Chinese Immigrants

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Chinese Immigrants

A discussion on whether Chinese immigrants were better placed in the Canadian or the American West between the 1850 and 1930.

3,326 words () | 9 sources | MLA | 2005 United Kingdom

Paper Summary:

The focus of this paper is the pivotal period between the 1850s and the 1920s when the rates of Chinese immigration to America and Canada were at their highest. It considers which country had the more belligerent West by examining the ideas, legislation and practicalities that formed the Chinese experience in California and British Columbia between 1850 and 1930. It also examines the perception of the Chinese newcomers by Canadians and Americans, the social experiences of the Chinese in settling into their new homes and the economic experiences they had in trying to make ends meet in the face of barriers that both federal and state/provincial governments had made.

From the Paper:

"Whilst historians of the American and Canadian Wests have focused their attention on the working lives of men in cities and in the mines, studies of Chinese womens' experiences have tended to be treated as a separate topic. In 1986 historian Anne Butler pointed out that women's history was lacking in an examination of the experiences of 'Oriental' women. This may be partially due to the absence of writings on Chinese women in California and British Columbia in the nineteenth century and for much of the twentieth century. Indeed, Judy Yung has commented that "life under exclusion [...has...] necessitated a pact of silence among Chinese immigrants about their past.""