Driven Out: The Forgotten War against Chinese Americans

This is a rare book that should be part of America's immigrant story next to those of the Japanese-American Internment during the start of WW2. The atrocities committed by those in the majority during the period from about 1850 to 1910 toward the Chinese in California were much worse in fact, and those complicit in these acts ranged from the unemployed to some of the most powerful figures in American government, all in the name of racial superiority complex we witness today. Whole communities of law-abiding people were burned or trashed, all through means of political shenanigan, one way or another; we are talking about hundreds of Chinatowns in California, with hard-working people forced out by the towns' so-called "law-enforcement" brigades. The ousted fought back by means of the judiciary, but the odds were against them already: by law, these immigrants could not even testify against the Whites in court. Furthermore, they could not be citizens, and therefore no voting rights. They are essentially non-entities, in a class lower than that of the Blacks. These Asians were here, one way or another, to provide the necessary manual labor that no one, not even the Latinos and Blacks, let alone the Whites, wanted, or possess necessary skill sets for such work. We are talking about agriculture, laundry, house work, railroad, and more.They, like many of the immigrants we are witnessing coming to America today, were here not by choice, but by circumstances beyond their control and had to survive at all cost, even gambling with their life. America was their last hope, so they thought. But one way of another, thank God, they like most immigrants here in America, survived. We, as Americans, should commemorate these pioneers who led the way to a richer and more forgiving, pluralistic society. And it is still a work in progress.

Loving this book, there was a time when this kind of information was so hard to find and now here it is. The history of Chinese in America and some of there achievements and the horrible treatment they received from fellow Americans, including Congress. How the Federal Government sanctioned an Act of Congress in 1882 against a race of people is outrageous but shows you how if you don't learn from your history, you could be doomed to repeating it. While I had personally researched some of the same information, it was nice to see it nicely put together.

As a specialist in Sino-Western relations who writes both non-fiction books and historical fiction on this topic I bought this book already armed with a lot of knowledge of the topic.Nevertheless, I learned a great deal! The book is extraordinarily well researched and written. Indeed, for this reader/writer it was both time and money well spent.  Beyond The Heavenly Kingdom: Sequel to Tienkuo: The Heavenly Kingdom (Sino-American Tales) (Volume 2)

This is a terrific book, compellingly written and stuffed with thorough research and tons of facts It's about a decades-long era in our history where we tried to drive out Chinese immigrants and Chinese Americans from our country. The long-forgotten details are starting, covering pogroms in mining camps, California towns, the Denver riot of 1880 when a Chinese man was lunched, and how all of these were sanctioned by powerful men in business and politics.Worth reading for anyone with an interest in Asian American history.Got the Kindle edition too -- it's a great important re-read!

It's a mortifying look at the tragic, self-interested racism of California's Caucasians of that era, and the outright complicity of the government officials. I found the story to be repetative at times. The blame for the enslavement & forced prostitution of many Chinese women seemed to fall wholly on the white population of California, with no outrage at the Chinese companies who carried out the enslavement and profited from it.

Professor Jean Pfadelzer's seminal work, Driven Out: The Forgotten War Against Chinese Americans, is indispensable for a critical and comprehensive understanding of the early years of the Chinese American Experience. Without this, we would have continued to operate on the basis of educated and intuitive hunches as to the origins, nature and outcomes of a little-known chapter in the history of racist oppression in this country. By the way, my copy of thus book came in the condition described, in a very timely fashion. Excellent service.

Seems to be An accurate depiction of how when insecure whites, in America, continue to mistreat fellow man, repeatedly, historically, AND will continue unless kept in-check thru peaceful means or otherwise. Native American, Asians, Afro-Americans, etc. have been exploited by companies/conglomerates. Is there a reckoning? Stay tuned ..

This is a detailed book of what the Chinese immigrants have endured since the Gold Rush. There are stories of what is happening all over the U.S. The ani-asian happenings are an eye-opener as to what the Chinese endured, and how they overcame what was happening to them. I really enjoy the book even though it is painful to realize what was happening.