I recently finished reading “The Chinese in America: A Narrative History” by Iris Chang which is an excellent and expansive overview of the history of Chinese immigration and Chinese-Americans, with even a chapter devoted to Taiwanese immigration.
What is amazing to learn in more depth is the level of official and day-to-day discrimination Chinese and Chinese-Americans (as well as Asian-Americans in general) have faced since the California Gold Rush days, from the Chinese Exclusion Act (1882) to wrongful persecution of Dr. Wen Ho Lee, and how Chinese/Americans have been viewed historically as “foreigners” and not “real Americans,” though I do think the book tends cover discrimination a bit too much, considering I think the Chinese have had it a whole lot better than African Americans or Native Americans (or let’s say, Japanese Americans). Still, the book is still an excellent read if you want to learn about the history of the Chinese in America.
