1. Chinese In BC and On The Railroad

2. Arriving In North America Early 1850’s First Chinese make the long journey to North America Like many immigrants at this time the great majority are prospectors in search of gold on the West Coast Due to racism the Chinese did not have the same opportunities so most took over claims that had been abandoned by white miners.

3. Chinese men washing for gold, 1880s. Near North Bend, B.C

4. End of the Rush By the time gold was fading in 1883 of the 2000 miners left 1500 were Chinese. Many other Chinese had opened stores, restaurants and had farms in BC Gold has really started to fade by 1883 2000miners left in BC, 1500 are Chinese Many other Chinese have opened stores, restaurants, and farms all over BC

5. Chinese vendors in horse-drawn wagons, 1904. Pender Street

6. Pender St Vancouver BC present day

7. CPR In Need MacDonald has made promises as to when the railway will be completed As they move West the construction becomes very difficult In 1881 there was a shortage of workers for the CPR so they hired Chinese labourers. Between 1881-1885, 17,000 Chinese came to work on the railway.

8. Chinese workers aboard a CPR Company ship on its way to Canada.

9. Conditions The Chinese workers were dealing with inhumane conditions (scurvy, living in tents) For pay of $1.00 per day, minus food and lodging costs they had to endure these conditions CPR misled many of the workers and their cost for food and lodging was way more than they expected. ($ was collected by the railway) Estimates of over 700 men passing away while helping build the railway

10. Chinese men laying C.P.R. track

13. Canadian Pacific Railway bridge Mountain Creek, British Columbia, ca. 1880-1890

14. Building a tunnel through the Rockies for the track.

15. A “MASSIVE” Prairie Hill!

16. Why are they still here? 1885 CPR track completed, massive job loss, but Chinese are still here Non-Chinese start to complain that they are taking up jobs that should go to them Government responds with head tax

17. Head Tax This was a tax imposed on anyone coming to Canada from China between 1885 and 1923 In 1885 it was a $50 tax to all those Chinese Immigrants Moving the Mountain (3) - MySpaceVideos - Strimoo.com Moving the Mountain (3) - MySpaceVideos - Strimoo.com Raised in 1903 to $500( This was equivilant to the price of a house at the time, or 2 years salary in China It was replaced in 1923 by the Exclusion Act, which barred all Chinese immigrants from Canada until 1947.

19. Total Effect An estimated 81,000 Chinese immigrants paid the head tax This made nearly $23 million for the Canadian government and the provinces that were collecting it (Cdn gov’t paid $25 million for the CPR). Population in 1931, 46,500; in 1951 was 32,500 Exclusion Act in effect till 1947; took until 1967 before final elements of Exclusion Act eliminated *** In today's currency, that would be more than $1.2 billion

20. Current Response On June 22, 2006, Harper made a formal apology in Parliament. About 100 people, including some who paid the head tax and their families, boarded a train in Vancouver a week earlier to travel to Ottawa and hear the apology, in a journey dubbed the "Redress Express." The public gallery in the House of Commons was filled with hundreds of people. YouTube - Chinese Head Tax Apology YouTube - Chinese Head Tax Apology In October 2006, Harper said payments of $20,000 would start in the fall and the money would go to about 400 survivors or their widows. "Addressing it directly and honestly has been an issue we felt strongly about for some time," Harper said.