My readers probably know a great deal about the history of San Francisco.
The Chinese who settled San Francisco when it was a Spanish Franciscan outpost took over a French restaurant at Sacramento St and Wharf St. (originally Foundation St.) in about 1825, twenty five years before the Gold Rush. That restaurant is still the SW corner of Chinatown 190 years later. Wharf St. is now Kearney St., probably named after a Civil War hero.
The Chinese were vigorously hated in San Francisco for over 120 years. There are too many stories to tell about the level of hatred. In 1877, The Workingmen’s Party, led by Denis Kearney led a march against Chinatown. They killed Chinese and burned as many buildings as they could. Later Kearney led a political campaign leading to the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act.
After the earthquake of 1906 which burned down most of Chinatown, the Chinese community set up camp on the flat land just North of Chinatown, now Fisherman’s Wharf.
The U.S. milita and the San Francisco police found this an opportune time to drive the Chinese out of San Francisco. Most went to Oakland.
Most returned to Chinatown as the rebuilding got underway.
Now, one hundred years later, the Chinese are a political force in San Francisco. They took most of that time to become a unified force under a leader, Rose Pak. The Chinese elected a mayor and four of the eleven district supervisors. They control seats on nearly every commission and are the heads of many City departments.
When unified, they are the second most powerful political force in the City after labor unions.
It took 30 years of active campaigning to create this unified Chinese power. Now it is beginning to split. But that is a sign of the community's power. Its fundamental success comes from money earned by the historic Overseas Chinese capability in commerce.
Three cheers for commerce. That is the way for a hated minority to gain respect and political power in America.