They provided cheap labor, and they were blamed for white unemployment. Rampant racial sentiment in the U.S. would result in an 1882 exclusion act, which gave rise to the first great wave of commercial human smuggling along the Arizona-Mexico border. Who were these laborers? The Chinese. Arizona border patrol officers, manned by lawmen such as Jeff Milton, did their best to keep these “coolies” out. After more than 60 years,
the exclusion act was repealed in 1943, and the Chinese already
Already Signed Up? Log in here.
Read this article now for Free!
Ready for a third free article? Create a free account by entering your email address and a password below.
— OR —
Sign Up Now for $29.95 a year and have immediate access to all of True West content, including the complete True West Archives dating back to 1953!
