Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882

Large numbers of Chinese immigrants came to the United States in 1848 due to the California Gold Rush and in the 1860s with the construction of the Central Pacific Railroad and the Transcontinental Railroad. The Chinese came over as laborers and at first, were well received. However, when the Gold Rush began to fade, there was still a large population of Chinese laborers, who became know as coolies. The large population of Chinese immigrants moved into cities like San Francisco working low wage jobs. Animosity began to form towards the Chinese because they began to increasingly grown in population and were taking jobs in a post Civil War economy.

All of these events lead to the passing of the Chinese Exclusion of 1882 by the US Congress and President Chester Arthur. The Chinese Exclusion Act stopped the immigration of Chinese laborers for 10 years. Along with the stop on immigration, the US also prohibited US citizenship for Chinese immigrants who were already in the US and deported many people back to China. If a Chinese person living in America at this time wanted to go see their family in China, they would most likely not be let back in to the US. So this means that most who chose to stay in the US during this time weren’t able to see their families for 10 years. After the 10 years of the Chinese Exclusion Act, Congress amended it for another 10 years unter the Geary Act. This act regulated Chinese immigration until the 1920s.

The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 place Chinese representation on the map. They were already a huge factor in the economy of California due to the Gold Rush and the Central Pacific Railroad. The exclusion of the Chinese laborers lead to boycotts and court cases. Republican Senator George Frisbie Hoar stated that Chinese exclusion is "nothing less than the legalization of racial discrimination."