black and chinese americans :: essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In the present day, people view America as a land where everyone can be seen equal to one another, but this was not always the case. In the 1800s black and Chinese Americans went through a ruthless period of discrimination, due to the white man’s ignorance. Even though the Chinese and blacks were singled out they both were treated differently but also had many similarities.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Harsh treatment, long hours, and extremely low wages were only a small part of the brutal-ness both races faced. The Chinese men came to America hoping to provide a better life for theirs families back in China. Most of them received jobs working for the corrupted railroad companies. They faced horrific working conditions, which some died from, low wages, and long hours. The Chinese men wasted years of their lives and sacrificed seeing their families so that they can make enough money to support them.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The blacks have faced similar conditions to the Chinese men. They too worked long hours and earned very low pay. Many of the blacks became sharecroppers once they were emancipated. Sharecroppers were tenant farmers who gave a share of the crops raised to the landlord in lieu of rent. These landlords were cruel and took a good portion of the crops grown by the black farmers. Whatever the landlords did not take was left for farmer and his family, which was not much. They had to survive through the winter with the limited supply. Both the Chinese and blacks could not do anything about the working conditions due to the fact they could not unite and form labor unions.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Though both Chinese and blacks faced many similarities they also had differences. The blacks have lived in American for generations while the Chinese were just starting to immigrate. Blacks were forced to come to America to be slaves as opposed to the Chinese coming here by their own free will. Also the America did not allow Chinese women into the country due to the fear of an even more rapid rate of increase in the Chinese population, while black women were in the country and had a prominent role in their family lives. Another difference between the two races was that the black Americans had families in the country and the Chinese left their families back in China. Another differentiation was that once the blacks were emancipated most stayed in America while a good number of the Chinese left to go back home.