I know that the Chinese Exclusion Act prevented a lot of Chinese coming into the US, and it wasn't until recently an influx of Asian immigrants started coming into the US.
But Chinatowns across the United States have existed for more than a century. Both NYC's Chinatown and San Francisco's Chinatown have records of Chinese settling in as early as the 1840s/1850s. And Chicago's Chinatown in the early 1900s.
Why is it that I never run into second, third, or fourth generation Chinese Americans? Whenever I go to Chinatowns, everyone is either an immigrant or first generation American. Where did the descendants go? Also tongs in Chinatowns have historically been in the US for more than a century and they are still being operated today, how come they are still run by Chinese immigrants? Shouldn't they have #-generation of American-born Chinese running them by now?
In contrast, Americans of Japanese descent have also immigrated into the US since the 1800s. However, it is not hard for me run into 3rd or 4th generation Japanese Americans.
So my biggest question is, where did all the descendants go? And how come Chinatown is always run by Chinese immigrants (even though they have been around for quite some time now)?
I've gotta ask, how do you know they aren't? How are you telling apart 1st generation Chinese Americans/Chinese immigrants from 2+ generation Chinese Americans?
Hi!
I would like to address several of your statements; there are answers to these questions, but I am seeing what I think is possibly a large observation bias in the question.
The majority of your query revolves around the question of Chinatowns and the Chinese within:
And how come Chinatown is always run by Chinese immigrants (even though they have been around for quite some time now)? In contrast, Americans of Japanese descent have also immigrated into the US since the 1800s. However, it is not hard for me run into 3rd or 4th generation Japanese Americans.
So - Are you running into these third and fourth generation Japanese Americans in Little Tokyo/Japantown in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, New York? Or do find them outside of those areas? My bet is that they are not in Little Tokyo. The same would be applied to the Legacy Chinese. They do exist, and, while small in number, can be found in multiple cities across the US. My observation is that it is likely "easy" for you to find the Japanese Americans because, frankly, their community is much smaller, is not marked by a huge influx of recent immigration (1960's to present) compared to the Chinese, and that they have very strong documentation of family lineage due to the efforts of the US government to imprison them in concentration camps such as the infamous Manzanar during World War II. The Chinese were not interred as the Japanese were, and there was nowhere near the paranoia concerning their presence in America as there was towards Japanese Americans following Pearl Harbor.
As to the above statement concerning immigrants in Chinatown: Chinatown has always historically been an immigrant's gateway. By its very nature, it is the place where first contacts are made for immigrants, and it provides a community of like-minded and similar generation people, all of whom are seeking work; it also provides that network for employment. You, as an immigrant or expat, would likely seek the same were you to take a similar life's journey to another nation. So, inherently, Chinatowns will have a large composition of Chinese immigrants, and first generation Americans/ children of immigrants. As their family line grows, and they become successful and acculturated, it makes sense to move away from Chinatown.
I know that the Chinese Exclusion Act prevented a lot of Chinese coming into the US, and it wasn't until recently an influx of Asian immigrants started coming into the US.
So - the Chinese Exclusion Act is one of the reason that there are not as many legacy/multi generation Chinese families (actually, Asian families - which I will discuss in a minute.) One of it's more powerful demarcations was a prohibition on families; generally, only the merchant class could bring families over, and merchants were not in demand; what was needed in 19th century America was cheap labor. Those men and women were discriminated against; and largely sent out of/left the US once their work was done as multiple layers of racist Anti-Asian and anti-immigrant laws made it difficult for them to settle. The first wave, albeit small, of Chinese Immigration occurs in the 1920's following turmoil in China; but the marked increase in Asian immigration does not occur until the 1960's. The Chinese Exclusion act was broad, and did not always differentiate between cultures. Philippine immigration in the early 20th cent was affected by this as well, as was Japanese.
Also tongs in Chinatowns have historically been in the US for more than a century and they are still being operated today, how come they are still run by Chinese immigrants? Shouldn't they have #-generation of American-born Chinese running them by now?
Not necessarily. It is amazing that the tongs still exist; they were the group that provided contacts and employment information for immigrants. As the members grew older and moved on, new generation of immigrants would have taken over. The Tong, although a powerhouse of control in Chinatowns, is not necessarily a legacy post - there is minimal appeal for a 4th generation American to hold onto a top position within - after all, it is there to help immigrants. It makes sense for a man from 2000's Fujian or Guangdong to help his fellow immigrants; a 5th Generation American would not be able to relate as well, even if fluent in Mandarin/Hakka/Cantonese/Hokkien.
Sources
I highly recommend, also,
Several edits for spelling