“A Different Mirror” Analysis and Chapter 8 Summary

Introduction

This essay focuses on the events as narrated in chapter 8 of the book “A Different Mirror: A History of Multicultural America” by Ronald Takaki. The issues discussed include the reasons for the movement of the Chinese to America, the expectations of the Chinese; jobs, discrimination, contributions to America, power, economics, gender issues, bachelor societies, etc. and the common experiences the Chinese had with other people of color.

Reasons for immigrating to America

There is the notion that America is a land of opportunities and this is significant since it is on this account that the Chinese moves there. The Chinese migrated to America due to the opium wars and other problems at home. The improved transport network and infrastructure lead many Asians to move to America in the hope that they will get gainful employment.

The expectations of the Chinese

The expectations of the Chinese are not met as they are sold into slavery in the United States. They think that their movement to America will pay off. Despite isolated incidences occurring to them, these incidences are brutal, and many Asians suffer.

Jobs, discrimination, contributions to America, power, economics, gender issues, bachelor societies, LAWS, etc.

Initially, 24,000 Chinese are miners in the 1840s but are driven out of mining by the determined “whites.” There is discrimination in the job market. Although the “whites” and the Chinese do more or less the same work, they are paid less money compared to the “whites.” The “whites” are paid two third more than the Chinese.

The Chinese contribute to America’s economy by building the railroad and the agricultural industry of California. The irrigation systems which they dig boost the value of the land. The cost of land rose to $100 an acre in 1877. The same land was valued at $28 an acre in 1875 (Takaki 199). This shows the way the Chinese influence and work contributed to the economic growth of California.

The Chinese are compelled into self-employment because of the unemployed “white” workers in California riot against them. This is because the “whites” see the Chinese as their threat in the job market. They view the Chinese as people who have come to take away their jobs. They venture into the stores, restaurants and laundry industries as a way of earning a living.

The book records that there are some Chinese who are brought to Louisiana and Mississippi. Once there, they are put to work with the slaves who had been freed. This is meant to intimidate them or portray them as lesser beings. These events infringe on the fundamental rights of the Chinese.

Common experiences the Chinese had with other people of color

The Chinese are subjected to the racial inequalities which had earlier on been submitted to the blacks.

The Chinese are referred to as ‘naguar’ by the white workers. A cartoon in one of the magazines in California describes the Chinese “as a bloodsucking vampire with slanted eyes, a pigtail, dark skin, and thick lips… they were described as heathen, morally inferior, savage, childlike, and lustful” (Takaki 205).

In a case involving People versus Hall in 1854, the Supreme Court in California make legally valid and confirm that the Chinese are not whites. The court further confirms the reversal of the murder case against Hall who killed a Chinese. The right to justice of the other races, for example, the blacks, mulattos, and Indians are infringed upon by the authorities.

This is because they are not allowed to give any evidence in cases involving the whites. The justice system is discriminatory as the Chinese and Asians are not recognized as humans; hence the violation of their rights. Justice in this state is applied selectively. The Asians, later on, are officially condemned as non-white.

Work Cited

Takaki, Ronald. A Different Mirror: A History of Multicultural America (revised edition), Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1993