Is this really Commenter? So who referred to the Constituion in this discussion? And what does this have to do with choo-choo's or SANDAG's current issues?

History is full of mean nasty stuff, but sometimes we come to our senses, and change things up to stop doing mean nasty stuff. Although it seems like there will always a few folks that kind of like to do these sort of things....

Has anything changed?
Author: Commenter (Really????)
Date: 03-22-2023 - 14:48

Since we get people referring to THE constitution all the time, I thought it might be useful to give a bit of history. This is from the *California* Constitution of 1879. I happen to possess a copy of the 1908 edition published by the State of California in an edition of 10,000. The 1907 edition of 7,500 having been depleted.

-----

Article XIX Chinese

Section 1. The Legislature shall prescribe necessary regulations for the protection of the State, and the counties, cities, and towns thereof, from the burdens and evils arising from the presence of aliens, who are or who may become vagrants, paupers, mendicants, criminals, or invalids afflicted with contagious or infectious diseases, and aliens otherwise dangerous or detrimental to the well-being or peace of the State, and to impose conditions upon which such persons may reside in the State, and to provide the means and mode of their removal from, the State upon failure or refusal to comply with such conditions; provided, that nothing contained in the foregoing shall be construed to impair or limit the power of the Legislature to pass such police laws or other regulations as it may deem necessary.

Sec. 2. No corporation now existing or hereafter formed under, the laws of this State shall, after the adoption of this Constitution, employ, directly or indirectly, in any capacity, any Chinese or Mongolian. The Legislature shall pass such laws as may be necessary to enforce this provision.

Sec. 3. No Chinese shall be employed on any State, county, municipal, or other public work, except in "punishment for crimes.

Sec. 4. The presence of foreigners ineligible to become citizens of the United States is declared herein to be dangerous to the well-being of the State, and the Legislature shall,discourage their immigration by all the means within its power. Asiatic coolieism, being a form of human slavery is forever prohibited in this State, and all contracts for coolie labor are null and void. All companies or corporations, whether formed in this country or any foreign country, for the importation of such labor, shall be subject to such penalties as the Legislature may prescribe. The Legislature shall delegate all necessary power to the incorporated cities and towns of this State, for the removal of Chinese without the limits of such cities and towns, or their location within prescribed portions of those limits, and it shall also provide the necessary legislation to prohibit the introduction into this State of Chinese after the adoption of this Constitution. This section shall be enforced by appropriate legislation.

----

Legalized ghettos even. By the way, the "ineligible to become citizens" bit is because of the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882. This is also why you used to see so many elderly bachelor Chinese men in the park in San Francisco's Chinatown. They could never marry because they couldn't import a wife and the men greatly outnumbered the women.

PBS recently had a program about the approximately 1,700 Italians who were forced to leave the Bay Area because they had not yet obtained citizenship. Close in some cases, but no cigar. And everyone knows about the Japanese and "No Irish need apply."

Plus ça change plus c'est la même chose.