An Analysis of the Challenges Faced by Italian and Chinese Immigrants

During the 19th Century, there was a significant wave of Italian and Chinese migrants

who emigrated from their respective countries to escape a variety of issues. These issues include,

poverty, internal strife within the country, or any other danger to life that takes away from the

well-being of life. While they immigrated to a variety of locations in hopes of opportunity for a

better life, a significant number of them came to America with these hopes. These Italian and

Chinese migrants, coming into America with expectations of a better future in store, were met

with disappointment and a low standard of life when they had to deal with harsh discrimination,

a suspicion from the public, and other issues of similar nature. These issues resulted in two

primary outcomes, immigrants were stuck near or at the bottom of the social ladder and would be

inhibited in their ability to move up from the laboring class.

At the time of mass migration from Italy, Southern Italy was facing internal strife

resulting from power inequalities and common citizens who were suffering extreme poverty

because of it (Maggio 6:27-7:41). Along with that, the idea of finding work and opportunity to

build a better future drew these citizens out of Italy as immigrants in other countries. One

country that appealed to many was America. According to a documentary discussing the lives of

the Italian immigrants, when these immigrants first arrived in America, their secretive nature and

the fact that they spoke a completely different language drew suspicion from people (Maggio

13:07-13:20). This high suspicion and distrust made their assimilation into American society

difficult (13:25-13:54). Press coverage would amplify this effect, by creating negative

stereotypes of Italians being in crime families and syndicates, with one demonstration of this

being the term “Mafia” that was used by the press and how it popularized a theory that Italians

are inherently predisposed to crime (16:14-17:15). These factors ultimately kept the Italian
immigrants stuck in the labor industry, doing dangerous work that is considered undesirable,

which took away from their quality of life, even when they had come to America in hopes of

finding a better life.

One instance demonstrating this low quality of life is, when Italian workers guided a gas

tank, where they were subject to unsafe working conditions with little regard for their safety

(Maggio 26:15-27:11). This resulted in the a support structure collapsing one day while they

were working, which crushed the workers and killed them instantly (Maggio 26:11-27:11).

Another instance of an issue that arose from the suspicion of the public eye towards Italians is

the locations of Little Italy where Italians banned together for a sense of safety from this

discrimination, which only fueled the public’s discrimination. This is because banning together

into neighborhoods simply gave the public even more reason for suspicion. Along with creating

more suspicion towards Italians, Little Italy also presented its own unique issue to the Italians

living there. An Italian crime organization, who were known as the “Black Hand,” would extort

money from the Italians living in Little Italy, claiming to offer “protection.” Those who did not

comply and agree to this suffered having their houses bombed or their lives put in danger

(Maggio 31:57-39:04). Typically, this kind of extortion wouldn’t be successful and would be

difficult to execute, however, the Black Hand relied on the knowledge that the Italians, being

secretive, wouldn’t reach out the American Police force for help to stop the extortion. With this,

the Black Hand’s criminal methods of gaining control and wealth were viable given the

conditions (Maggio 31:57-39:04).

In comparison to the situation of Italian immigrants in America, Italian immigrants who

choose to migrate elsewhere in the world, specifically Argentina, found a much more desirable

outcome, where they were able to provide for their families and themselves to escape poverty,
just like they had originally intended. Argentina is one place where Italians found more success

in comparison to those who moved to America (Gabaccia 15). One indicator of this is the fact

that a “Little Italy” only existed within America and not in Argentina, since the formation of a

Little Italy is only prompted by the suspicion or discrimination from outsiders which led to them

seeking to be amongst one another, as shown in a documentary (Maggio 31:11-33:24). This

signifies that there was no extreme discrimination against Italians in Argentina during the mass

immigration of Italians.

