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ELA 3: Angel Island 28 Views


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Description:

For a place with "angel" in the name, this island was pretty far from heavenly. Today we'll learn all about the main west coast immigration stop of the 1900's, Angel Island.

Language:
English Language

Transcript

00:04

[Coop and Dino singing]

00:13

Angel Island!

00:14

Sounds cool, huh?

00:16

But it's not a place where angels serenade you on harps, or where there's all you can [Angels playing harps over the ocean]

00:19

eat angel food cake everywhere you look.

00:22

It's actually a park in the San Francisco Bay. [Arrow points to Angel Island on a map]

00:24

But unlike your regular neighborhood park, this has a pretty rich history.

00:29

Almost as rich as angel food cake.

00:31

From 1910 to 1940 Angel Island was an immigration center. [Dino discussing history of Angel Island]

00:35

Most immigrants from Asia landed on its shores, and were questioned there.

00:39

When they arrived, the immigrants were given a medical exam…[Asian immigrant enters exam room]

00:43

…and they were asked about their lives and their ties to people in America.

00:46

Definitely not you average day in the park.

00:48

And if it is, maybe you should switch parks…

00:51

By the time Angel Island opened, America already had a history of Asian immigration.

00:55

In the 1800s, many Chinese immigrants came to America.

00:58

They took part in the Gold Rush, built railroads, filled in swamps, fished, and worked in agriculture.

01:03

However, despite all their hard work, by 1882, politicians were unfairly blaming Chinese [Politician blaming chinese man]

01:08

laborers for high unemployment rates, and the Exclusion Act of 1882 placed restrictions

01:14

on Chinese immigration.

01:15

So by the time Angel Island was opened, many people were openly racist against the Chinese.

01:20

As you'd imagine, immigrants arriving at Angel Island didn't exactly get a warm, friendly [Racist man with a 'Go away' sign at Angel Island]

01:25

welcome.

01:26

Nary a muffin basket to be seen.

01:29

Many of the new immigrants from Asia ended up being detained and deported. [Asian immigrant arrested]

01:33

And the detention itself was really rough.

01:36

Men and women were put in separate barracks with little privacy. [Asian man in barracks]

01:40

The food was of poor quality, and the people were fenced in to prevent escape.

01:44

Yup.

01:45

Hospitality was not exactly America's strong suit.

01:48

With little to do while confined, some of the Chinese prisoners of Angel Island wrote

01:52

poetry on the walls, about their shame, homesickness, and anger. [Chinese poetry on Angel Island walls]

01:56

Which makes sense. The conditions in Angel Island wouldn't make people want to write

02:00

lovely sonnets about flowers.

02:02

In 1941, the barracks were given to the armed forces, who used them to hold prisoners in World War II…

02:07

…but by 1947, it was closed down. It now sits as a sad reminder of one of the many

02:12

unjust chapters in America's past.

02:14

Maybe one of these days, America will finally put out a muffin basket. [A welcome muffin basket]

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