Immigrant Case Studies
The Chinese
Bernard Wong cites historical reasons for Chinese immigration as: political and economic stability, increased education opportunities, and existing communities in place in America [33]. They first came for the railroad and mining industries, and then the well-known restaurants and laundry mats followed because of demand [33]. Legislation prevented economic competition (by keeping immigrants out of certain industries) well into the early 20th century, but Civil rights progressivism in the 1960s made for better opportunities for immigrant advancement [33]. While Asians used to come solely with hopes of economic advancement, now in a globalized world, their reasons are much more complex. Many modern Asian immigrants are well educated and economically well off, as compared to older generations that came seeking the “American Dream” [33]. In the case of San Francisco especially, the already-established ethnic communities and networks draw people to the States. While San Francisco has not always been hospitable to immigrants—notably to Asians—the communities and kinship networks still attracted newcomers each year [33].
Dreier, Mollenkopf, and Swanstrom contend that modern immigration can fuel city growth by strengthening ties to the global economy, but also can lower local wages by providing a large pool of labor [5]. Interestingly, however, in San Francisco post-1965, an alternative economy of sorts has separated some immigrants from the mainstream market. Since then, a large enough ethnic population has existed to support larger commercial and service sectors serving solely the ethnic population—as opposed to serving non-ethnic populations seeking restaurants and cheap laundering [33]. This is especially seen in the real estate sector. However, overall, the Chinese are much more integrated in the traditional market economy of San Francisco today—yet it is still difficult for a Chinese immigrant to be promoted and move very far up in a career [33]. Spatially, the Chinese were historically congregated in China Town, west of downtown. However, that has been far from the case post-World War II, as many Asians have branched out—notably into the Sunset and Richmond districts, on the west coast [33]. Such relocation has shifted the spatial organization of both ethnic demography and ethnic economies. |
Chinatown today. (Source: Sfchinatown.wordpress.com)
Historical map of San Francisco's Chinatown in 1885. The map shows places of Chinese residential and business occupancy, gambling houses, prostitution houses, and opium resorts. Click to see larger image. (Source: Flickr, Eric Fischer)
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This map shows how San Francisco's Japanese population has moved over the years from the eastern section of the city to the western side. (Source: http://japantownatlas.com/map-sanfrancisco.html)
Japantown, before WWII. Click to enlarge image. (Source: japantownatlas.com/map-sanfrancisco1.html)
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The Japanese
The overall national climate during World War II had devastating consequences for a large segment of San Francisco’s population: Japanese-Americans and Japanese immigrants. A federal law forced more than 100,000 into internment camps during the war, leaving many vacant residential and commercial properties that were not all returned after the war [9]. A large population of African-American workers filled the vacancies in the Western Addition Japantown as they entered the city for wartime employment. After war years, some Japanese returned to this neighborhood. However, many others, including and other Asian populations, moved even further westward—occupying new parts of the city that were not the traditional Japantowns. This redistributed ethnic groups into a pattern that has largely remained through today.
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