Immigration in America
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Immigration in America
It was the 1800s when China was falling in terms of economy and being limited by technology and geography China was isolated by the rest of the world. The level at which the economy of China was; it was falling and economic prosperity was not appreciative. In the early 1800s, trade with the European countries was less, it was also cut off from the world in terms of trade. There was only one port through which Europeans were supposed to trade. But again there were specifically designated agents, co-hongs who were the only source with whom Europeans could trade. In Europe, few items from China were on high demand, silk, and porcelain but the tea was the one which was traded the most and it increased by 30 times from 1720 to 1830. On the other side, the British East India company was too desperately waiting to disturb the economy of China. The East India Company created a trade imbalance by finding a commodity through introduction of opium. This did not only disturb the economy but also the society because this was unacceptable.
Two main factors needed some focus, the first one was the monopoly of their agents in the market and the second was the Chinese superiority and barbarians. The monopoly of co-hongs was increasing in the Chinese market, most of the Europeans traded the system of mercantilism, in which there is a greater number of exports than imports of a country. After the 1830s, the British started leading and they were encouraging Laissez Faire, a free trade system. This encouraged the production of expensive goods and enhanced a competitive market. British were the ones who had a lead in the Industrial Revolution. The government of China had to make strong trade policies and they had to develop a strong control system over trading systems.
Chinese attitude and behavior were different and they had a different status. They considered themselves as their superiors, or the "Middle Kingdom", for the rest of the people were inferiors and they called them "Barbarians". British, being a democratic nation refused the behavior of Chinese because they did not acknowledge the gifts being sent to them and they mostly considered them as tributes in the courts. The tensions increased to a peak when China burned the 20,000 chests of The British East India Company. British imposed full import taxes which was traded in British pound. This incident initiated the First Opium War (1839-42) between China and Britain. China was defeated because the British were fully equipped with advanced weapons. This loss resulted in the Treaty of Nanjing in 1842. This allowed the British to increase their trade with China and import as much as they could. This treaty allowed citizens of Britain to live according to their own rules and allowed other countries to trade with them. Britain’s got access to five, main ports in China. Population was increasing too much and China had no such control over increasing issues in their economy and society. The government was unable to facilitate its citizens when they got affected by natural disasters like floods. There were too many things going in China during the 1800s.
The economy was not stable and people were unemployed, they were not able to meet their needs. It was the gold rush in North America that attracted the Chinese to migrate to America. In the beginning, they worked as cheap labors, they worked for other miners but they, later on, started their own businesses. Businesses like laundries restaurants and other services. They migrated to America to earn as much as they can and send money back to their family members. During their migration period, they faced racial discrimination, harassed and they had to go through psychological abuse. The main reason for Chinese immigration would be the unstable economy after the Opium War in which China was defeated. They started migrating to the United States of America in search of a bright future because their economy was better and stable as compared to china then.
America has been an example of a place with the most diversity of people coming from other continents of the world. America has been affected because of many immigrations. In the 1820s there was a huge change in the demography of the United States. 70 million immigrants were recorded during the 1820s. Each new wave of immigrants had an impact on the US. There was a layer of fear and hostility during 1751, and in 1844, two Catholic churches were burned and later by 1840s and 1850s, priests and Catholic churches were attacked by Protestants. Immigration was later on restricted by introducing The Chinese Act of 1882. This was the initiative to keep American society close. Chinese were restricted from migration because of some major issues. A legislation was passed to control the future immigration of Chinese workers coming to the United States. This legislation also threatened the diplomatic relations between China and the United States. In China, merchants faced humiliation by people who organized anti-American boycotts in 1905, though this protest was not sanctioned by the Chinese government. It ended after five months. America was on stake because it also introduced The Chinese Act to restrict Chinese immigration.
Later in 1924, the national quota system was introduced by the United States (Code, 2013). Immigrants on the other hand and were sources of a developed society. They introduce new music, creativity in arts, writings. The darker side of immigration was that the Chinese were discriminated against, they were murdered and several were injured as a result of protests held against anti-Chinese laws. Chinese living in the United States have been deprived based on their race, ethnicity, and background. In the 1800s, all bodies of government badly treated Chinese immigrants, not only the public but the natives treated them in an unpleasant way (McClain, 1994).
“Immigration is good when tackled properly. Diversity is good for the economies and development of the nations”.
