These chapters revealed the truth behind the hiring process in Chinese and Korean garment factories. The discrimination that went into the process, as many have mentioned, was cruel and undeserving for many workers. How is it possible to know a person’s work ethic if one judges them solely by race? And not even by race in some cases, but strictly by skin color. Although it worked in the Chinese people’s favor in specific situations, for all others, such as the Puerto Ricans, blacks, and darker Ecuadorians, they had no such luck.

The stereotypes and hiring decisions associated with different occupations still exist, even though discriminatory hiring is illegal. For example, the assumption that all restaurants are owned by Greeks, or that all convenient stores are run by Indians, or that all Filipino women grow up to be nurses. I think it would be fascinating to research how these stereotypes came to be. The Chinese run garment factories hired only Chinese workers, and they enjoyed the familial setting, and so the tradition continued. What happened to these ethnic groups in the past that led to the creation of their respective stereotypes?