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Time Line
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It's Getting Worse in China
My name is Zhang Min, I am a 32 year old man living in China. My country is suffering from floods, drought, and the major amounts of opium being consumed. In America, I see a life of economical opertunites and riches, unlike my life here. -
It's a Long Trip
I have been on a boat crowded with people heading towards America for 3 months and still there is no sight of the American main land. Living the same way and seeing the same things for 3 months every single day is starting to make me depressed. I hope it will all be worth it. -
First Sight!
I have finally seen the beautiful American main land. It is covered with tall, shiny houses they call "skyscrapers". They have hard, black roads with shiny machines moving around on them. Oh, America is so beautiful! It is truly Mei Guo! -
Angel Island, Beautiful Name, Beautiful Place, Not so Beautiful System
At first when I saw Angel Island, I thought:"Wow, that is a beautiful place with a beautiful name!". But, I did not know that I would eventually be forced to wait in line for hours, only to be sent to a jail cell for 2 weeks for being Chinese. I sat in that cell for 2 weeks because of the Chinese Exclusion Act. -
Should I move Further Inland?
In the city here, I face major prejudice and banks rob me of my hard earned money. They tell me that the bank account is corrupt and I can only keep half of the money in my account. In the mines, I think that people will be less concentrated on race and more concentrated on gold. There, I could become rich without people tricking me out of money and using the word "orientals" against me. -
I Arrive!
At first glance, this place seems almost impossible that people get rich here. When I first arrived, I was placed into a small cabin with 20 other people here for the same reasons. One of these people, Su Zhang, is my friend now. We work together and we share everything we find. -
Trouble With Taxes
Today, the tax collectors came to our cabin to collect the monthly taxes we owe them. We are supposed to pay them $3 and Su Zheng can't pay his $3 because he only has $3. We can't understand their language very well, but I can guess that they want us to pay the taxes or we will die. What will Su Zheng do? -
Murder!
Yesterday, Su Zheng couldn't pay off his taxes becuase he did not have enough money. Today, the tax collector returned and killed him point blank with a rifle! It wasn't Su Zheng's fault for not being able to pay off his tax, why would they kill him? These Americans are really mean and are not even sympathetic in the slightest! -
I'm Leaving This Place
After Su Zhang was murdered, I decided that the mines were no place for me, so I left the mines and went to the railroads to help my fellow Chinese men build it. There, I still faced discrimination and lower wages, but no one was killed. After a few years, I realized that I was better off back home than here, so I left for my home town bringing with me only $10 and my same clothes.
