Asian Immigration: Discrimination and Smuggling in America

Regarded as unassimilable, Asian immigrants were systematically discriminated by way of American immigration policies. The earliest policy enforced that overtly excluded groups of individuals based on racial categorization was passed in 1882. This was known as the Chinese Exclusion Act. As the years went by, hostile sentiments towards Asians fostered and eventually manifested themselves in the Immigration Act of 1924. In response to these discriminating policies, prospective immigrants sought alternate routes to America, often involving the channel of human smuggling. Despite the presence of human smuggling prior to the late 20th century, heightened awareness of this exploit resulted from the media sensation around the Golden Venture ship,

an incident involving a capsized vessel containing illegal immigrants near the shores of New York City's Rockaway Beach. In spite of the extra precautions taken by government officials, human smuggling continues until today. Consequently, as the government imposes further restrictive immigration policies, the market for human smuggling expands. In order to control the prevalence of human smuggling, and to remedy historic acts of immigration discrimination, it is crucial for the United States government to develop more receptive immigration policies.
The Immigration Act of 1924, which set out to establish quotas on immigration from Southern and Eastern Europe, ultimately ended all Asian immigration. As promulgated by this act, immigrants ineligible to citizenship were excluded from entry into America. During the time the act was passed, only free white persons along with persons of African descent were allowed to naturalize. The Nationalization Act of 1870 was upheld through several cases defining white persons as Caucasians originating from Europe. Accordingly, Asians were ineligible for citizenship, and therefore, were altogether prohibited from immigrating to America. This provision was exemplified in Chang Chan et al., v. Nagle. Chan, along with several other women, were the wives of men living permanently in America, and some of the husbands were American citizens by birth. Despite the husbands’ citizenship status, all of the women were denied entry due to the recently enacted immigration policy. Unlike other immigrant groups, Asians were racially classified as a group, and were the predominant scapegoat of the 1924 immigration act.
Although Asians were barred from legally entering the United States, many prospective immigrants refused to allow this provision to impede upon their chances of achieving the American dream. Many of these immigrants sought help from human smugglers, who agreed to smuggle them into the country for a large fee.
According to William H. Siener, human smuggling transactions had been occurring throughout the 20th century, and prominent human smugglers in the early 20th century were primarily Caucasian citizens. There were rival factions, each vying for business from potential immigrants. The most infamous of these human smuggling groups were led by Thomas W. O’Brien, and William Riley. Unlike Riley, who was an ex-inspector, O’Brien was a carpenter and amassed greater notoriety. Nonetheless, both groups garnered frequent attention from authorities, leading to investigations, and members of both groups were often fined, or given a light sentence. Independent of the rival groups, another notable figure in the early 20th century human smuggling exploit was an individual nicknamed Kid West. West had various associates located in Ontario, Toronto, and Buffalo. Many of the associates involved in West’s operations were inconspicuous individuals with professions ranging from the owner of a boarding house, the owner of a saloon to a farmer. Each had their individual roles within the whole operation. Regardless of the various factions, the preferred method of transportation was by boat and railroad. As officials became aware of the lucrative business of human smuggling, more patrolmen were set by the riverfront, yet this did not hinder the activities engaged by human smugglers. Smugglers merely adapted to the restrictions, and found alternate routes.
As an inadvertent consequence of the passage of the 1924 immigration act, the market for human smuggling expanded. With the new immigration restrictions, prospective immigrants grew dependent upon human smugglers as their only option of entering America. This increased reliance led to increased demands from immigrants willing to be smuggled, which concurrently increased the incentive to become a human smuggler. In the early 20th century, a human smuggler collected a larger salary than government officials. However, as a result of the high demands that remained consistent throughout the 20th century, human smugglers began to charge substantially larger fees for the journey.
The most infamous human smuggler of the late 20th century was Cheng Chui Ping, or better known as, Sister Ping. Likewise to her counterparts from the earlier half of the century, Sister Ping was a modest woman, who owned a small store in New York City’s Chinatown. The majority of clients who paid for Sister Ping’s services were from the Fujian province of China. Many of these individuals were seeking for ways to improve their economic standings. As reported by Chinese foreign nationals, the opportunities individuals received in America yielded more fortuitous results in a month than a year’s worth of work in China. Unlike her competitors, many of the immigrants smuggled by Sister Ping perceived her to be a saint—willing to help her countrymen in need. None of those smuggled ever perceived Sister Ping as the criminal officials made her out to be, regardless of the conditions of the journey.
The primary method Sister Ping utilized to smuggle her clients was by sea. With help from international associates, collectively known as snakeheads, throughout Asia, Europe, and Central America, she was able to manage many detours taken by the ships and boats containing smuggled immigrants. This tactic was used to evade attention from immigration officials, and made it harder to follow the track. Sister Ping had been on officials’ radar for a long time. However, after the Golden Venture incident, officials were able to obtain information from members of the gang, who were involved in the incident, and were able to build a case against Sister Ping.
As reported by Patrick Radden Keefe, the Golden Venture incident occurred in the summer of 1996. The ship had been out at sea for a total of six months, taking detours through Singapore, Bangkok, Kenya, Brazil, and Central America. Sister Ping had initially planned for members of the Fuk Ching gang to arrive at the meeting point, and to row a boat out to guide the immigrants to shore. However, a week prior, the Fuk Ching gang was involved in a fight with a rival gang, resulting in the deaths of the main conspirators of the Golden Venture operation. Given new orders, the ship captain attempted to land the ship on the shores of Rockaway beach. However, the ship crashed into a sandbar, and capsized. Panicking, many of the immigrants on-board began to jump into the ocean and swam towards the shore. Shortly after the ship crashed, officials were notified, and promptly arrived at the scene. After safely transporting most of the immigrants to shore, officials arrested all the co-conspirators and immigrants.
Out of the hundreds of smuggled immigrants on-board the Golden Venture who petitioned for political asylum, only 14 individuals, or approximately 8% of petitions, were approved for asylum.

