A Century of Discriminatory Legislation, Media Racism, & Anti-Asian Violence (1870s -1940s) Dr. Michael Chang Asian Pacific American Leadership Institute

ASIAN PACIFIC AMERICANS IN SILICON VALLEY: HISTORY & COMMUNITY 1850s-1890s Building the West 1870s-1940s Anti-Asian Exclusion Period 1940s-1960s Post-WWII to Asian American Movement 1970s-present Silicon Valley Era

1850s-1890s Building the West 1848 California and southwest states were ceded by Mexico to the U.S. after the Mexican-American War. After gold was discovered in 1848, California’s population grew dramatically from 14,000 who were mostly Mexican. Chinese immigrants arrived in large numbers.

Asian American Economic Contributions By the1870s, Chinese immigrants were 10% of California’s population and one out of four in the labor force. Throughout the first half of the 20th century, Asian immigrants including Japanese, Filipino, Korean, and South Asian provided labor for the development of the West.

Chinese Economic Contributions (1850s-1890s) MINING: 24,000 Chinese miners in 1860’s. RAILROADS: 13,000 Chinese workers making up 90% of the western crew of the first transcontinental railroad completed in 1869. PUBLIC WORKS: Build roads, government buildings & infrastructure, reservoirs, dams, tunnels, bridges, etc. By 1877, reclaimed 5 million acres of land including Sacramento delta. AGRICULTURE: 30,000 Chinese immigrants made up 87% of California’s farm laborers in 1886. FISHING: Most fisherman were Chinese until 1870’s.

U.S. Naturalization Law of 1790 This law limited naturalization to immigrants who were "free white persons" of "good moral character".

1879 California Constitution Chinese immigrants: “Aliens ineligible for citizenship” “Dangerous to the well-being of the State” No companies were allowed to hire Chinese or “Mongolian” people Public works could not hire Chinese or “Mongolian” people Immigration discouraged to keep the Chinese population at low levels

1882 Chinese Exclusion Act First U.S. national legislation to exclude immigration by race, law was later extended to all Asians, not repealed until 1943. It shall not be lawful for any Chinese laborer to come [to] the United States. No state court or court of the United States shall admit Chinese to citizenship.

1920s Alien Land Laws Meant to discourage immigration, law prohibited "aliens ineligible for citizenship" from owning agricultural land. Affected Asian farmer including Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Indian, etc. Repealed in California (1952), in Washington (1966), and in Wyoming (2001).

Chinese Population in Santa Clara County: 1860-1900 By 1880, 33% of Santa Clara County’s farm were Chinese. Chinese Population % of County Population 1860 22 0.2% 1870 1,525 5.8% 1880 2,695 7.7% 1890 2,723 1900 1,738 2.9% (Source: U.S. Census; Chan 1986: 49)

San Jose Chinatowns 1850s-1930s First Chinatown established 1850s at current Fairmont Hotel site but destroyed by arson in 1870. Second Chinatown rebuilt in 1870 at original site. Again burnt in 1877. “Heinlenville” Chinatown (1877- 1931) at 6th street and Jackson in today’s Japantown. Taylor Street “Woolen Mill” Chinatown (1887-1902) east of Guadalupe River. Source: Connie Young Yu & CHCP.

Japanese & Filipino Immigrants With Chinese immigrants barred, during the he early 20th century Japanese, Filipino and other Asian immigrants, together with Mexicans, became the mainstay of farm labors until they were also barred. In 1902, San Jose Japantown was home base to over 3,000 seasonal workers.

Anti-Asian Movement in Santa Clara County: 1860s-1940s 1869 Ku Klux Klan burnt Naglee Brandy Distillery and Methodist Episcopal Church in San Jose. 1870 San Jose Chinatown burnt down. 1876 San Jose city council declared Chinatown a public nuisance and passed ordinance against Chinese laundries. 1877 San Jose Chinatown burnt down again by arson. 1890s San Jose Mercury practiced anti-Asian “yellow journalism”. 1942 San Jose Japantown shut down as residents sent to concentration camps, many to Heart Mountain, Wyoming .

Japanese American Internment (1942-1945) 10,000 Japanese Americans, 60% U.S.–born citizens were placed in concentration camps 1942, San Jose Japantown shut down as over 3,000 Japanese Americans in the county were interned. 1947, 100 families return to Japantown area. Source: www.japantownsanjose.org