Historical Record of Chinese Americans | A Look Back at the Hateful “Yellow Peril” Rhetoric

Author: Steven Chen

Translator: Pingbo Zhou

America was the first nation in history to be founded upon the principles of freedom and equality. Yet equal rights were originally solely reserved for white men who owned property. After tireless efforts from enlightened individuals throughout American history, these “equal rights” were gradually extended first to lower class white men, to women, and finally to people of color. Yet more than a century after the nation was born, and after abolishing slavery, America introduced a policy that blatantly targeted and discriminated against the Chinese – the Chinese Exclusion Act. Furthermore, this is the only law in American history that prohibited the immigration of a particular racial group. Why were the Chinese the target of such a law?

Image 1: 1899 cartoon, “The Yellow Terror in All His Glory”. (Source: Library of Congress)

Throughout human history, there have been many examples of people slandering or denouncing other groups for their own political or economic gain, using outrageous exaggerations of so-called “facts” in order to incite the masses into hating a particular race or culture. The Nazis did so with the Jews by blaming them for the plight and poverty faced by the Germanic people at the time, which set the stage for the Holocaust. The phrase “Yellow Peril” was used by Westerners to vilify those from the East and used to incite “existential fear of the vast, faceless, nameless horde of yellow people”. The fear that whites held towards “yellow people” was the fundamental reason behind the Chinese Exclusion Act, a six-decade long shame on American history.

The Origins of “Yellow Peril” Rhetoric

Of the countless wars have been waged throughout the thousands of years of human history, most have arisen as a result of territorial conflict between groups living within the same geographic area. For example, various groups and countries within Asia have been in conflict for thousands of years, and various groups of European groups have battled with each other on their continent. However, there are not many cases of large-scale wars that have taken place between Europe and Asia.

There are many theories regarding the origin of “Yellow Peril” rhetoric. The word peril is generally thought to signify “enormous threat or danger”. Given this, the specific meaning of the term “Yellow Peril” can likely be interpreted as an event or sequence of events that would have extreme impacts and cause severe damage to Western society. One theory states that the idea of the “Yellow Peril” originated during the fall of the Roman Empire, when Attila the Hun and his armies ravaged Europe. Attila was known as the “Scourge of God” and represented an invading force from the East that threatened Western civilization. A thousand years later, the great Mongolian armies also marched west and conquered much of Europe, horrifying the Christian world. Because the Mongolians employed such unique tactics in battle, Westerners had no idea how their own armies of tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands could be absolutely obliterated and destroyed. Where did these mysterious invaders from the East get such power? This heightened the fear and terror that Europeans felt for those from Asia, and increased the prejudice that they held towards Asians.

How was the “Yellow Peril” Used Against the Chinese?

China is one of the origins of human civilization and ranks foremost among the ancient civilizations. By 200 BCE, the Han dynasty had already established the Silk Road between itself and the Roman Empire and begun exchanging goods and culture with many other countries throughout the world. The Chinese did not fit the “savage, stupid, backwards, and violent” description associated with the “Yellow Peril”, and the recorded wars between European and Asian countries in history were actually not led by the Chinese. So how did the “Yellow Peril” become a notion that was used to discriminate against the Chinese?

Although China has had many instances of glory throughout its long history, it also has its share of dark times. The most regrettable thing was that when the Industrial Revolution (1760-1840) transformed the Western world into much more modern and powerful nations, the later Qing dynasty decided to close its door to the world. Hence, China fell behind and became weak and poor. Civil unrest caused even more suffering to its people. In order to avoid crushing poverty and civil wars, many Chinese fled to Western nations in hopes of finding a better life. However, the Western countries of the time were not nearly as accepting or open-minded as they are today. Our predecessors faced adversities and struggles that are far beyond what we have experienced or can even imagine today. In order to survive, they accepted wages that were much lower than those paid to white workers and took on the most laborious or dangerous jobs. However, this unfortunately made similarly unskilled, lower class white workers feel threatened. This was one of the causes behind the “Yellow Peril” being associated with the Chinese.

Image 2: “The Yellow Peril”, formally titled “Peoples of Europe, Guard your Dearest Goods”. The artwork was done by German artist Hermann Knackfuss in 1995, and the title was inscribed by German Emperor Wilhelm II. (Source: Library of Congress)

Another aspect was the First and Second Opium Wars of 1840 and 1856, as well as China’s loss in the Sino-Japanese War of 1894 and the subsequent signing of the Shimonoseki Treaty. China’s powerful façade was shattered and the Western powers began a feeding frenzy on China’s land. In 1897, at the end of the 19^th century, French sociologist Jacques Novikow composed ”Le Péril Jaune” (“The Yellow Peril”), officially coining the term “Yellow Peril”. Afterwards, German Emperor Kaiser Wilhelm II used “Yellow Peril” rhetoric to encourage European nations to conquer and colonize China. During the 1899 Boxer Rebellion, the Qing government allowed the rebels to massacre Christian missionaries in China as well as Chinese who had converted to Christianity. The Western powers took this opportunity to label the Chinese as savage, ignorant, and hateful of Christianity to win support for the eventual invasion of China by the Eight-Nation Alliance. The invasion by eight Western powers brought unimaginable misery and disgrace to Chinese people.

At the time, China and the Chinese were weak and did not pose any threat to Western civilization. To impose the term “Yellow Peril” upon the Chinese was to disregard the facts and circumstances of the time. The true purpose of this label was to incite fear and hatred of the Chinese in the masses.

