About the Speaker

Mae Ngai, Lung Family Professor of Asian American Studies and Professor of History, Columbia University

Slides for Classroom Use

Top Ten Things to Know about Asian Americans in U.S. History – PowerPoint [13 MB]

Background Reading and Classroom Material

The Chinese American Experience in 19th Century America [U of Illinois, Urbana, Center for East Asian and Pacific Studies]
“To understand the experience of Chinese immigrants to the United States in the mid-19th century, it is necessary to look at the intellectual, economic, and political climate of the times. Many of the issues that were important then are still part of the current discussion concerning political and economic effects of immigration and whether peoples who do not come from European stock are true Americans.” Includes lesson plans and questions for discussion.

Rise of Industrial America, 1876-1900: Chinese Immigration to the U.S. 1851-1900 [Library of Congress]
“After the Civil War, immigrants again began to stream to the United States. … a relatively large group of Chinese immigrated to the United States between the start of the California gold rush in 1849 and 1882, when federal law stopped their immigration.” A brief overview, with eight primary source documents on Chinese immigration written by various Americans of the time (including Mark Twain).

Immigration from China [KQED Asian Education Initiative]
Timelines, background, lesson plans, and recommended titles for children.

Immigration from Japan [KQED Asian Education Initiative]
Timelines, background, lesson plans, and recommended books for children.

The Chinese in California, 1850-1925 [Library of Congress]

Asia by Era – Japan: 1900-1950, Japanese American Internment in WWII [AFE]

Early American Trade with China, 18th-19th c. [U of Illinois, Urbana]
Curriculum Unit “After gaining its independence from Great Britain, the United States needed to develop its economic base. Restricted during colonial times to supplying raw materials to the industrializing English economy, and excluded from most of the British markets after independence, Americans looked to international trade as a means to generate wealth and provide employment for many. Trade with China, from which the colonies had been barred, seemed to offer immediate opportunities for wealth…”

Wing Luke Museum of the Asian Pacific American Experience
Educators’ resources and curriculum subscription.

Angel Island Immigration Station: The Hidden History [SPICE/Stanford]
Chinese immigrants who were detained at Angel Island Immigration Station in San Francisco Bay between 1910 and 1940. View this recorded webinar, link to order Graphic Novel and lesson plan. “Angel Island: The Chinese-American Experience is a graphic novel that tells the story of Chinese immigrants detained at Angel Island Immigration Station in San Francisco Bay between 1910 and 1940. It offers a stark contrast to the more celebrated stories of European immigrants arriving at Ellis Island on the East Coast and poses important questions about U.S. immigration policy, both past and present.”