Given the shortage of Euro-American workers in
California during the 1850s and 1860s, the Chinese worked in a wide range of
occupations. But as more and more Euro-Americans began settling in California,
competition for employment became fierce and racist sentiments began to rise.
In 1882, the Chinese Exclusion Act was passed to curb further immigration, and
other discriminatory legislation, taxes, and boycotts were instituted
(Nee,1974). Chinese workers were barred from unions and consequently unionized
jobs, which confined them, and those who came after them, to low-status work.
By the time the first transcontinental railroad was built, the same
technological wonder which transformed the American West would not only cost
the lives of many Chinese railroad workers but leave the survivors unemployed
and without a means of returning home. In due time, the railroad would become
one of the greatest ironies in the history of the pursuit of the California
dream.
The building of the western half of the first transcontinental railroad employed more than 10,000 Chinese workers at its peak, many of whom were former miners (Chan,1991). Despite the prejudiced views regarding their physical strength, the Chinese, literally, became the backbone of the company’s construction crews, providing the bulk of the labor not only for unskilled tasks but for highly demanding and dangerous ones as well. Thousands of Chinese worked underground in snow tunnels around the clock through the winter of 1866, and a good many men lost their lives during the winter of 1867, while others met their doom placing dynamite alongside the mountains (Chan,1991). The bodies of those buried by avalanches would not even be dug out until the following spring. But despite their heroic feats, the Chinese were not invited to (nor recognized at) the jubilant ceremonies that marked the completion of America’s first transcontinental railroad, one of the most remarkable engineering feats of its time. Instead, the completion of the railroad led to the instantaneous unemployment of 10,000 Chinese workers, who were left to walk on foot back to California where, rather than a hero’s welcome, they were received by the rising flames of anti-Chinese sentiments.
In contrast to the Chinese laborers, Japanese farm workers were able, at least initially, to better their livelihood and discover opportunity in abundant California. Observing and learning from the backlash against the Chinese, the Japanese tried hard to give a more favorable impression than their fellow Chinese immigrants by assimilating to the dominant culture. They wore western clothes, cut their hair to western styles (which, for religious reasons, the Chinese men could not do), ate western food, and even joined Christian churches (Matsui,1919). When their picture brides arrived, wearing kimonos and wooden clogs, their husbands quickly whisked their brides off to dressmakers and shoemakers to outfit them with Victorian clothing and shoes (Chan,1991). Accordingly, many of the Japanese farmers were able to integrate into various white communities, scattering themselves and reaping the benefits of California soil. But despite the fervent efforts to throw away their old ways and to quickly adapt to their new culture, the Japanese farm workers soon discovered that California would have little mercy.
Most of the Japanese farm workers began their journey in California as farm laborers trying to save up enough money to lease land as tenant farmers; they hoped to become land-owners. But in 1913, at a time when more than 6,000 Japanese had become tenant farmers, California passed its first land law as a backlash against the rising number of successful Japanese immigrants (Lukes, 1985). Under the law, Japanese farm workers were no longer able to buy agricultural land or lease it for more than three years. Fortunately, because of World War I, the Alien Land Act of 1913 had little effect, as district attorneys did not try to enforce it strenuously, given the nation’s need for maximum food production. In 1917, the Japanese of California produced almost 90 percent of the state’s output of celery, asparagus, onions, tomatoes, berries, and cantaloupes; more than 70 percent of the floricultural products; 50 percent of the seeds; 45 percent of the sugar beets; 40 percent of the leafy vegetables; and 35 percent of the grapes (Chan,1991). Despite their significant contributions during this period in American history, their experience was similar to that of the Chinese railroad workers. Once the war was over, California’s voters would pass an initiative on the 1920 ballot that kept Japanese immigrants from leasing farm land altogether (Cole,1973). Despite their efforts to assimilate and abide by the discriminatory legal and social system, and despite their hard work and dedication, in the end the Japanese farm workers met with the same disillusionment as had the Chinese: the California dream had become a nightmare of social and political discrimination and economic abuse
The building of the western half of the first transcontinental railroad employed more than 10,000 Chinese workers at its peak, many of whom were former miners (Chan,1991). Despite the prejudiced views regarding their physical strength, the Chinese, literally, became the backbone of the company’s construction crews, providing the bulk of the labor not only for unskilled tasks but for highly demanding and dangerous ones as well. Thousands of Chinese worked underground in snow tunnels around the clock through the winter of 1866, and a good many men lost their lives during the winter of 1867, while others met their doom placing dynamite alongside the mountains (Chan,1991). The bodies of those buried by avalanches would not even be dug out until the following spring. But despite their heroic feats, the Chinese were not invited to (nor recognized at) the jubilant ceremonies that marked the completion of America’s first transcontinental railroad, one of the most remarkable engineering feats of its time. Instead, the completion of the railroad led to the instantaneous unemployment of 10,000 Chinese workers, who were left to walk on foot back to California where, rather than a hero’s welcome, they were received by the rising flames of anti-Chinese sentiments.
In contrast to the Chinese laborers, Japanese farm workers were able, at least initially, to better their livelihood and discover opportunity in abundant California. Observing and learning from the backlash against the Chinese, the Japanese tried hard to give a more favorable impression than their fellow Chinese immigrants by assimilating to the dominant culture. They wore western clothes, cut their hair to western styles (which, for religious reasons, the Chinese men could not do), ate western food, and even joined Christian churches (Matsui,1919). When their picture brides arrived, wearing kimonos and wooden clogs, their husbands quickly whisked their brides off to dressmakers and shoemakers to outfit them with Victorian clothing and shoes (Chan,1991). Accordingly, many of the Japanese farmers were able to integrate into various white communities, scattering themselves and reaping the benefits of California soil. But despite the fervent efforts to throw away their old ways and to quickly adapt to their new culture, the Japanese farm workers soon discovered that California would have little mercy.
Most of the Japanese farm workers began their journey in California as farm laborers trying to save up enough money to lease land as tenant farmers; they hoped to become land-owners. But in 1913, at a time when more than 6,000 Japanese had become tenant farmers, California passed its first land law as a backlash against the rising number of successful Japanese immigrants (Lukes, 1985). Under the law, Japanese farm workers were no longer able to buy agricultural land or lease it for more than three years. Fortunately, because of World War I, the Alien Land Act of 1913 had little effect, as district attorneys did not try to enforce it strenuously, given the nation’s need for maximum food production. In 1917, the Japanese of California produced almost 90 percent of the state’s output of celery, asparagus, onions, tomatoes, berries, and cantaloupes; more than 70 percent of the floricultural products; 50 percent of the seeds; 45 percent of the sugar beets; 40 percent of the leafy vegetables; and 35 percent of the grapes (Chan,1991). Despite their significant contributions during this period in American history, their experience was similar to that of the Chinese railroad workers. Once the war was over, California’s voters would pass an initiative on the 1920 ballot that kept Japanese immigrants from leasing farm land altogether (Cole,1973). Despite their efforts to assimilate and abide by the discriminatory legal and social system, and despite their hard work and dedication, in the end the Japanese farm workers met with the same disillusionment as had the Chinese: the California dream had become a nightmare of social and political discrimination and economic abuse