Chinese Immigrations to the United States of America - Research Paper Example

Racism against American-Chinese Chinese Immigrations to the United s of America During the 1850s Chinese workers moved to the United States initially to work in the gold mines, but later also started taking over agricultural and factory jobs. Railroads were being efficiently by the Chinese workers and as they started becoming more and more successful a few Chinese people started their own businesses. The Americans started to start uniting against the Chinese workers as they were becoming more successful, this lead to the imposing of an Act against the Chinese, where it would minimize the number of migrants from China to the United States. This further threatened the diplomatic relation between the two countries. This not only created economic and cultural disputes but also lead to ethnic discrimination towards the Chinese. The reason most Chinese workers were working in the United States was to send money back home so they could support their families and to pay back their debts. They were forced to work for whatever wages they were being offered. As more and more Chinese started settling down, rumours were spread about Chinese men going to prostitutes and gambling. In the year 1880 James B. Angell a United States diplomat was assigned by the Hayes Administration who was suppose to come up with a new treaty with China.1 This gave rise to social discrimination against the Chinese. A stereotype image was created of Chinese through using the media. Many bills were passed from 1875 to 1943 which were socially discriminatory against the Chinese. The Page Act (1875) On the 3rd of March 1875 the Page Act was imposed by the Senate and the House Representations of the United States, this act was approved in the congress. The Page Act of 1875 stated that any immigrants from Japan, China and any other Asian country could immigrate liberally and voluntarily. The Page Act of 1875 had five sections. The second section of this act stated that any U.S citizen who would try to bring in any Japanese, Chinese or Asian into the United States without the government’s approval would be punished and has to pay a fine and time in prison. Under the third section of this act it was said that bringing women in the United States with the intention of prostitution was highly prohibited, if anyone was caught doing so he will be again punished with a heavy fine and time in prison, also any contract that was made before would now be invalid. The fourth section stated that if any agreement was made to supply these immigrants as “coolies” would be punished. The fifth section stated that any foreign person who was accused and proved of committing a crime would not be allowed to enter the United States. If the United States government suspected any illegal activities or immigrants all ships would be examined. (McKeown 1999: 73:110)2 The problems faced by this act was regarding that the Americans believed all Chinese women coming to their country are prostitutes, however this wasn’t true. Most of the women were wives of the Chinese workers. This act not only reduced Chinese prostitutes it lead to almost all Chinese women being executed from the United States. The Chinese were thus unable to form families in the United States. The Chinese Exclusion Act (1882) In 1882 the Chinese Exclusion Act was signed by the President Chester A. Arthur and passed by the Congress, under this act there was 10 year ban on all Chinese labour that was immigrating into the United States. For the first time it was seen that the federal law had forbidden the entry of an ethnic group into the country on the basis that it is affecting the local citizens. During the Chinese Exclusion Act very few Chinese were permitted to enter the United States, due to the fact that under this act both skilled and unskilled labour was banned which made it difficult to differentiate between the non-labourers. The Chinese who were already in the United States when they left the country had to get hold of a certificate to enter again. After this act was expired in 1892 it was extended for another 10 years by the Congress. 3 The Geary Act (1892) Thomas J. Geary who was a Democratic Congressmen belonging to California in 1892 initiated a bill that expanded the laws against the Chinese immigrants for another 10 years. Under this bill, for the Chinese immigrants living in the United States an internal passport system was found. Due to this bill they were required to apply for a certificate that proved their residency and were asked to carry it around. if any immigrant was found without the certificate they would be deported or imprisoned for an entire year. The Geary Act of 1892 was maintained by the Supreme Court of the United States of America.(Gotonda, 1999)4 After the implementation of the Chinese Execution Act, the Chinese who were already settled in the United States had to face many hardships. They had to get a certificate issued every time they wanted to leave the country due to which they were not able to go home to their families very often. A few number of Chinese were allowed to enter the country which also increased discrimination as it was believed the Chinese are interrupting the social order in the U.S. It made the Chinese feel like aliens as they would never be given the right to American citizenship. The Geary Act‚Äôs indefinite renewal (1902) The Geary Act of 1892 was refurbished for an indefinite time period by the government. Immigrants from China suffered the Chinese Exclusion Act from 1882 till it was revoked in 1943. Annulment of the Chinese Execution Act Congress passed a bill to annul the Chinese Execution Act of 1882 which was discriminatory against the Chinese in the year 1943. This annulment was carried out because it was needed during the World War II, since the Japanese were continuously making references regarding the execution of the Chinese; they were hoping this would weaken the relationship between the United States and China. However this annulment lead to even more controversies as it proposed a new quota system for the Chinese to entry the United States. By using the methods adopted in the Immigration Act of 1924 the total annual quota was decided to be around 105. 5 Reaction to these Laws The Exclusion Act of 1882 had a spectacular effect on the Chinese immigrants and communities. This act decreased the number of Chinese living in the United States, and prohibited those from coming back who had left the country. U.S. national census states that in 1880 there were 105,465 Chinese in the United States, 89,863 in 1900 and 61,639 by in 1920. The Chinese who were excluded from the United States were not very accepting towards the unfair treatment, they tried to use all types of tactics to face up to these laws and or evade them. One of the means they used was the United States judicial system, the Chinese immigrants quickly learned how to use court as a place to fight for their rights. They also used the media and petitions to act against racial discrimination. A few Chinese were immigrating illegally. They also adopted another strategy called the “paper-son”. Under this strategy the Chinese males tried to enter the country with identity papers that were bought for imaginary sons of U.S citizens.6 (Wu) Does Racial Discrimination Still Exist Against the Chinese? When one looks at them, the Chinese seem to look very satisfied and doing very well. With Chinese students excelling all the classes as compared to the other ethnic groups, they are however targets of racial discrimination and social exclusion. Chinese who are passing by are called Jackie Chan and Kung-fu. One Chinese was having drinks at a pub in London, he was blamed of being a DVD supplier who was disturbing the other people there. Elizabeth Chan auditioned in a play and was not given the role on the basis that the role was only for white girls. In the media whenever a Chinese character is shown, a stereotype image is always portrayed. He or she is always shown as a DVD seller, ninja, spy or an illegal immigrant. The British Chinese are reluctant regarding speaking up for themselves, and they are do not have a huge number like other South Asian people, whose determined and rousing voices against racism have been making an impact for decades. (Chan)7 Conclusion: How Chinese Youth Understand their history? Chinese government believes that the youth needs to prove their worth in this world by their patriotic actions. Through education, Chinese government brainwashes the youth. With students learning about their history thoroughly in schools and colleges they are growing a sense of patriotism throughout their life. The history of Chinese racism has been long and deeply linked in the culture of America. With different laws in place, Chinese people have developed a distinct culture in the American communities. They are brought up in their communities, knowing their history and live by to stand their rights that are now the part of the laws in the United States. Read More