Kyle Bailey
Winslow 1st hour
October 31, 2012
Chinese Exclusion Act The Chinese Exclusion Act was put into place in 1882 to prohibit Chinese immigration to the United States. This act simply states that no more Chinese immigrants are allowed to come to the US. My self and many others believe that factors contributing to this cause include the vast amounts of Chinese immigrants in the United States, the amount of unemployment in US citizens, and overall racism. During the opening to the west, the transcontinental railroad was built to create a much more efficient journey from coast to coast, for both people, and products. With the high demand for help, many Chinese immigrants were more than willing to work, if it was for much less pay than what their white co-workers would be making. Prior to the act, there were 106,000 people in the United States, primarily in California. Once the railroads were completed the immigrants stay, looking for work and ways to make a living. With the big job out of the way, being the transcontinental railroad, there were several job closings. Chinese laborers saw this as a new opportunity to make money. With wife and kids back in China, all they had to care for was one; thus, they would work for less pay, and still work just as hard if not harder. This made them favorable to employers, taking jobs away from the citizens of the US. Racism sprung up from the fact that the Chinese had less money, creating a sense that they were all dirty