English version articles
In the National Mall, there are eleven national museums and art galleries. They stand tall, burly and solemn on either side of the National Mall in Washington, D.C. in their own unique style. There are 6 museums and the National Zoo in other places in Washington, D.C. So, can there be an Asian American museum added to the National Mall?
The Vision of the Asian American Museum Read More »
Donaldina Cameron (July 26, 1869-January 4, 1968) was a Presbyterian missionary in San Francisco’s Chinatown, who rescued more than 3,000 Chinese immigrant girls and women from indentured servitude. She was known as the “Angry Angel of Chinatown.”
Historical Record of Chinese Americans | Angel of San Francisco’s Chinatown Read More »
Chinese women in the 19th century were a special group in American Chinese communities. Some of them were babysitters, laundry workers, or gold diggers. This group of people formed the first batch of families in the Chinese community. Prostitution was quite common among many ethnic groups in the western United States, and many Chinese women were also prostitutes. The U.S. legislative system passed the Page Act, prohibiting so-called cheap labor and immoral Asian women from entering the United States. Their excuse for discriminating against Chinese women was their image of prostitution, spreading sexually transmitted diseases, and subverting American marriage ethics. With restrictions on female immigration, the federal government successfully prevented the growth of the Chinese population.
While many people believe that Feng Ru was the father of modern Chinese aviation, there were many other people who had also made outstanding contributions to the aviation industry in China. Wong Tsu, for instance, was one of the talented students who had been sent by the Beiyang Government to MIT and was praised as “the first and best engineer” of the Boeing Company.
Qian Xuesen（Hsue-Shen Tsien) was a Chinese engineer and physicist who contributed to aerodynamics and rocket science in the United States. Recruited from MIT, he joined Theodore von Karman’s group at Caltech. In the 1950s, the US government accused him of communist sympathies and stripped of his security clearance. He was forced to return to China, but was detained at Terminal Island, near Los Angeles for over 10 days. After spending five years under the fight between the deportation order and house arrest, he was released in 1955 in exchange for the repatriation of American pilots who had been captured during the Korean War. Upon his return to China, he made important contributions to China’s missile and space program.
Historical Record of Chinese Americans | Qian Xuesen – Under the Shadow of McCarthyism Read More »
Title: Historical Record of Chinese Americans l Chinese American Figure: Katherine Lum and the Fight against School Segregation in 1920s Mississippi
The first Transcontinental Railroad in America was built from 1865 to 1869, which connected the east and west coasts of the American Continent for the first time in history. More than ten thousand Chinese immigrants worked on constructing the most dangerous segment of this railroad. In the treacherous terrain of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, while enduring all sorts of extreme weather, Chinese construction workers toiled from dawn until dusk to blast tunnels, chip away granite cliffs, and lay hundreds of miles of track. Many of these workers perished under such dangerous conditions. However they were erased in history as “silent spikes,” as no Chinese worker was confirmed to have attended the ceremony to celebrate the railroad completion in May, 1869.
After the Mukden Incident (September 18, 1931), staged by the Japanese army and followed by the Japanese occupation of all three northeast provinces of China, overseas Chinese communities launched various activities to support the Chinese people’s fight against the Japanese invasion. They donated a great amount of money and materials, and sent their children back to join the Chinese army. Some organizations in the United States also raised funds and set up a number of aviation schools and training centers. Many young men went back to join Chinese Air Force after their graduation.
John Angel Chu was one of these overseas Chinese youth who were from different parts of the United States but joined together in China to fight against the Japanese invaders. They gave the best years of their life to the anti-Japanese cause, some even sacrificed their young life for the peace of the world.
On December 17, 1903, after over one thousand failed attempts, the “Wright Flyer 1”finally flew into the sky and started the era of world aviation. The success of the Wright Brothers attracted many aviation enthusiasts all over the world. Several Chinese in the United States were among those aviation pioneers who dreamed of flying into the sky. Ru Feng (aka Fung Joe Guey) was the first one who made outstanding contributions to the development of Chinese aviation history.
While the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 closed the legal door for immigration, many Chinese switched their tactics by entering the country illegally and they probably became US’ first illegal immigrants. Moreover, these illegal Chinese immigrants who had sneaked into the US through Canada, Mexico, or unguarded shores might have set a precedent for future unlawful immigrants. To prevent the breach of its border by illicit immigrants, the US government hence began to extend its border security to its neighbors such as border diplomacy in Canada and border policing near the border with Mexico. Despite the effective border security in both northern and southern sides, some Chinese managed to take advantage of legal loopholes to acquire admission to the country as legal immigrants or even citizens. In addition, during the third decade after the passage of the Chinese Exclusion Act, many Chinese Americans had begun to embrace international politics. Led by the Society to Protect the Emperor (Bao Huang Hui) and the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association (Zhong Hua Hui Guan), they called for and donated money to support the boycott of American goods across seas in 1905-06. They also contributed funds to the anti-Manchu revolution and some of them even returned to China to join the uprisings. In 1912, when the Chinese Exclusion Act entered its fourth decade, the last dynasty of the Qing Empire, which lasted thousands of years, finally came to an end.
Historical Record of Chinese Americans | The Third Decade of the Chinese Exclusion Act Read More »