''The Chinese in Mexico, 1882–1940'' is a 2010 book by
Robert Chao Romero, published by the
University of Arizona Press
The University of Arizona Press, a publishing house founded in 1959 as a department of the University of Arizona, is a nonprofit publisher of scholarly and regional books. As a delegate of the University of Arizona to the larger world, the Press ...
, about the history of
Chinese immigration to Mexico
Chinese immigration to Mexico began during the colonial era and has continued to the present day. However, the largest number of migrants to Mexico have arrived during two waves: the first spanning from the 1880s to the 1940s and another, reinvigo ...
.
[Chai, p. 71.] This is the first English-language
monograph written about Chinese immigration to Mexico.
[López, p. 195.][Lee, p. 645.] Anju Reejhsinghani of
University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...
described it as "a social history of the small but influential Chinese merchant and laboring community in northern Mexico in the first half of the twentieth century."
[Reejhsinghani, p. 78.] Erika Lee of the
University of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public land-grant research university in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. ...
stated that because much of the existing literature on Asian immigration to North and South America discusses the United States, this book "fills an enormous historiographical gap."
[
The topics include anti-Chinese discrimination and Chinese settlement patterns.][López, p. 193.] The book has printed examples of anti-Chinese propaganda, including song lyrics and political cartoons
A political cartoon, a form of editorial cartoon, is a cartoon graphic with caricatures of public figures, expressing the artist's opinion. An artist who writes and draws such images is known as an editorial cartoonist. They typically combine ...
, produced in Mexico.[ Lee stated that Romero's method of cataloging the relationships in the community, which include economic and social relations, is the "diasporic transnational" method which illustrates the simultaneous Chinese-Mexican ties to other Chinese communities in the Americas and their home villages in ]southern China
South China () is a geographical and cultural region that covers the southernmost part of China. Its precise meaning varies with context. A notable feature of South China in comparison to the rest of China is that most of its citizens are not n ...
.[ Of three books about the Chinese-Mexican community, with the others being ''Chinese Mexicans: Transpacific Migration and the Search for a Homeland, 1910–1960'' and ''Making the Chinese Mexican: Global Migration, Localism, and Exclusion in the U.S.-Mexico Borderlands'', Reejhsinghani described ''The Chinese in Mexico'' as the "most accessible".][
]
Background
Robert Chao Romero is a professor at the University of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California S ...
in the César E. Chávez Department of Chicana and Chicano Studies.[Chai, p. 72.] The book originated as a PhD dissertation.[Reejhsinghani, p. 84.]
The author used archival records from Mexico and the United States. These archival records included municipal census manuscripts from Mexico produced in the 1930s,[ reports from U.S. consulates,][ and Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) ]Chinese Exclusion Act
The Chinese Exclusion Act was a United States federal law signed by President Chester A. Arthur on May 6, 1882, prohibiting all immigration of Chinese laborers for 10 years. The law excluded merchants, teachers, students, travelers, and diplo ...
case files.[ The census manuscripts include demographic information about the community.][López, p. 194.] The U.S. files have information about Chinese who entered Southern California
Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most populous urban a ...
and then traveled onwards to Mexico, their final destination.[
]
Contents
The first two chapters,[ including the first main chapter,][Camacho, p. 544.] discuss Chinese immigration patterns, covering those the world and giving context to the immigration to Mexico.[ The topics include ]chain migration
Chain migration is the social process by which immigrants from a particular area follow others from that area to a particular destination. The destination may be in another country or in a new location within the same country.
John S. MacDona ...
of families, international recruitment of contract labor, and smuggling of immigrants.[Lee, p. 645-646.] The first main chapter discusses reasons why many Chinese immigrated from Guangdong.[
The next two chapters discuss the transnational nature of Chinese-Mexican life.][Lee, p. 646.] Within Chapter 4,[ there is content about interracial marriages between Mexicans and Chinese,][ specifically between Chinese males and Mexican females. This chapter also discusses overall patterns of marriages and families and gender aspects of the Chinese in Mexico.][ The chapter discusses the Mexican attitudes against these marriages; some Mexican males believed the fact that Chinese men were marrying Mexican women threatened their sense of manhood.][
Chapter 5 discusses the types of jobs held by Chinese-Mexicans,][ Chinese-Mexican community organizations, and disputes about the opium business;][ the ]Tong Wars
The Tong Wars were a series of violent disputes beginning in the late 19th century among rival Chinese Tong factions centered in the Chinatowns of various American cities, in particular San Francisco. Tong wars could be triggered by a variety o ...