China, in a similar situation to Italy, was also faced with extreme poverty from

overpopulation, a lack of industrialization, and an unjust treatment of citizens from those in

power. The idea they could escape this life and gain wealth or a better quality of life by

immigrating to another country, such as America, appealed greatly to them. When they did so

and immigrated to America, just like the case of the Italians, they were also faced with harsh

discrimination and distrust. However, this discrimination and dislike stemmed from different

reasons, in comparison to the Italians. One argument against Chinese immigration, was that the

Chinese, with their inferior ideals and values, would convert America’s culture into something

else more reminiscent of Chinese culture. One example of this, which comes from an article

arguing against Asian immigration, is the treatment of Chinese women, where they are either

secluded from the world by being kept in the house, or that they are of the lowest standards as

prostitutes (Gjerde 279). Another example, from the same article, is the point that Chinese don’t

share the same religion and that they believe that perfection has already been accomplished long

ago in the past, as opposed to the West’s “superior” view that striving for perfection means

moving forward with industrial or scientific progress (Gjerde 279). This is reminiscent of the
civilizing mission the West believed in, and it indicates that some people may still hold on to

those types of sentiments (Strayer 516).

In conjunction with the sentiments towards Chinese ideals and culture, the Chinese

exhibited a disciplined work ethic and ideals also made them seem more desirable in comparison

to other demographics (Gjerde 172). This was one observation made, according to a primary

source from Lee Chew, who was a Chinese immigrant himself. At the same time, a source

advocating against Chinese immigration stated that the Chinese dominated many different types

of industries present in America and that it needed to be stopped (Gjerde 275). Alongside this, a

fearful perception used as an argument stated that the Chinese would outnumber whites in

America with their rising numbers, essentially forcing the whites to compete with them (Gjerde

279). These observations from sources that are both for and against Chinese immigration show

that opposition to Chinese immigration spurred mostly from the fact that people were terrified of

the possibility that the Chinese population in America may grow to eventually be prevalent

enough, that the extent of their presence in the workforce results in most Americans losing

almost all access to opportunities in the workforce.

Reflecting on the past, it is observed that the disdain towards Chinese immigrants ended

up having a significant effect. According to a source describing the hardships Chinese faced that

led to many of them immigrating, a policy was eventually implemented that banned all Chinese

immigrants from entering countries that supported this policy, with America being one them

(Chan 31). Thus, a result of Chinese immigrants looking to escape poverty by emigrating from

China, was that Chinese ended up being banned from immigration altogether in certain places

throughout the world. Eventually, these policies were done away with, and the current situation

today, which shows that there are a substantial number of Chinese immigrants and citizens
within America, who mostly seem to have a relatively decent life. The population of Chinese in

America today also seem to have a much easier time assimilating into American culture as well,

with the general mindset that seems to be fairly accepting of the Chinese and their assimilation.

Looking at both situations, it seems that there are a lot of similarities in what the Chinese

and Italians faced when they both migrated to America. Both groups ended up dealing with

heavy discrimination, which resulted in most of them being stuck in the working class with

limited opportunity for advancement into the classes above. The outcomes of these situations

were that they were viewed with a negative light from the public and even targeted at times.

Little Italy neighborhoods would arise since Italians felt a strong need to ban together for safety

from the discrimination that they faced, and the Chinese would looked at as “inferior” by people

advocating the idea of stopping their immigration, which led to a temporary policy that

completely stopped Chinese immigration altogether. Looking at the current situation today, this

heavy discrimination is no longer prevalent anymore for both groups, and it seems that Italians

and Chinese can easily assimilate into an American culture that welcomes them without any hate

or distrust due to race, behavior, or beliefs and ideology.

 Works Cited

D. Gabaccia, “Gli Italiani nel mondo: Italy’s Workers around the World,” OAH Magazine of

History 14 [1999] 12-16.

S. Chan, This Bittersweet Soil, The Chinese in California Agriculture 1860-1910 (University of

California Press, 1986) 16-17, 30-31.

J. Gjerde, Major Problems in American Immigration and Ethnic History (Boston, New York:

Houghton Mifflin, 1998) 172-174, 275-281.

La Famiglia. Dir. John Maggio. PBS, 2015. Kanopy. Web. 17 Apr. 2019.

“Colonial Encounters in Asia, Africa, and Oceania.” Ways of the World: a Brief Global History;

Volume 2: Since the Fifteenth Century, by Robert W. Strayer and Eric W. Nelson, Fourth ed.,

vol. 2, Bedford/St. Martin's, 2019, pp. 512–542.