Despite being Chinese myself, I was completely unaware of so much of that history. And the idea that such a blatantly racist law like “The Chinese Exclusion Act” could ever be passed, made me realize just how different the world was way back in … 1882.

Without that law, the story of Chinese immigration in America, hell the story of America itself would undoubtedly have been very different.

During the time the law was in effect, European immigration exploded and shaped America, particularly the East Coast. I can scarcely imagine how different the American West would have been if the Chinese had been allowed to immigrate in the same numbers or even larger.

Think about it…we could be talking about the fighting Tongs in L.A., the Bruds and the Clips.

Anyhoo. Man, there’s a rich and detailed history of racism in the New World. Canada’s treatment of Asians through the 19th and most of the 20th century is every bit as disgraceful.

The nice lady in the picture, Connie Young Yu, has written a book about San Jose’s Chinatown, but it doesn’t look like it’s very widely distributed. It’s not on Amazon, at any rate.

The first layer of asphalt has been removed and the excavators already found pieces of porcelain on day one. I’ll update the story when the 10 days of digging are over.