Paper Son: One Man's Story (Asian American History & Cultu) [Paperback]

Tung Chin (Author)

Book Description

Series: Asian American History & Cultu | Publication Date: October 2, 2000

In this remarkable memoir, Tung Pok Chin casts light on the largely hidden experience of those Chinese who immigrated to this country with false documents during the Exclusion era. Although scholars have pieced together their history, first-person accounts are rare and fragmented; many of the so-called 'Paper Sons' lived out their lives in silent fear of discovery. Chin's story speaks for the many Chinese who worked in urban laundries and restaurants, but it also introduces an unusually articulate man's perspective on becoming a Chinese American. Chin's story begins in the early 1930s, when he followed the example of his father and countless other Chinese who bought documents that falsely identified them as children of Chinese Americans. Arriving in Boston and later moving to New York City, he worked and lived in laundries. Chin was determined to fit into American life and dedicated himself to learning English. But he also became an active member of key organizations a church, the Chinese Hand Laundrymen's Alliance, and Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association that anchored him in the community. A self-reflective and expressive man, Chin wrote poetry commenting on life in China and the hardships of being an immigrant in the United States. His work was regularly published in the China Daily News and brought him to the attention of the FBI, then intent on ferreting out communists and illegal immigrants. His vigorous narrative speaks to the day-to-day anxieties of living as a Paper Son as well as the more universal immigrant experiences of raising a family in modest circumstances and bridging cultures. Historian K. Scott Wong introduces Chin's memoir, discussing the limitations on immigration from China and what is known about Exclusion-era Chinese American communities. Set in historical context, Tung Pok Chin's unique story offers an engaging account of a twentieth-century Paper Son. Author note: Winifred Chin is a Visiting Scholar with the Asian/Pacific American Studies and Research Institute at New York University.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Paper Son gives us a rare, first-hand account of living as a Chinese American under false pretenses during the exclusion era, roughly 1882-1943. Tung Pok Chin bought documents that falsely identified him as the son of a Chinese American, allowing him to live and work in the U.S. or Gold Mountain. Most Chinese Americans worked as hand-launderers and in restaurants, and the conditions that Chin details are similar to those in other immigrant stories: long work days, unsafe and even fatal working conditions, cramped and squalid living quarters. But Chin's memoir also relays the tension and fear the Chinese American community felt during the McCarthy era, as many were questioned unlawfully by the FBI. Harassment and illegal searches were commonplace. But Chin weathered the hardships, arriving in 1934 at the age of 19 and staying until his death in 1988. He mastered English, became a sermon interpreter at the True Light Lutheran Church in New York, published poetry and essays in Chinese newspapers, and raised a family. A moving story of one person's desire for knowledge, peace, and security. Michelle Kaske
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Review

"Having read a number of autobiographies and biographies of Asian American that came before me, Paper Son reaffirms the notion that we are lucky to have not gone through what they had experienced. At this time when [the Asian American Curriculum Project] is trying to promote new Asian Pacific American poets and their writings, it's good to be featuring a book on one of our community's pioneering poets" Asian American Books newsletter "This rare, engaging, and often poignant firsthand chronicle of Chin's efforts to create a life for himself in the US while supporting his family in China effectively demonstrates how the continual fear of being exposed as a "paper son" and the changing social, international, and political developments from the 1930s through the 1950s fundamentally shaped Chin's opportunities and experiences. ...this clearly written and accessible autobiography constitutes a rich resource for faculty and students interested in US social history and immigration as well as Asian American studies, and is highly recommended for libraries developing comprehensive Asian American studies collection, or diversifying their collections in US social history, immigration, and labor." --Choice "What a stunning book! Mr. Tung Pok Chin was a self-taught poet philosopher steeped in the Laundries and restaurants of Boston and New York City during the nightmarish years of the Chinese exclusion and McCarthy red-baiting. He writes with a penetrating insight that transports the reader into the working lives of isolated men trying their best to survive a hostile racist world while somehow saving pennies to support their loved ones still in Guangdong. This is far more than the story of one man: he is writing the truth of generations of paper sons and paper daughters." --Professor John Kuo Wei Tchen, New York University, and co-founder of the Museum of Chinese in the Americas "For scholars and students, Paper Son is valuable because it documents a life during an era that is perhaps the least studies in Chinese American History, the 1930s through the mid-1970s...Chin's account not only reveals the details and strategy of how he conducted his 'paper life'; it also puts human flesh to our skeletal knowledge of how papers sons lived their day-to-day lives during the Great Depression, World War II, and the McCarthy Era... Chin's memoir relates this information in a manner that is immediately accessible, warm, reflective, human, and insightful. No doubt his writing style reveals a great deal about his personality, but it also reminds us that much of our history of the exclusion era is faceless." --K. Scott Wong, from the Introduction

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 184 pages
• Publisher: Temple University Press (October 2, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1566398010
• ISBN-13: 978-1566398015
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.4 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #192,949 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #57 in Books > Biographies & Memoirs > Ethnic & National > Chinese

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