1 Belonging, Laws, and Resistance Sucheng Chan Historical Documents

2 Belonging, Laws, and Resistance Argument: Studying the experiences of Asian immigrants shows not only what happened to them, but reveals foundational features of American society – the economic, political, social, ideological, and institutional contexts at specific points in history and how those contexts shaped the Asian immigrant experiences.

3 Prevailing racial ideology rested on idea of “inferior races”: Indigenous populations dispossessed of land Africans enslaved by force for hard labor Mexicans conquered and subjugated What about Asian immigrants in the U.S.? And what does it mean to say anti-Asian hostility and conflict was systematic? Hostility and Conflict

4 Types of Hostility and Conflict 1.Prejudice 2.Economic discrimination 3.Political disenfranchisement 4.Physical violence 5.Immigration exclusion 6.Social segregation 7.Incarceration

5 Incidences of Hostility and Conflict Stereotypical images – “Yellow Peril” Taxes – Foreign Miners, Laundries, Head Tax Alien Land Laws – 1913, 1920, 1923 Ineligibility for Naturalized Citizenship Physical attacks – Rock Springs; Watsonville Confinement and isolation – Chinese prostitutes, Chinatowns, Oriental schools, anti- miscegenation laws

6 Pattern of Anti-Asian Movement Spontaneous attack of subordinate group Formation of legal defense committee to support perpetrators of violence Mass meetings to protest punishment Emergence of organized political groups for exclusion of subordinate racialized group

7 Anti-Asian Exclusion Laws 1875 Page Law 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act (1892, 1902, 1904) 1888 Scott Act 1907 Gentlemen’s Agreement 1917 Immigration Act “Barred Zone” 1924 Immigration Act 1934 Tydings-McDuffie Act

8 Class Activity Group 1 Chinese miners, laundrymen, women prostitutes; Chinese, Japanese,Korean, Asian Indian, Filipino farm workers Group 2 Japanese officials, Tokyo govt Group 3 Editor in favor of Exclusion, Asiatic Exclusion League Group 4 US Senator, Chinese Merchants opposed to Chinese Exclusion Law Group 1 – 4: You have a full 5 minutes to have the platform. And then a 2 minutes responses to other groups. What would you like to say to your audience of undecided American residents? What would you like them to support your efforts in? Group 5 Audience of unsure American residents Could be Asian, could be of other ethnic/racial group

9 Resistance to Oppression Fighting back against subordination on the basis of socio-economic class position, racialized identity, or national origin: strikes litigation national liberation efforts