The Chinatown War: Chinese Los Angeles and the Massacre of 1871

In 1871, Los Angeles was a fraction the size of today’s metropolis, but it was already a hotbed of crime and racial tension when conflict between rival Chinese gangs led to one of America’s worst racial massacres. Despite a relatively small Chinese population, writes Zesch (The Captured), Los Angeles developed its own Chinatown, where life centered on the huiguan, fraternal organizations, and hard work in the burgeoning laundry business. Other immigrants joined tongs, or gangs, and engaged in less savory (and more violent) occupations like prostitution. A tug-of-war over a woman, Yut Ho, that culminated in a dead white man sparked white mob violence, resulting in 18 Chinese lynched on makeshift gallows. Zesch describes not only the structure of the Chinese community but the atmosphere, created by the Los Angeles elite, in which such a massacre could occur. In trials that gained national attention, eight rioters were found guilty, but their convictions were overturned. In this sobering look at racial hatred run rampant, Zesch doesn’t draw easy parallels between this long-forgotten episode and today, but rightly underscores that “remembrance is one way of restoring our blemished humanity.” Maps. Agent: Jim Hornfischer, Hornfischer Literary Management. (July)