The Mississippi Chinese: Between Black and White

by James W. Loewen, Robert Coles (Preface by)

Provides a history of Chinese Americans living in the Mississippi Delta region.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, American History, Race, Sociology

240 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1971

About the author

A professor of sociology, James W. Loewen earned his bachelor's degree at Carleton College in 1964, and his master's (1967) and doctorate (1968) degrees from Harvard University. Loewen taught at Touglaloo College from 1968 until 1975, and at the University of Vermont from 1975 until his retirement as professor emeritus in 1995.

Reviews

[Suzanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a case study of race relations between Whites, Blacks and Chinese-Americans in Mississippi during the latter days of segregation. It is a very thorough examination of how these three groups constructed and reacted to Chinese-American status in a system designed for only two races--White and Black. Even though it was written decades ago, the lessons it reveals about race relations remain instructive today. One cannot understand the present without learning about the past, and reading about Mississippi's past is fascinating, although often quite depressing at the same time. The 20-year update given in the Afterward shows both areas of progress and continued limitations for racial equality. Those findings included in the update highlight the continuing relevance of this work even though officially-sanctioned segregation is a thing of the relatively distant past.

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

Without the traditional trappings of a Chinatown, without the security of the tongs and guilds, without the support of Chinese traditional culture, the stories of the Chinese of the Mississippi Delta are a unique chapter in the greater story of American race relations and specifically the story of race in Mississippi.

After the end of the Civil War, a number of Chinese workers arrived in the Mississippi Delta, originally to work on the plantations but soon struck out to run predominantly grocery stores catering to Black customers. These Delta Chinese upended and laid bare the arbitrary nature of Segregation in the Deep South, originally deemed Black but as they assimilated and strove to leave their pasts behind, the planter aristocracy soon found it more convenient to class them as White.

This is thorough and academic study of race relations between the Delta Chinese, Black and White communities in the Mississippi Delta, how the Delta Chinese challenged, submitted to, and eventually crossed the colour bar. Written at the end of legal Segregation, this study examines how the two majority races saw the Chinese and how they saw themselves, how they contrasted themselves against both before assimilating, and how racial attitudes towards the Chinese have changed.

The afterword, written twenty years after initial publication, contextualises the recent history of the Delta Chinese and looks forward to the future of this community as young people increasingly leave and economic fortunes change. Particularly heartbreaking is how cruel the community remains to the interracial Chinese-Black marriages, even in the late 80s when the afterword was written. How the community has changed in the decades following and have adapted to an increasingly multi-racial era would be a strong follow up.

[Eva · Rating 5 out of 5]

So... after watching "Sinners," like -- yes. I am here because I wanted to know a lot more about people of Chinese descent in Mississippi and the Mississippi Delta, and that history, because of learning about this from the film "Sinners." All of the studies and documentaries I had done before this point about Mississippi concerned only Black and white people. And as this book states, there were also Lebanese, Syrian, Italian, Mexican, and other ethnic groups in the Mississippi Delta as well, in addition to those of Chinese descent. Even though this book is from 1970, and the research done was probably from the 50s and 60s, Loewen was widely considered one of the experts in his day of this research area, and it shows. He gives a very comprehensive, and not overwhelming, overview of how people of Chinese descent first arrived in Mississippi, the ties to transatlantic slavery, setting up grocery stores that were segregated with one serving Blacks only and another whites only, navigating the school system of the area that used to prohibit Chinese students from attending white schools until a legal decision that overturned that and integrated the schools. Overall, it's a fascinating introduction to a topic I hope to keep learning about.

[Sean Murphy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Basically a doctoral, academic look at the Chinese in the Mississippi Delta. A few good insights. A worthy read but not Loewen's best obviously. Still worthwhile if you are interested in the subject.

[Linh · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5/5

[Emma · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 Stars

[Robert · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting look at race relations in rural Delta Mississippi during the last stages of formal segregation. It uses the unique situation of Delta Chinese-Mississippians in analyzing the local framework of race relations. This group went from being identified as "black" or "near-black" during Reconstruction, to "white" or "near-white" at the height of the Civil Rights Movement. Just how that was accomplished sheds light on how the most powerful caste in the Delta, contrary to many social theories about lower class racism, played the prime role in facilitating its systematic institutionalization.

[Aspasia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book, written in 1971, goes into more detail about the Mississippi Chinese and the Southern culture that led to the Chinese moving to MS, becoming grocers, and gradually being accepted by the local white community. This book along with Lotus Among the Magnolias needs an update!

[Janice · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting information that I was completely unaware. Need more books like this that tell diverse American history.

[Spencer Monnett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great lessons and perspectives on race and learning discriminations.