The circumstances in which officials granted and denied political asylum was ambiguous as shown in Xin-Chang v. Slattery and Chen Zhou Chai v. Carroll. Zhang had claimed that he had undergone sterilization as a punishment for having a second child, and therefore, was under persecution based on the family planning policy. However, judges determined that Zhang’s punishment was not for any political dissent, but was a direct consequence of his failure to comply with the one-child policy. The judges denied his motion for political asylum. However, months later, judges consulted matters regarding Chai and decided to approve his petition for political asylum. Likewise to Zhang, Chai claimed to be persecuted under the family planning policy. However, Chai had upset a powerful neighbor, which the judges found to be ground for political dissent. Yet, in Zhang’s case, he had refused multiple times to join the Communist Party, but the judges did not find this to be a form of political dissent. Without clarifying what constitutes political dissent, the decisions made have been

arbitrary.
Human smuggling operations continue until today, and despite further precautions undertaken by officials after the Golden Venture incident, smugglers are able to adapt to the new restrictions and organize different routes, as well as engage in other methods of transportation. In the United Nations report concerning human smuggling, it estimated that approximately 30,000 to 40,000 Chinese nationals have been smuggled into the United States in 2008. Further, in the summer of 2015, officials arrested three Chinese nationals involved in a smuggling network that transported individuals from Canada to New York through tribal territory. Although it was unclear whether the individuals were initially smuggled into Canada, this was evident of human smugglers' adaptabilities to changing circumstances. It is clear that restrictive immigration policies are not as effective as officials intend them to be. The pool of prospective immigrants will remain constant, regardless if they are welcomed or not. If they are not welcomed, it is apparent that immigrants are willing to pay the large fees required by human smugglers and face the risk of death in order to have a chance at the opportunities they perceive America to provide. Just this mere opportunity means that they will have a chance to provide a better life for their families, along with a chance at prosperity.
Understanding this, it is crucial for the government to develop more receptive immigration policies in order to accommodate groups of individuals who were historically discriminated against. The first step to this goal is to acknowledge the wrongdoings of past immigration policies, and to have the president give a formal apology. Second, passengers from the Golden Venture ship should all be granted political asylum, along with a small compensation for the duration of the time they were held by immigration officials. The government should also educate the population on the harmful nature of xenophobia, and to be more accepting and understanding of immigrants from various religious, and national backgrounds. The public should also be made aware of the injustices placed upon certain groups of immigrants in the past.
If Asians have been perceived as unassimilable, it is the responsibility of the government to provide Asian immigrants with sponsored English and civics classes. An example of a successful integration process that incorporated both language and civics classes was initiated by the Office of New Americans in Maryland. Along with the courses, the program provided immigrants with resources for finding jobs. Immigrants, who attended these sessions, reflected upon a sense of concern for the welfare of America that was fostered by the program. Assimilating immigrants into society does not only benefit immigrants by granting them the ability to communicate with their neighbors, obtain jobs, and understand their rights, but the country also benefits by having individuals who will promote the well-being of society.