Day 17. The Exploitation and Treatment of Chinese Miners.

“Thousands of Chinese immigrants laid tracks for the railroads and when that work ended, they needed other jobs. Many joined Americans and white Europeans who came west to find gold, silver and other riches, said William Wei, a professor at the University of Colorado Boulder and former Colorado state historian.”

“The 1870 census shows that Chinese people were living in Nevada and the territories of Wyoming, Montana and Idaho. The greatest number lived in Idaho Territory, where they made up almost 30% of the population. But 15 years later, the Idaho Statesman newspaper published an article titled “How to Get Rid of the Chinese.”

“In 1882, Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act. It suspended Chinese immigration and prevented those already in the U.S. from becoming citizens. This was the first legislation in American history to broadly restrict immigration. It was not repealed until 1943.”

The racism against Chinese workers was insidious and rampant. Besides all of the myriad of extreme consequences, the racism manifested itself in restrictive policy, allowed employers to pay them extremely low wages, and the social implications normalized the immoral treatment of the Chinese.

Learn More about Chinese Miners at (https://www.kunm.org/public-affairs/2021-10-10/chinese-miners-faced-racism-violence-as-mountain-west-sundown-towns-excluded-them).

#UU, CelebrateDiversity, #AAPIHeritageMonth, #AsianAmerican, #PacificIslander, #InclusionMatters, #ChineseImmigrants, #ChineseMiners