Remaking Chinese America: Immigration, Family, and Community, 1940--1965

by Xiaojian Zhao

In Remaking Chinese America , Xiaojian Zhao explores the myriad forces that changed and unified Chinese Americans during a key period in American history. Prior to 1940, this immigrant community was predominantly male, but between 1940 and 1965 it was transformed into a family-centered American ethnic community. Zhao pays special attention to forces both inside and outside of the country in order to explain these changing demographics. She scrutinizes the repealed exclusion laws and the immigration laws enacted after 1940. Careful attention is also paid to evolving gender roles, since women constituted the majority of newcomers, significantly changing the sex ratio of the Chinese American population.

As members of a minority sharing a common cultural heritage as well as pressures from the larger society, Chinese Americans networked and struggled to gain equal rights during the cold war period. In defining the political circumstances that brought the Chinese together as a cohesive political body, Zhao also delves into the complexities they faced when questioning their personal national allegiances. Remaking Chinese America uses a wealth of primary sources, including oral histories, newspapers, genealogical documents, and immigration files to illuminate what it was like to be Chinese living in the United States during a period that—until now—has been little studied.

Genres: History

256 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 2001

Reviews

[Virginia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had previously read this when it first came out. That is my family on the cover (parents, aunts, cousins), along with a few other photos in the book. The author had used my family, along with several others, to illustrate the racial, political, and economic hurdles faced by the Chinese, both immigrant and American-born. The laws, policies, and hostility that had made life so difficult for the Chinese for much of the last 150+ years are currently being re-enacted for non-European immigrants. Today’s political environment prompted me to re-read this book. I suppose it’s a little like picking at a scab, but once again I was filled with sadness that those who have the power to treat others with compassion and thoughtfulness fail to do so.