Back in Los Angeles County, the Chinese population increased and so did the resentment within the white working class. The anti-Chinese sentiment became widespread and grew in intensity. On October 24, 1871, the infamous Chinese Massacre took place. Two disputing Chinese accidentally killed Robert Thompson. .
"That evening a mob of about 500 whites killed 19 Chinese and looted Negro Alley. Every Chinese-occupied building on the block was ransacked and almost every resident was robbed. The man who actually shot Thompson escaped punishment, and only a few of the guilty members were imprisoned at San Quentin for a short period"(Smith 14).
At the time Los Angeles was still a little-known town and when news of the massacre spread, it became front-page headlines.
The history of the Chinese people has been long and strenuous. When they first came to this country many of them began to wonder if they had been condemned to a life of oppression and inequality. Through their unyielding persistence to strive for a better life and despite the government and the odds that were against them, they continued to be strong. To not be brought down by the fallacies of what was supposed to be their chance at a new and better life makes the Chinese all the more admirable. .
The Chinese have been the first large stream of Asian immigrants to arrive in the United States. Due to the United States interest in capitalist expansion in Asia, their interest in China encouraged the Chinese to emigrate. Most of the Chinese who came to America were young and able-bodied males. Half of them were married, and most of them came without their wives and children. These jobs required the laborers to move from one place to another. To the Chinese, immigrating to America was an opportunity of a lifetime. When they decided to come to the United States, some planned on going back home to China wealthy. On the other hand, others wanted to start a new life in the new land, but most immigration decisions involved family.