Federal Writers' Project – Life Histories/2021/Spring/105/Section 56/Joe Shing

Overview

Joe Shing, a Chinese immigrant, lived in Spartanburg, South Carolina as a laundry proprietor. He was interviewed by Ruth D. Henderson as part of the Federal Writer’s Project on December 24, 1938.

Biography

Joe Shing was a Chinese American man born in Canton, China in October 1893. He grew up with his parents and siblings, working on a farm together. They raised many different crops, but Shing emphasized that they got, “very little money” for their crops.¹ The schools and teachings in China were different from that of America, but Shing says that he believes in God the same way Americans do.² Soon after missionaries began to come Into China, his family began to hear about the “Great America.” The family spent time saving up money and were able to come to America when Shing was eighteen years old. In San Francisco, he got his first job working as a clerk in a Chinese grocery store. Shing did not think it was important to learn English because for many Chinese Americans it was not necessary to learn to speak just then. He then learned that this was wrong, and ended up learning the language, claiming that it was the hardest task he had ever confronted.³ After three years, Shing and his brother went to Chicago to work for their cousin who ran a Chinese café. After another three years, he and his brother moved to Athens, Georgia to open a small laundromat, which was successful for about two years. Shing then moved and opened up a laundromat in Spartanburg, South Carolina, which is where this interview took place. Shing was a very good businessman and always made sure that his customers were satisfied. Living as a Chinese immigrant in America at that time, Joe had to deal with a lot of racism and xenophobia. He did not only have to deal with poverty, but also the hateful comments. Shing once dreamed of getting married and having children, though he ended doing neither, claiming he was too old. Shing was not that much of a social person, he spent most of his days running his business and trying to make ends meet.

Social and Cultural Issues

China imperialism cartoon

Racism and Xenophobia During the Early 20th Century

Many foreigners and immigrants had to deal with racist and xenophobic acts from Americans who were native-born. Chinese immigrants were also portrayed in two different ways: the first was to depict them as a threat, the second was to mock them.⁴ They were often ridiculed for their physical appearance and accent. The racist metaphor “Yellow Peril,” was propaganda used to represent that East Asian people were an existential danger to the world. Since Chinese people had different views on democracy and religion, many Americans saw them as a threat.⁵ The Chinese Exclusion Act was also another example of how Americans did not want to welcome more Chinese immigrants into the U.S. Though it did take place closer to the end of the 19th century, this law set a precedent of how Asian-Americans were to be treated. East Asians were also mocked for having different physical features, many would make fun of their eyes, skin tone, face shape, and more. Immigrants were not only ridiculed for having an accent when speaking English but also for speaking their own native language.

The Chinese Must Go - Magic Washer - 1886 anti-Chinese US cartoon

Impact of The Great Depression on Asian Communities

The Great Depression was a period of severe economic downturn, that affected the lives of most Americans from 1929-1933. People had to deal with losing their jobs, not making enough money, and being able to set food on the table. For Asian-American immigrants, the Great Depression was even harder for them. Stories of massive unemployment, housing evictions, lost savings, and starvation was reported in the Asian-American communities throughout the United States.⁶ Suicides also came up in some cases, but surprisingly mortality rate was low during the Great Depression.⁷ Most Asian-Americans were already undercharging for their goods and services compared to white-owned businesses, so when the Great Depression hit, prices had to decrease even more. Chinese laundrymen on the East Coast saw their earnings and wages decline by about one-half during the Depression. Lots of individuals were put out of jobs and were barely making enough to provide for their families. Immigrants and foreigners had to deal with twice the hardships of most white families during the Great Depression. Asian-Americans had moved to America not only to find a better life but also to send back money to their relatives in their native country. When people started making less and less, their families back in Asia were not getting the financial support that they once had. Due to these circumstances, Asian-American families for the first time turned to the federal government for relief.⁸

References

1. ↑Henderson, Spartanburg’s Chinatown
2. ↑Henderson, Spartanburg’s Chinatown
3. ↑Henderson, Spartanburg’s Chinatown
4. ↑Chaleila, “Between a rock and a hard place: Racist, xenophobic, and materialist 1920s America struggling for home and identity.”
5. ↑Chaleila, “Between a rock and a hard place: Racist, xenophobic, and materialist 1920s America struggling for home and identity.”
6. ↑Encyclopedia of the Great Depression, “Asian Americans, Impact of the Great Depression on”
7. ↑Tapia Granados, “Life and death during the Great Depression”
8. ↑University of Illinois, “The Chinese Experience

Bibliography

• Henderson, Ruth D. Spartanburg's Chinatown. Other. Federal Writer's Project, December 24, 1938.
• The Chinese Experience in 19th Century America. University of Illinois. Accessed March 23, 2021. http://teachingresources.atlas.illinois.edu/chinese_exp/introduction04.html.
• "Asian Americans, Impact of the Great Depression on." Encyclopedia of the Great Depression. Encyclopedia.com. (March 23, 2021). https://www.encyclopedia.com/economics/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/asian-americans-impact-great-depression
• Tapia Granados, José A., and Ana V. Diez Roux. “Life and Death during the Great Depression.” National Academy of Sciences 106, no. 41 (October 13, 2009): 17290–95. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0904491106.
• Chaleila, Wisam. “Between a Rock and a Hard Place: Racist, Xenophobic, and Materialist 1920s America Struggling for Home and Identity.” Cogent Arts & Humanities 3, no. 1 (June 7, 2017). https://doi.org/10.1080/23311983.2016.1191123.