The Chinese Exclusion Act

In the late 19th century, rising anti-Chinese prejudice paved the way for one of the most controversial laws in US history. Danny Bird explains how the legislation was passed and why its legacy is still felt today

- Danny Bird

WHAT WAS THE CHINESE EXCLUSION ACT?

The Chinese Exclusion Act was a federal law passed by the United States Congress that received approval from President Chester A Arthur on 6 May 1882. It was the only piece of legislation in US history to ban members of a specific nationality from entry to the country.

The law explicitly prohibited the immigration of "both skilled and unskilled laborers" from China for 10 years, although exceptions were made for those in the diplomatic service, academia and trade. However, an amendment to the act, two years later, extended the ban to Chinese citizens of all nations, and blocked resident Chinese people from reentry to the US should they travel abroad.

WHAT IMPACT DID CHINESE IMMIGRATION HAVE ON THE US?

The discovery of gold in California in 1848 led to a frenzy that attracted fortune-seekers across North America and drew many Chinese people over the Pacific. Their proclivity for extracting gold rankled white prospectors, who regarded them as interlopers and forced them onto less lucrative gold fields.

Later, the completion of the Central Pacific Railroad (the western section of the first transcontinental railroad) depended heavily on Chinese labour. Against the prevailing anti-Chinese sentiment within California, the overseer of the project, Charles Crocker, recruited Chinese labourers after insufficient takeup by white workers.

At the height of construction, up to 20,000 Chinese immigrants were involved, representing approximately 90 per cent of the total workforce. Despite being paid meagre salaries and forced to fund their own sustenance, they toiled through some of the route's trickiest sections - such as the Sierra Nevada Mountains and regularly put their lives at risk. In 1869, a crew mostly comprising Chinese workers laid a record-breaking 10 miles of track in a single day.