“Congress is a busy place and very little happens by accident. The [Chinese-American] community acted, organized and Congress looked at it, and was willing to act. It is a sad story with a happy ending, but nobody would bother to tell the story if it didn’t matter to the community itself.” “Act of honor,” by … Read more
ALEXANDRIA, VA – (July 4, 2012) From 1879-1943, Anti-Chinese Racism Was Official US Policy In the early years after the Civil War, the United States at first encouraged Chinese laborers to immigrate—to build the transcontinental railroad and dig mines. But when white settlers began to feel overrun, western politicians forged an alliance with southern Democrats … Read more
photo credit: besar bears The truth is that early Chinese immigrants in California and the rest of the West were no different from white Europeans. They embarked on the transpacific journey with ambition that a contemporary Chinese folk song called “as deep as the ocean and as high as the sky.” They were just as … Read more