Chinese Immigration to WW1 by Sarah Oates & Josh Myers
Origins 1820 - First substantial Chinese immigration begins First immigrants directly involved in California Gold Rush (1849), construction of the railroads Single or married males predominantly, supported family back home
Reasons for Immigration Economic opportunity Taiping Rebellion Imperialism
Growth 1868 Burlingame Treaty establishing formal diplomatic recognition Growth of “Chinatowns” across the West Coast By 1880, one in ten California residents were of Chinese origin. Expansion into urban labor.
Yellow Peril & Violent Opposition Chinese massacre of 1871 NW Labor riots Seattle riot of 1886, Tacoma riot of 1885, Rock Springs riot of 1885
Chinese Exclusion Act (1882) Climate of fear and violence leads passage First and only law in US history to exclude citizenship and immigration on the basis of race
The Geary Act of 1892 Extends the Chinese Exclusion Act for another 10 years Requires Chinese residents to carry permits “All laws now in force prohibiting and regulating the coming into this country of Chinese persons and persons of Chinese descent are hereby continued in force for a period of ten years from the passage of this act”
Lawsuits Chinese filed over 10,000 lawsuits Supreme Court heard cases challenging laws as in violation of the 14th Amendment Lawsuit against Marine Hospital Services
Angel Island Angel Island Detention Center opens 1910-1940: Detained/Interrogated at Angel Island immigration station in San Francisco Bay Left in isolation for months
Act to Repeal the Chinese Exclusion Act “Magnuson Act” Lifted restrictions on naturalization Smooth relations between the U.S. and its WWII Asian ally, China, and in response to Japanese propaganda focusing on anti- Chinese discrimination in the U.S.
Lee Chew “The Biography of a Chinaman” Published February 1903 - “All Congressmen acknowledge the injustice of the treatment of my people, yet they continue it. They have no backbone.” - “How can I call this my home, and how can anyone blame me if I take my money and go back to my village in China?”
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