, discussed in the chapter, occurred in the 1920s.[ Chapter 6 discusses the reception of the Mexican people to Chinese immigration; the information on ]anti-Chinese sentiment
Anti-Chinese sentiment, also known as Sinophobia, is a fear or dislike of China, Chinese people or Chinese culture. It often targets Chinese minorities living outside of China and involves immigration, development of national identity i ...
is included in this chapter. In the final chapter the author proposes establishing a dedicated field of study of Chinese-Latin Americans.[
]
Reception
May-Lee Chai of San Francisco State University
San Francisco State University (commonly referred to as San Francisco State, SF State and SFSU) is a public research university in San Francisco. As part of the 23-campus California State University system, the university offers 118 different ...
wrote that the book is "a fascinating study" that "provides a much-needed corrective."[
Erika Lee of the ]University of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public land-grant research university in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. ...
wrote that the book "is a powerful and important example of just how promising the development of he field of Chinese-Latin American studiescould be."[
Reejhsinghani stated that the three books about the Chinese Mexicans, including ''The Chinese in Mexico'', "are well written, amply documented, and groundbreaking in scope" but that "their transnational focus might make challenging reading for those lacking training in Asian, Asian American, Latin American, or world history."][Reejhsinghani, p. 83.]
References
* Camacho, Julia María Schiavone (The University of Texas at El Paso
The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) is a Public university, public research university in El Paso, Texas. It is a member of the University of Texas System. UTEP is the second-largest university in the United States to have a majority Mex ...
). "The Chinese in Mexico, 1882-1940" (book review). ''The Journal of Asian Studies
''The Journal of Asian Studies'' is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the Association for Asian Studies, covering Asian studies, ranging from history, the arts, social sciences, to phil ...
'', May, 2011, Vol.70(2), p. 543-545
DOI 10.1017/S0021911811000350
* Chai, May-Lee (San Francisco State University
San Francisco State University (commonly referred to as San Francisco State, SF State and SFSU) is a public research university in San Francisco. As part of the 23-campus California State University system, the university offers 118 different ...
). "The Chinese in Mexico, 1882-1940" (book review). ''Asian Affairs: An American Review'', Jan-March, 2012, Vol.39(1), p. 71-72 eer Reviewed Journal* Lee, Erika (University of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public land-grant research university in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. ...
). "The Chinese in Mexico, 1882-1940" (book review). ''Pacific Historical Review'', Nov, 2011, Vol.80(4), p. 644(3) eer Reviewed Journal
DOI 10.1525/phr.2011.80.4.644
Available at
JSTOR
* Lim, Julian. "Chinos and Paisanos: Chinese Mexican Relations in the Borderlands." ''Pacific Historical Review'' 79.1 (2010): 50-85
online
* López, Kathleen (Rutgers University
Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and was ...
). "The Chinese in Mexico, 1882-1940" (book review). ''Hispanic American Historical Review'', Feb, 2012, Vol.92(1), p. 193-195 eer Reviewed Journal
10.1215/00182168-1471112
* Reejhsinghani, Anju (University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...
). "Emerging transnational scholarship: Chinese Mexicans in China, Mexico, and the United States-Mexico borderlands.(The Chinese in Mexico, 1882-1940; Chinese Mexicans: Transpacific Migration and the Search for a Homeland, 1910-1960; Making the Chinese Mexican: Global Migration, Localism, and Exclusion in the U.S.-Mexico Borderlands)(Book review)" ''Journal of American Ethnic History'', Spring, 2014, Vol.33(3), p. 77(8) eer Reviewed Journal
DOI 10.5406/jamerethnhist.33.3.0077
Notes
Further reading
* González, Fredy (Yale University
Yale University is a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Sta ...
).
Moving across the Transnational Commercial Orbit
" H-LatAm, Humanities and Social Sciences Net Online. February 2012.
* Marquez, Letisia.
History of Chinese in Mexico documented for first time in English-language book
Archive
. University of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California S ...
. December 16, 2010.
* Padmanabhan, Swati.
Neglected history of Chinese community in Mexico recognized in Assistant Professor Robert Chao Romero’s new book
Archive
. '' The Daily Bruin''. January 28, 2011.
External links
*
The Chinese in Mexico
' - University of Arizona
The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it was the first university in the Arizona Territory.
T ...
Contents of the book available at
Project MUSE
Project MUSE, a non-profit collaboration between libraries and publishers, is an online database of peer-reviewed academic journals and electronic books. Project MUSE contains digital humanities and social science content from over 250 univers ...
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Books about Mexico
2010 non-fiction books
Chinese diaspora in Mexico
University of Arizona Press books