Magnuson Act of 1943
This act repealed the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882. Because the United States and China became allies in World War II, the US government moved to repeal the Chinese Exclusion Act. This allowed many families who were separated from the exclusion act to meet again. This new chapter in the history of Chinese immigrants is particularly interesting because of the political shifts that were happening in China during the 1940s. As China began to transition into the Communist state it is today, the culture of the Cantonese people and traditional Chinese customs began to fade. However, some of the most well preserved Cantonese culture outside of Hong Kong can be seen in today’s China towns across the US. When taking a walk through San Francisco’s Chinatown, there will be almost no Mandarin being spoke, virtually everyone will be speaking Cantonese. This creates an interesting dynamic between the old Cantonese culture and the modern Chinese culture. It also mean the Chinese culture that America sees from Chinese immigrants is very far from the culture China now has inside its borders. This needs to be recognized when falsely comparing Chinese Americans to Chinese nationals today.