Encyclopedia of the World's Minorities

(Note: Sample material is taken from uncorrected proofs. Changes may be made prior to publication.)

Asians in Latin America

Capsule Summary:
Location: Latin America and the Caribbean
Total Population: 200,000
Languages: Spanish, Portuguese, Hindi, Japanese
Religions: Catholic, Buddhist, Hindu

During the 19th and 20th centuries, immigrants from Asia, as well as Europe arrived in Latin America. Their presence modified the economic, cultural and ethnic configurations of the region. Those who were not indentured, especially in and around the Caribbean area, tended to settle in industrial areas, or regions that exhibited a degree of development. Their arrival set forth one of the dominant themes in the process of national integration in Latin America, that is the, merging of diverse groups in the quest for financial gain. The process is transcultural and global therefore requiring a global and transcultural perspective in order to understand the situation. In addition, the policies of the host countries had the clear goal of obtaining cheap workers, or in some cases specialized labor, to benefit the national economy by in part increasing industrialization through foreign investment.

There were basically two types of motivation for Asian emigration. Forced emigration, that is those who were forced to leave their homeland due to economic crises or political oppression. Some had hoped to use their entry into Latin America as a stepping stone to the United States. Many of these, like the Jews, Lebanese and Chinese in Mexico, had experienced unsuccessful exiles in other countries. The second type of motivation is characterized by the Japanese who went to Chiapas, Mexico. They were protected by contracts specifying their economic activities, territorial possessions, and remuneration.

Structural integration of these immigrants into the host society initially started with their place of work. It was here that the host and migrant groups mutually influenced each other's culture. For those who were technologically and professionally well trained, they soon found themselves in a position that well surpassed the social position they occupied at their initial entry. Immigrants who had similar origins but not the technical training or skills were exploited or enslaved. Thus, the position in the receiving community, in some cases, caused divisions in the migrant group between the skilled and unskilled. In other places, where there was only one or the other a unity developed according to origin or occupation. The contributions and influences of Asians in Latin America have been generally overlooked.

With the arrival of Asian and other immigrants over the last two centuries, Asians have been part of the formation of pluralistic societies that have obtained legitimacy on American soil. As a result, a new definition of power developed for the majority had to abdicate control over minorities, or vice versa, for the liberation forces of Latin America had and have to fight exploitation of the weak by the powerful without ethnic or cultural distinctions. Thus all, including Asians have assumed an active and responsible role in transforming the societies in which they now live.

One of the transformations has been that the groups from the Old Continent over the past two centuries helped to form pluralistic societies and have gained a legitimacy for themselves. The acceptance of the new pluralism has redefined power relationships so that those in power, whether a majority or minority, had to relinquish power to the weak so as to fight and eliminate the exploitation of the weak by the powerful. Thus, the weak, especially minorities, will establish roots in their new abode and take an active and responsible role in transforming the societies in which they live.

Among the most prominent groups include the Asian Indians, Chinese and Japanese, although Asian-Jews, Arabs, Lebanese, Okinawans and Nepalese also migrated to Latin America. The notable receiving countries were Cuba, Mexico, Brazil and the Caribbean area. Peru, Argentina, and Bolivia also received immigrants. Asian Indians went primarily to the Caribbean where they filled the void left by the exodus of blacks from the plantations as a result of the abolition of slavery. These Asian Indians were recruited and worked under an indenture system by which they suffered abuses. Because of owing money at the company store and fines for infraction of rules, they would end up owing more to their employer than they had earned. As a result they would have to sign up for another tour. However the Asian Indians participated in the struggle for freedom in some places and have become a legitimate and viable political entity in others. They number around 100,000.

The Chinese have had a more varied experience. They were brought to Mexico and Cuba to provide cheap labor and/or work on plantations. In the case of Cuba they united with the slaves from Africa to obtain freedom; people tended to consolidate into groups regardless of background. Chinese in Mexico were also recruited for cheap labor, but in northwestern Mexico they formed small businesses, enhanced craft production, and participated in the financial center through their own bank. They also had their own mutual help societies and even their own government that functioned more like a colony than immigrants imported for cheap labor.

The Chinese in Mexico, Cuba, Peru and Panama illustrate the fact that the immediate causes of migration do not yield similar results; life in their adopted country depends on many factors at their destination. The Chinese especially in Cuba had experience at both ends of the skilled/unskilled continuum as well as many positions in between. In the case of the Chinese in northwestern Mexico, they were successful and prosperous-much of which was due to the oil boom in the area. When the oil boom dried up, local Chinese emigrated elsewhere. Also, with the downturn in the economy, an anti-Chinese movement developed with some Chinese losing their property and assets while others were expelled and yet others massacred..

Japanese immigrated to Brazil to work on coffee plantations. They had the opportunity of being socially mobile and in a span of about two generations they rose to being employees to employers and professionals. They maintained enough of their Japanese culture to keep their "Japaneseness" while also borrowing from the culture of their host society also.

Japanese were similar to the Chinese and in some cases like some of the Chinese, they resembled colonials rather than immigrants. They came as a result of a treaty between the Mexican and Japanese governments. The Japanese enjoyed certain guarantees and the right to purchase land. Yet, they also suffered from the hostility and xenophobia of the host society.

The story and understanding of the experiences of Asians in Latin America is an untold story but also a drama that, when told, will shed light on understanding the migration process in general.

Arthur Helweg

See also Brazil; Cuba; Mexico

Further Reading

Montiel, Luz M. Martinez, editor, Asiatic Migrations in Latin America. Camino al Ajusco: El Colegio de Mexico, 1981.

Rustomji-Kerns, Roshni, Encounters: People of Asian Descent in the Americas. Lanbam, Boulder, New York, Oxford: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc., 1999

Bradley, Anita. Trans-Pacific Relations of Latin America. New York: Institute
of Pacific Relations, 1941.

Chang-Rodriguez, E. "Chinese Labor Migration into Latin America in the
Nineteenth Century." Revista de Historia de América, 46 (December 1958):
375-397.

Martínez Montiel, Luz María. Asiatic Migrations in Latin America. México D.F.: El Colegio de México, 1981.

Cope, R. Douglas. The limits of racial domination, Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1994.

Moya, Jose, C. Cousins and Strangers, Berkeley: University of California Press, 1998.

Samples