A Historical Introduction

To trace Chinatown’s politics, it is valuable to understand how Chinatown came to be in New York City since its inception. In 1872, there were 12 Chinese men in the area now known as Chinatown, and by 1880 the number increased to seven hundred. In the years that followed, the number of Chinese in Chinatown multiplied quickly. It is important to not that the original immigrants were single men (7).