ch.15 sct.1 C.T.#3

Asians, especially Chinese immigrants, faced the greatest challenges in the U.S. Right from the start, they had a more difficult time getting into the country at Angel Island, where they were harshly questioned and detained in filthy places for a long time (p.463), but most of the Europeans who were admitted at Ellis Island had only to wait about 5 hours. Prior to arriving in America, the Asian immigrants had to travel on a ship for about 3 weeks, whereas the European journey was only about 1 week (p.462).
Chinese people spoke a completely different language, and had a completely different culture than the "Americans." The Americans didn't like the customs of the Asian immigrants and thought of them as threats to the American way of life (p.464), and the Asians did not understand American culture/customs. The Chinese had a hard time communicating with the English-speaking Americans, which made it harder to get jobs and just cooperate in everyday life.
The Americans thought that Anglo-Saxons were superior to other ethnic groups, and objected to the religious beliefs of other races (p.464). Nativism was one resonse to the growth of immigration. Labor unions feared that jobs would go to Chinese immigrants, who would accept lower wages. Leaders of labor unions went around giving anti-Chinese speeches. In 1882, Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act, which banned almost all Chinese immigrants, and later this law was extended indefinitely, until it was finally repealed in 1943. (from "nativism" on: p.465)
Although all immigrants faced hardships, Chinese immigrants faced the greatest challenges in the United States. They faced harsh travel and admission conditions, foreign obstacles, and racial predjudices.