111).This was an era of economic crisis and social strife, and Takaki says thatbehind the Chinese Exclusion Act were forces that had little to do with theChinese themselves. The Chinese were largely a ruralpopulation until 19 , when it was more an urban population concentrated incertain areas. The argument used today applies as well to the end of thenineteenth century--the immigrant population is not taking jobs thatAmericans want anyway for the most part. Strangers from a Different Shore. Some 77percent were in California, where they constituted 9 percent of thepopulation (Takaki 79-8 ). The fact that so many Americans were attracted to California bythe Gold Rush also meant that many more unemployed people once the economytook a downturn. New York: Penguin, 1989. The Chines by then represented a wide variety of classes,showing the success of the Chinese in making a place for themselves in theeconomy (Takaki 79-8 ). Therehad been labor unrest in various industries which had made Congress believesomething needed to be done to assuage the working class and reducetensions (Takaki 11 -111). Support for the anti-Chinese legislation was strong and national.Takaki argues that the debate over the bill showed fears that were deeperthan race, pointing to class conflicts in white society that the Chinesewere supposedly making worse by their presence in the labor force. 2 percent of the U.S.population, but this population was concentrated in certain areas. White society was then beset by class tensions andeconomic crisis. Theserestrictions would be relaxed after World War II. In truth, the size of the Chinese population was notsignificant. This concentration made the problem seem moreacute in the Western states. Thus the development of racism directed at the Chinese was more theresult of economic competition, or at least the perception of economiccompetition. A similar dynamic is seen today in anti-immigration policies based ona concern that the economy is not strong enough to support an influx offoreign workers. More immigrantswere permitted from western Europe and fewer from southern and easternEurope, and Asians were totally excluded, primarily to prohibit Chinese,Japanese, and Filipinos from acquiring U.S. Many Chinese workers came before the Civil War toprovide cheap labor for the building of the railroads. The Chinese constituted only . The Chinese were convenient scapegoats because they wereso visible in the population. Unemployment was a new national problem, and the presenceof Chinese workers was only a reminder that some Americans were not findingjobs. Such success was all the more galling to Americanswho had not achieved that success, and this contributed to harshertreatment for the Chinese population overall. The object of the law was also tofavor certain kinds of immigrants and to keep out others. The way the Chinese were treated in the U.S. The system ofimmigration was made permanent with the National Origins Act of 1924, nowbased on the ethnic composition of the United States as reflected in the192 census, with entry limited to a small percentage of the number ofpeople living in the U.S. The Chinese were needed and were also nottroublesome during the period of the Gold Rush, but after the Gold Rushera, the economy shifted and their presence began to be perceived as aproblem. Work CitedTakaki, Ronald. The Gold Rush in California after 1849 attracted people from all overAmerica and from China. (Takaki 7).
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