Millions of immigrants entered the US in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, lured by the promise of a better life. Some immigrants came to escape difficult conditions like famine,
religious or political persecution, and land shortages. Others came with the intention of immigrating temporarily to become rich and then return to where they came from, these people were known as the “birds of passage”. Between 1870 and 1920 approximately 20 million Europeans arrived on the shores of the East Coast of the United States. Many left Europe to escape religious persecution, others left because of the rising population which meant scarce amounts of land for farming. In the US, jobs were supposedly plentiful and many young European men and women sought independent lives in America. Chinese immigrants came to the West Coast in smaller numbers. Between 1851 and 1883, around 300,000 Chinese arrived. Many came after hearing about the gold rush, but when they reached the US, instead of getting rich quick, they helped build the nation’s railroads, and when the railroads were completed, they turned to farming. Even though there were many more Europeans immigrating to the United States compared to Chinese immigrants, there were many things done to stop immigration from China and nothing to stop it from Europe. The native-born Americans thought of their country as a melting pot. A melting pot is a mixture of people of different cultures and races who blend together by abandoning their native languages and customs. Americans were afraid the immigrants were going to come in and change their culture and take all their jobs, when really it was the immigrants who were becoming Americans, not the native-born Americans who were changing. Plus when the Chinese came they took the jobs nobody else wanted to do. Over 1,500 Chinese died while working on the transcontinental railroad alone. As immigration increased, so did anti-immigration feelings. Once the immigrants reached the US, it was clear they were not welcomed and faced a lot of discrimination, especially the Chinese and Japanese. Not only was it a terrible journey to the US, but once they got here the new immigrants had to pass through immigration stations before they were allowed into the US. This phase of the process, much like the others was a lot harder for the Chinese immigrants than it was for the European immigrants. European immigrants arrived on Ellis Island in New York. Processing took a couple hours and the sick were sometimes sent home. They had to prove they weren’t criminals and show that they had at least $25. They were asked 29 generic questions and could then start their journey in the US. Almost all of the immigrants that came to Ellis Island were passed through to the U.S. and hardly any were sent home. This was not the case with the Chinese Immigrants who arrived at Angel Island in San Francisco Bay. Due to the Chinese Exclusion Act, all Chinese were prohibited to enter the U.S. unless they were students, teachers, merchants, tourists, government officials, or family members of someone already in the United States. Because of this, many Chinese came in as paper wives, daughters, sons, and so on. The questions at Angel Island were much harder than those asked at Ellis Island. There was 132 questions compared to 29 and they were much more specific to the person being asked the questions. Many Chinese did not pass through to the United States and had very long detentions in filthy conditions for much longer periods of time than at Ellis Island (weeks, months, or even years). We think the way the Chinese immigrants were treated is terrible. It was not fair at all. There were many more European immigrants coming to the US-20 million compared to 300,000 Chinese-and they’re worried about the Chinese taking all their jobs? They were worried about people changing America and erasing our culture and the beliefs we had, when really it was the immigrants changing themselves to become Americans! All the Chinese wanted was fair treatment. Since the first restriction law was passed, the US received more than two million Austro-Hungarians, two million Italians, and a million and a half Russians and Finns. Each of these totals 5-7 times the whole amount of Chinese immigration during the thirty years of free immigration. All of the Chinese immigrants were detained, photographed, and examined as if they were criminals when they reached their immigration station. Plus when they did reach the U.S. they did the jobs no one wanted to do for low wages and some were even killed on the job. The Chinese fought very hard for their place in the US, but once they got here the fear and resentment of Chinese immigrants sometimes resulted in mob attacks. There were vicious cartoon portraying immigrants in blatant and racist ways; we didn’t even give them a chance. We treated the Chinese poorly for only one reason, because they were Chinese. It was a hard life as a Chinese immigrant in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Many came looking for opportunities, but when they got here; IF they ever got here, they realized America wasn’t the mountain of gold they were expecting, and it was going to be a difficult time surviving in America as a Chinese man or woman. Sources: Danzer, Gerald A. "The New Immigrants." The Americans. Evanston, IL: McDougal Littell, 2007. 460-65. Print. http://history.state.gov/milestones/1866-1898/chinese-immigration http://www.forbes.com/forbes/2010/0719/opinions-china-immigration-illegal-aliens-heads-up.html
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