Chinese Immigration Research Project

Who were the hardest workers on the Transcontinental Railroad? The Irish? The former slaves? No, it was the Chinese immigrants. Without Chinese Immigration, It would have taken many more years to complete. Although at first hated, Chinese immigrants grew to be respected by their many contributions to American society. The Chinese endured a hard voyage from China only to find backbreaking work. The immigrants started coming in the mid 1800’s and were treated horribly until the 1940’s. Even though they experienced anything from racist laws to anti-Chinese riots, the Chinese immigrants still managed to accomplish astonishing feats.

In China, There were two types of people: the very wealthy and the very poor. Rich people owned big houses. They had many servants, maids, and butlers. They practiced many beauty methods. The most painful was the binding of little girls’ feet. Small feet, called “lily feet”, were considered a mark of feminine beauty. It literally turned the girls into cripples. The poor people had nothing close to the life of a rich person. Many were rice farmers. At least they had something to eat. Those even poorer went hungry for days and had to resort to stealing from the farmers. The poor made up the majority of the Chinese population. Those people brought their hopes and dreams to America.

Beliefs made up an enormous part of life in China. The three main religions were Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism. Buddhism originated in India. Many people didn’t worship Confucianism, but still acknowledged it. The majority of the people worshiped Confucianism. These beliefs were started by Kong Fu Zi, who is better known by his Latin name, Confucius. Family honor also played an enormous role in China. Parents believed that children owed a debt to the parents for raising them. This “debt” could be repaid in many ways. One way would be to take care of their parents when they grew old. Another way was to send money to their parents, which many immigrants did. This was an essential part of Chinese lifestyle.

All men in China had to wear the same hairstyle. They shaved their forehead, and wore a long braid on the back of the head. The braids were called a queue. All men were required to wear them from the 1600’s to 1911. In the 1600’s, the Manchu Empire captured China. Queues symbolized loyalty to the Manchu rulers. Those who didn’t comply were committing treason and either imprisoned or executed. Without their queues, Chinese immigrants could not return to China. If it was cut off, they would have to grow a new one, which could take many years. After the overthrow of the Manchu government, in 1911, many Chinese people, in both China and America, cut off their queues in celebration of freedom.