Chinese Immigration in the 19th and 20th Century

CHINESE IMMIGRATION IN LATE 19TH/EARLY 20TH CENTURY
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1 Introduction
Immigration has been a major feature of the United States since its establishment, and this has resulted in a population that is culturally diverse. America's economy and society have been profoundly altered by immigration. The notion of America as a "melting pot" has long dominated popular culture, implying that all ethnic and cultural diversity is "melted up" to create one national identity. Toward the end of the nineteenth century, the notion of multiculturalism evolved into the concept of cultural pluralism, which described the country as a blend of many ethnicities and cultural backgrounds, all coexisting and contributing to the new nation. American identity and the "genuine" American has been a subject of controversy for millennia. Many of these clashes eventually led to the American Civil War (American Civil War) (1861–1865). As a result of the Civil War, Congress enacted Amendment 14 to determine if freed slaves could become citizens. Those born and raised in the United States are citizens of the United States, according to the Amendment. However, the discussions about who is a "genuine" American, who should be allowed to remain in the nation, and who should be expelled, have not abated at all. China was a major immigration group that had a significant impact on the economics of nineteenth-century America, particularly in the west.[Locgov. 1885. “To the President of the United States, and to the Senate and House of Representatives in Congress Assembled [Protest against Ill-Treatment of the Chinese. 1885.” Loc.Gov. 1885] [Gelwicks. 1870. “The Chinese Question ; Report of the Special Committee on Assembly Bill No. 13 ; Report of the Special Committee on Assembly Bill No. 13.” Immigration to the United States, 1789-1930 - Curiosity Digital Collections. 1870.] [Erika Lee. "The Chinese exclusion example: Race, immigration, and American gatekeeping 1882-1924." Journal of American Ethnic History (2002): 36-62.]
The discovery of gold in California and the ensuing Gold Rush in 1849 sparked a wave of significant Chinese immigration. At first, the Chinese worked in mining, but they soon expanded their roles to include farming and manufacturing as well. For the Chinese, the Transcontinental Railroad was also a key source of labor. Unskilled and inexpensive employees were in high demand throughout the westward expansion of the United States. A large number of non-Chinese employees resented Chinese immigrants because of the low wages they offered in exchange for their labor. When many white workers became unemployed, anti-Chinese movements began to urge laws to be enforced against the Chinese. The Miner's Tax, enacted in 1852, was one of their earliest coercive measures. This led to the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, which made it illegal for anybody from China to enter the United States. Wellborn asserts that the early exclusion measures, although being unconstitutional, were still highly successful. Eight or ten miles south of Sonora, the Chinese were ejected from a mining site in 1849. No Asian or South Sea Islander could mine in Tuolumne County's...