The rigid governmental systems within the Chinese communities in China town provides another pretty clear reason for why the Chinese had so much trouble adapting into American society. They literally had an entire society, from soup to nuts, holed up in a small corner of the city. When the Chinese are living in such a power system, there is little to no allowance for upward mobility. Individuals are trapped in an exclusively Chinese-American society, and they cannot become integrated into mainstream American society simply because their superiors give them no such outlet.
Kwong’s description of the associations and hier-up that developed territorially in Chinatown describes nothing short of a hierarchical and elitist society. These strict horizontal divisions nullify the advantages that come along with the vertical integration in Chinese circles.
Although Kwong explains that the structures of the associations and the Chinatown government were informal political structures, I find myself thinking of the society as an unofficially official statehood. When there is a body in place that has the power to demand taxes from its subordinates, a society becomes formalized. The CCBA serves as a mechanism of centrality, and it’s force of power trickles down to the largest associations first into a pyramid-like, hierarchical structure. I feel uncomfortable calling such a complex and carefully defined system “informal”. The associations themselves seem to be unofficial and informal because of their unclear borders and instability. The higher powers in Chinese societies however, seem highly organized and powerful. They follow clearly defined guidelines as to how they govern their subordinates.
I don’t think that without an officially unofficial system in place, Chinatown could have remained so uniquely insular. Many other immigrant groups have come with forms of governance and leadership, but they have learned English and have integrated at least somewhat into mainstream society. With the Chinese systems in place, the immigrants do not have the capability (nor the need, some might argue) to adapt as other immigrants have.
