Protesting With the Pen, Part I

Previously I wrote how President Trump's travel ban was not a new idea to American history. Over a century earlier, President Arthur signed the Chinese Exclusion Act in response to fears that the Chinese were gobbling up jobs and leaving red-blooded Americans out of work.

But even before that, in the thick of the gold rush, California Governor John Bigler announced that he wanted to "check this tide of Asiatic immigration."

What's fascinating is what happens when people respond to restrictive actions by those in power. Usually the most vocal are either VERY supportive or VERY opposed, and often sink into the mud with insults or disrespect for the other side.

There are people, however, who rise above the rancor. Many times they are the people who are the most targeted, and rather than lose themselves in a sea of angry voices, they call on thought and reason to register their protest.

These are often in the form of open letters which sometimes become seminal documents that define a historical period. Think Martin Luther King Jr.'s Letter From Birmingham Jail or Siegfried Sassoon's A Soldier's Declaration: Finished With War.

Demonstrators protest against the first travel ban in February, 2017. Photo: AFP

A current example occurred on December 5, 2016, when American Muslim leaders signed an open letter to then-President-elect Trump, detailing their concern about deteriorating attitudes toward Muslims. Over 500 people signed it.

During the gold rush, a Chinese community leader named Norman Ah-Sing was also concerned with the anti-minority talk ramping up in government. After Governor Bigler proposed cutting off Chinese immigration, Ah-Sing took up his pen and wrote an open letter to him. It ran in the Alta California on May 5, 1852.

Chinese Scholar, 1910 by Vera Waddington

Comparing the two letters, it's interesting to see that, though the two are separated by 164 years of history, they sound the same themes of human beings yearning to be accepted into mainstream American society.

Here are a few of those themes that stand out.

1. "We love American values."

The writers describe how they are no less American than anyone else.


American Muslims to President Trump in 2016:

"The values we hold align with those of the overwhelming majority of Americans. . . . Like other Americans, we love our country and are committed to preserving religious freedom, equal opportunity and equal protection under the law for all."

Norman Ah-Sing to Governor Bigler in 1852:

"I am a Chinaman, a republican, and a lover of free institutions; am much attached to the principles of the government of the United States, and therefore take the liberty of addressing you as the chief of the government of this State."

A Muslim woman at a demonstration in 2013. Photo: AFP

2. "We contribute to American society."

Both authors display their group's value to society by showing what a positive impact it has.


American Muslims to President Trump in 2016:

"Muslims have served and paid the ultimate sacrifice in every war since the American Revolution with more than 3,939 Muslims serving honorably in the U.S. Armed Forces, today and many more in law enforcement. . . . We serve our nation as teachers, business owners, factory workers, cab drivers, doctors, lawyers, law enforcement and firefighters."

Norman Ah-Sing to Governor Bigler in 1852:

"We came amongst you as mechanics or traders, and following every honorable business of life. You do not find us pursuing occupations of degrading character . . . and if our countrymen save the proceeds of their industry from the tavern and the gambling house to spend it on farms or town lots or on their families, surely you will admit that even these are virtues."

Chinese grocers in 1898. Photo: Roy Graves

There are two more major themes I've identified in protest letters that I'll discuss next week. Stay tuned for more from the American Muslims and Norman Ah-Sing.


I am currently working on a book about Ah Toy, the first Chinese brothel madam in gold rush San Francisco.

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