The Square Deal in the Pacific.

Samuel J. Hume

Edité par California Council on Oriental Relations, 1932

A propos de cet article

Booklet titled, The Square Deal in the Pacific: A presentation of the arguments in favor of a modification of the United States Immigration Act of 1924, the elimination of the discriminatory exclusion clause, Section 13-c, and the extension of the quota system to China, Japan, and other Asiatic countries. An Address delivered before the Commonwealth Club of San Francisco (Berkeley, CA: California Council on Oriental Relations, circa 1932). The booklet contains the address delivered before the Immigration Section of the Commonwealth Club of San Francisco by Samuel J. Hume (1885-1962), Executive Secretary of the California Council on Oriental Relations, 2900 Buena Vista Way, Berkeley, California. Paper wraps; 28 pp (including wraps). Eight years previously, in 1924, the United States adopted an immigration quota system for the purpose of restricting immigration from European countries. Hume in this address presents an argument as to why it would not be wise to extend the quota system to include Japan and all other Asiatic countries, including China. He starts out by saying there is one fundamental point agreed upon by everyone, no matter the stand on the question: The Necessity for a Rigid Restriction of Oriental Immigration. The disagreement, then, was over the best method of achieving restriction. Hume references the exclusion clause in the immigration law of 1924 and states that, "this clause applied in theory to all Orientals, but in actual practice it singled out the Japanese for invidious discrimination, because, by the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 and the Asiatic Barred Zone provisions of the 1917 law, Chinese, Hindu, and other Asiatics, certain classes excepted, were already debarred. Looked at coldly this was merely a disingenuous way to avoid naming the Japanese specifically." Hume addresses social and economic concerns of Japanese exclusion, California markets, Oriental trade, public sentiment, illogicalness of the 1924 law, the problems associated with enforcing the law, the erosion of trust and notion of fair play, and other issues. Tables are included giving the number of Japanese and Chinese in the United States at the time and the number of aliens in California based on the census of 1920 and 1930. The California Council on Oriental Relations tried to overcome prejudices and racial stereotypes against Japanese Americans. The organization was unsuccessful in their attempt to implement an immigration quota from Japan to the United States. While Hume, the Executive Secretary of the California Council on Oriental Relations from 1928-1936, was in favor of a limited number of Japanese immigrants and argues for the merit of such action, he, however, uses prejudicial language as to who was not immigration worthy. "One of the direct results produced by the exclusion of the Japanese was this: since 1924 we have had an increasing number of Mexican and Filipino laborers entering the state. These Mexicans and Filipinos are admittedly inferior to the Japanese in all the qualities enumerated and it addition have brought into existence social problems of considerable gravity, problems which were never created by the Japanese." Hume concludes his presentation with the following, "We cannot live in a vacuum as a nation any more than we can as individuals. Inter-relationships with our fellow nations are inescapable." It seems that his position about immigration of certain races and cultural groups was about as confusing and complex as the issues and variety of opinions facing the United States today. A most interesting discussion, important to understanding America's and, in particular, California's history of immigration issues. OCLC shows nine institutions holding a copy, all of them in California. Some toning of the front cover and a closed tear at its upper left. Overall, in VG+ condition. [20-483].

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Détails bibliographiques

• Titre: The Square Deal in the Pacific.
• Éditeur: California Council on Oriental Relations
• Date de parution: 1932
• Reliure: Soft cover
• État de l'article: Very Good