Impact of the Chinese Exclusion Act “Many Chinese immigrants falsely claimed U.S. citizenship during the exclusion period…I have thought about this issue…since that I learned that my American last name was different, in spelling and meaning, from my Chinese last name… What's in a name? said Karen Lew, community presenter at the Museum of Chinese in America. She discovered that her ancestors had been forced to change their last name during the Chinese Exclusion Act to prevent deportation. Most believe that the Chinese Exclusion Act was a mistake on the part of the U.S. government. The Chinese Exclusion Act impacted not only the lives of Chinese people, but also the lives of most Asian Americans. In 1848, a significant amount of gold was discovered at Sutter's Mill. The Gold Rush not only caused workers from Eastern America to come to the West, but also caused large numbers of people in China to immigrate in hopes of a fortune (Tien, Kelly). “Chinese workers were then willing to take jobs that no one else really wanted to do,” said Munson Kwok, president of the Los Angeles chapter of the Chinese American Citizens Alliance (quoted in the Los Angeles Times). As noted in Menlo's Sun Server, when the American economy became unstable during the Panic of 1873, unions believed that "hard-working and poorly paid" Chinese were receiving more money than they should have, thereby reducing the wages of non-Chinese workers. The Chinese eventually became the scapegoats for the economic collapse, and non-Chinese workers began to propagandize against the Chinese, drawing caricatures and slogans like "Mark the man who would crush us to the ground." Mongolian slave.” Immigration taxes and laundry fees were passed to limit the Chinese population (Menlo's Sun Server). In the end,...... middle of article......."Journal of Undergraduate Research in the Humanities". Journal of Undergraduate Research in the Humanities. University of Chicago, nd Web. February 10, 2014. United States v. Wong Kim Ark. United States Reports 169. Northern District of California. March 28, 1898. United States v. Wong Kim Ark - 169 US 649 (1898). Np, and Web. February 11, 2014. “UNITED STATES v. WONG KIM ARK. » United States v. Wong Kim Ark. The Oyez Project at IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law, nd Web. February 12, 2014.Wing, Bob. “Crossing Race and Nationality: The Racial Formation of Asian Americans, 1852-1965.” » Monthly Review 7 (2005): 1. ELibrary. Internet. February 12, 2014. Wong, William. “The Citizenship of Wong Kim Ark.” San Francisco Examiner April 8, 1998, second edition, News sec. : A-19. Print.Yokoi, Iris. "Effect of CHINATOWN Exclusion Law Examined." Los Angeles Times December 12, 1993: n. page. Print.