Different Mirror Chapter 8 Flashcards

Immigration and Labor in 19th Century America

• Prospectors sought valuable metals, driving many to migrate during the Gold Rush.
• The exclusion of groups created barriers for immigrants, limiting their opportunities.

Chinese Immigrant Support Networks

• Tongs provided protection and control over criminal enterprises while aiding Chinese migrants.
• Fongs are composed of family and clan members, offering support to new arrivals.
• Clans, larger than fongs, helped immigrants with housing and employment.

Challenges and Experiences of Immigrants

• Catastrophes and disasters often disrupted immigrant lives and businesses.
• Tenant farmers worked on land they did not own, typically facing exploitation.
• Paper Sons were Chinese immigrants falsely claiming to be children of American citizens to gain entry.

Societal Attitudes and Laws

• Hostility towards Chinese immigrants manifested in various anti-immigrant behaviors.
• Servitude represented the forced labor experienced by many immigrant laborers.
• The term marginal man describes individuals caught between dual cultural identities.

Historical Context of Chinese Immigration

• The annexation of California opened immigration routes for Chinese workers seeking jobs in mining, agriculture, and railroads.
• The Gold Rush of 1849 spurred migration as it promised wealth.

Legal Restrictions and Social Challenges

• The Naturalization Act of 1790 restricted citizenship to white immigrants.
• The miner’s tax in 1872 targeted Chinese laborers, creating an additional financial burden.

Economic Exploitation

• Strategies like divide and conquer allowed those in power to maintain control over the workforce by keeping labor segregated and isolated.
• In San Francisco, industries employing Chinese included footwear, tobacco, and textiles.

Migration Patterns

• Chinese men predominated the immigrant population due to family obligations in China and the high cost of bringing women.
• The 1906 earthquake destroyed many records, enabling men to assert citizenship claims without proof.

Identity and Integration

• Chinese laborers were often marginalized and compared unfavorably to other ethnic groups, accused of inferiority.
• The 1870 Civil Rights Act aimed to extend legal protections to Chinese individuals, allowing them rights to contracts and testimony.

Cultural Adaptation

• Lives for early Chinese immigrants in San Francisco included community-focused facilities like stores and social clubs, although they faced eventual disenfranchisement.
• Chinese workers were often discouraged from migrating due to their economic focus rather than business opportunities.

Surviving Discrimination

• The societal perception of a "white America" shaped immigration policy and social treatment of non-white individuals.
• Laws like non-whites unable to testify against whites were enacted to maintain social hierarchies.

The Role of Paper Sons

• Chinese "paper sons" often paid for recognition as sons of American citizens to enter the U.S.
• Despite racial prejudices, some laws allowed foreign-born sons of citizens to gain citizenship.

Definitions of Concepts

• Industry refers to the processing of raw materials and manufacturing goods.
• Morality is the framework through which societies determine right and wrong behavior.
• Immoral actions deviate from established moral principles, while childlike attributes tend to reflect innocence and purity.

Reflection on Societal Norms

• The concept of truism points to commonly accepted ideas that can limit critical discussions on race and citizenship today.

Test your knowledge with these flashcards from Chapter 8 of 'A Different Mirror'. Each card features key terms related to historical contexts of immigration and community organization. Perfect for students looking to reinforce their understanding of the chapter.