The Catastrophe that “Yellow Peril” Rhetoric Brought Upon Chinese Americans

It is well known that the slavery of Africans was a shameful stain on American history. However, there are many who are not aware of the catastrophe that the six decade-long Chinese Exclusion Act (1882-1943) brought upon Chinese Americans. The proliferation of “Yellow Peril” rhetoric and its associated vilification of the Chinese was a significant factor that enabled the passage of this law.

The United States had an abundance of natural resources and its vast arable land required a tremendous amount of labor. That was why, from the very beginning, the U.S. opened its door to people from all over the world, including those who wanted to escape wars or poverty and try to pursue a better life in America. The Chinese joined in this wave of immigration, coming to America to participate in the California Gold Rush and the construction of the Transcontinental Railroad. However, the arrival of Chinese workers caused conflicts with certain white workers. Some white politicians jumped on this and began systematically stigmatizing the Chinese. Due to discrimination, most Chinese laborers couldn’t find decent paying jobs and were generally very poor. Some of them resorted to criminal activities such as drug dealing or running prostitution businesses. These actions only affirmed the narrative being used to slander them. Newspapers and cartoons scrambled to report the vices of the Chinese and their criminal activity, intentionally or unintentionally contributing to people’s fear and hatred of the Chinese.

Image 3: An 1877 illustration during the period of Chinese exclusion. (Courtesy of Thomasnastcartoons.com)

Given this background, any small incident could lead to violence against the Chinese. On October 24, 1871, a mob of five hundred charged into Los Angeles’ Chinatown and began burning, looting, and killing. Nearly twenty Chinese were lynched, the highest number of victims at a single lynching in American history. On September 2, 1885, three years after the Chinese Exclusion Act was passed, white miners in Rock Springs, Wyoming massacred the Chinese miners. Twenty-eight Chinese were murdered, fifteen were wounded, and 75 Chinese residences were burned to the ground. Similar large-scale acts of violence were just the tip of the iceberg for the abuses endured by the Chinese, who faced severe discrimination and oppression in all aspects of life. The Chinese Exclusion Act and similar legislation provided a cover for such prejudice and abuse.

How Can We Prevent “Yellow Peril” Rhetoric from Making a Comeback?

The historical circumstances that made the rise of “Yellow Peril” rhetoric possible are no longer around. The U.S. today is much more open and inclusive than the America of the 19^th century, and China is no longer as poor and primitive as it was one hundred or so years ago. Today, a high percentage of Chinese Americans are well educated and working as high pay professionals. The notion of the “Yellow Peril” may not make a resurgence in its original form, but anti-Chinese racism is still present in some form or another. Should a severe economic crisis or other catastrophic event occur in the U.S., we Chinese Americans could become a target of racism again. And as long as racism is tolerated in America, should China and the United States have a military confrontation; Chinese Americans would become scapegoats. Thus, we must remain vigilant and work hard to stop any racist tendencies, regardless of which race or culture they are against, before they go too far.

Image 4: Decorated Chinese Marines Tom S. Woo and Monica J. Moon. (Source: Wikipedia)

Whether it is with good intention or not, Chinese Americans are presently labeled as a “model minority” by many. The present social standing of Chinese Americans is a result of their own efforts, but more importantly was made possible by the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and subsequent social reforms. The Civil Rights Movement, which was started by minorities and supported by enlightened whites, made America a more accepting country that was willing to embrace diversity and gave Chinese Americans a chance to prove themselves).

In America, every race has those who respect and embrace people of other races, yet there are also those who discriminate and antagonize those who are different from themselves. As a minority in America, we Chinese Americans hope that our society is led by those who are respectful of other races and cultures. The only way we can prevent “Yellow Peril” rhetoric from making a comeback is by working with those of other races who want to maintain America as an enlightened and welcoming nation.

A colorblind America which treats every race fairly is indeed an ideal nation that Chinese Americans should be looking for. We must start with ourselves and work to reject our prejudices towards other people, striving to treat everyone equally regardless of the color of their skin. At the same time, we must clearly recognize that no matter how long we have lived in this country, no matter how Americanized we make ourselves, there will always be individuals who will view us as a foreign threat to their interests, just like those who promoted the idea of the “Yellow Peril” over a hundred years ago.

Conclusion

In a multiracial country like America, it is natural for people feel closeness toward people of same race or culture as themselves and feel uncomfortable towards others who are unfamiliar. Those with evil intentions often take advantage of this natural human tendency to demonize other races and cultures. This has been perpetuated countless times throughout human history, leading to large-scale racial violence and bringing incalculable losses to the people on both sides of the violence. We, as Chinese Americans, have long settled here in the U.S. However, at the end of the day, we are still a minority in this country and are vulnerable if the U.S. goes back to the old days when racial minorities were severely mistreated.) We must be unwavering in our opposition to any racist ideologies, no matter what race is being targeted.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellow_Peril

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_Exclusion_Act

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greco-Persian_Wars

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mongol_invasion_of_Europe

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Destruction_under_the_Mongol_Empire

http://blog.tripbase.com/7-most-advanced-ancient-civilizations-in-the-world/

http://www.thesilkroadchina.com/fact-v11-the-silk-road-history.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opium_Wars

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellow_Peril#The_Boxer_Rebellion

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eight-Nation_Alliance

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_massacre_of_1871

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock_Springs_massacre