Chinese workers were assaulted, their immigration to the United States encouraged the natives towards racism and discrimination. A mindset of racists was developed and the natives also adopted xenophobic attitudes for the Chinese workers and immigrants. The attitude of being prejudice towards Chinese immigrants is called Yellow Peril. America is known as a hub for diversity but specific attitudes towards low-class workers coming from China are something unacceptable. These mindsets can be called as colonial mindsets. The Second World War changed the image and perspectives of China. For the United Nations, China became an ally and this success made the United States change immigration laws incorporated and implemented to Chinese people ( ADDIN ZOTERO_ITEM CSL_CITATION {"citationID":"RLQEwykf","properties":{"formattedCitation":"(\\uc0\\u8220{}(PDF) The Impact of the Chinese Diaspora in the U.S. on the American View of China,\\uc0\\u8221{} n.d.)","plainCitation":"(“(PDF) The Impact of the Chinese Diaspora in the U.S. on the American View of China,” n.d.)","noteIndex":0},"citationItems":[{"id":65,"uris":["http://zotero.org/users/local/F0XOCTdk/items/FC4FZQAB"],"uri":["http://zotero.org/users/local/F0XOCTdk/items/FC4FZQAB"],"itemData":{"id":65,"type":"webpage","title":"(PDF) The Impact of the Chinese Diaspora in the U.S. on the American View of China","URL":"https://www.researchgate.net/publication/331386562_The_Impact_of_the_Chinese_Diaspora_in_the_US_on_the_American_View_of_China","accessed":{"date-parts":[["2019",10,5]]}}}],"schema":"https://github.com/citation-style-language/schema/raw/master/csl-citation.json"} Misiuna,2018).
The United States is has been a place where you would find people and you would find American society as a diversified country. It was the middle of the 50s when the largest number migrated to the United States. Most of the immigrants came to the United States from Latin America and Asia. Still, people are migrating to the United States. Many immigrants find America a place where they would find earning sources, advanced technology, peace, business and employment opportunities. People migrating to the United States find ways to move there, whether they are legal or illegal. Illegal immigration has also had an impact on the development of society. Impacts may be in terms of new skill development, rich cultures, availability of cheap labor and introduction of new trends and material goods. Immigration has improved economic growth and it has enhanced labor market competition. Productivity has been increased. America is now open towards the migration of people. Immigration has helped economic development and it has become a strength. Immigration has helped to develop better foreign policies and it has enhanced diplomatic relations with international countries.
There is a variety of people living in the United States. According to a survey conducted in2017, it was recorded that 44.4 million are foreign-born population. According to the same survey Mexicans were the highest migrants. The second-largest number of immigrants was from China, then India, and the Philippines. By 2055 Asians are assumed to be the largest immigrant groups to migrate to the United States. Immigrant groups are being considered as talented and hardworking people. They strengthen the country with their skills and hard work. People are migrating to the United States because of better education, health, employment, and business opportunities and an open labor market.
In history, Americans have encouraged the limitations of immigrations. The immigration act of 1924, was implemented to prioritize the natives, it was to protect their interests. According to few Americans, immigrants have occupied the market which resulted in a lesser number of job opportunities. Natives live in fear, they think and fear that immigrants take the market jobs, this shapes their behavior towards the immigrants. Stereotyping by white people has been decreased towards blacks because of formal work contracts. In the past, people were assaulted based on their ethnicity, color, race, and background. They had gone through racism and still, people suffer.
After World War, many Americans were admitted to the US military which left shortage of labors in the labor market. Mexicans were employed for agricultural purposes after this Congress passes an act named as Immigration and Nationality Act in 1965. This act encouraged more immigration and the foreign-born population increased from 9.6 to 40 million.
Taking example of recent developments in the presidency of Trump we can say that the illegal immigrations and making strict border policies can discourage rapid immigration to the United States. 60 percent of the population who voted to Trump agreed that those immigrants should be allowed to stay in the United States who can meet the requirements and then they can be allowed to live legally. Culture threats also stop Native Americans from supporting and encouraging the immigration of people. The cultural threat is considered as the strongest explanation which favors enforcement in immigration.
Immigration is affecting the United States economy. Immigrants can benefit the industrial sectors with their advanced degrees, they contribute towards scientific and studies and job-related developments. Immigrants who form their startups are appreciated and they are the ways and sources who are contributing to the economy. There can be an increment in the GDP. The increase in productivity is good for economic growth and it can boost the economy. Innovations and entrepreneurship help the economy to grow. Immigration can also cause a rapid growth in the population and can have an impact on climate change and global warming. People can face food insecurity and extreme weather conditions.
References
McClain, C. J. (1994). In search of equality: the Chinese struggle against discrimination in nineteenth-century America. Univ of California Press.
Code, U. S. (2013). Title 8, Aliens and Nationality. Dayton, OH.
Misiuna, J. (2018). The Impact of the Chinese Diaspora in the US on the American View of China. International Studies: Interdisciplinary Political and Cultural Journal (IS), 22(1), 153-168.
