by Judy Yung
In i9ro, a total of 5zr families (76 percent of all families) had a nuclear structure: a married couple and an average of 3.5 children (as compared to r.5 children in 188o). Although there were no three-generation families living under one roof in 188o, there were thirty such households in i9ro. Thirty-seven households also included a motherin-law. In 188o, zo percent of the households had an average of two to three boarders. The 19 r o census showed that z z percent of the households with a female present had an average of 3.8 boarders, and 15 percent had an average of 2.5 relatives living in the household. These statistics show an increased tendency for families to take in boarders or relatives most likely out of economic necessity, for mutual kin support, or in compliance with work benefits accorded employees. In the absence of servants (only three households reported servants), it was most likely the wife who had to clean and cook for everyone else-no simple matter considering the living conditions then. For example, the Lee household, listed at 84 6 Clay Street in 19 r o, had a total of nineteen residents: a male head, who was listed as a grocer; his wife, who was listed as unemployed; their two children; two male relatives and one lodger, who apparently worked in the grocery store; and twelve other lodgers, who were listed variously as porters, laundrymen, janitors, farm workers, or fishermen. The wife, Lee Shee Jung, must have done all the housework for the entire household and the cooking for at least her immediate family and the three household members who worked for her husband-all without the assistance of any servants.
With the exception of twenty-one households (3 percent of the total), all of the families lived within the borders of Chinatown, which ran five blocks north and south between Sacramento and Broadway Streets and two blocks east and west between Stockton and Kearny Streets. Law Shee Low joined these families when she arrived in 19z2. Her sheltered life in San Francisco Chinatown is typical of that of most immigrant wives, who by all appearances presented a submissive image in public but ruled at home. Their husbands continued to be the chief breadwinners, to control the purse strings, and to be the women's points of connection to the outside world. But, in the absence of the mother-inlaw, immigrant wives held the reins in the household, maintaining the integrity of their families in an alien and often hostile land. With few exceptions, they were hard working, frugal, tolerant, faithful and respectful to their husbands, and self-sacrificing toward their children. As such, they were model wives in the traditional sense, but in America, they were also indispensable partners to their husbands in their efforts to establish and sustain family life.
Once released from Angel Island, Law moved into a one-room tenement apartment in Chinatown with her husband, where she lived, worked, and gave birth to eleven children, eight of whom survived. Owing to racial discrimination and economic constraints, they had little choice but to accept the poor, crowded housing conditions in Chinatown, which had been hurriedly built after the 19o6 earthquake to accommodate bachelors, not families.78
We rented a room on Stockton Street for eleven dollars a month. We did everything in that one room: sleep, eat, and sit. We had a small threeburner for cooking. There was no ice box, and my husband had to shop for every meal. We did not use canned goods and things like that. We ate only Chinese food. There was no hot water, and we would all hand wash our clothes. We used to dry them on the roof or in the hallways. That's what happens when you are poor. It was the same for all my neighbors. We were all poor together.79
Living in Chinatown encouraged the continuation of Chinese cultural practices and provided a sense of security and cultural sustenance for immigrants like Law. At the same time, however, it impeded their acculturation into American societyS° Compared to Chinese women who lived outside Chinese communities, women in San Francisco Chinatown continued to speak Chinese only, eat Chinese food, dress in Chinese clothing, and maintain Chinese customs much longer. Although by the r g z.os most of them wore their hair in short, pageboy cuts or in marcelled waves and walked in Western shoes with low heels, many, like Law, still wore Chinese clothing-colorful shirts with high collars and flared sleeves that stopped at the elbows, and lightly gathered skirts that fell below the knees.81
Since their first responsibility was to their families, immigrant wives like Law found themselves housebound, with no time to take advantage of English classes offered by the churches or to engage in leisure activities outside the home. While her husband worked in a restaurant that catered to black customers on the outskirts of Chinatown, Law stayed home and took in sewing. The only other job opened to women like her was shrimp peeling, which earned them half as much as sewing.82 Like other immigrant women who followed traditional gender roles, Law believed that "nice Chinese ladies always stay home and take care of the house chores, children, and husband."83 This arrangement was also preferred by employers, who made larger profits when they could pass overhead costs such as space, lighting, equipment, electricity, and supplies on to employees working at home.
At first someone from the Low family clan brought me things to sew by the dozens and taught me how to do the seams and how to gather. This one teacher I had specialized in baby clothes with beautiful decorations, embroidered pockets and all. He taught me well, and I made over two dozen pieces a day. The pay was over a dollar a dozen.84
Even working twelve hours a day, her husband was bringing home only $6o a month, barely enough to cover rent and food. As she had one child after another, it was easier for her to stay home and sew, even though increasing numbers of women were working in Chinatown sewing factories that paid more than home work. When her husband didn't have time to do the shopping, she would pay to have groceries delivered. "That way with children at home, you didn't have to go out and waste time," she explained. "They would deliver pork and vegetables, and you could then cook it." When asked whether she felt imprisoned, she replied,
There was no time to feel imprisoned; there was so much to do. We worked like crazy. We had to cook, wash the clothes and diapers by hand, the floors, and sew whenever we had a chance to sit still.... Who had time to go out? It was the same for all my neighbors. We were all good, obedient, and diligent wives. All sewed; all had six or seven children.
Large families, which added to the burden of immigrant wives, were the norm in the 19 zos. The Chinese birth rate in San Francisco was twice as high as the city-wide rate because of cultural values that favored large families and sons as well as the lack of knowledge of birth control among Chinese women. According to Law:
Many had ten or more children. One had nine daughters and was still trying for a son. We didn't want that many, but we didn't know about birth control. Even if we didn't want it, we didn't have the money to go see the doctor. The midwife wanted us to have more babies. But even the midwife had a bad time because no one could afford to pay her. It was $2-5 a baby.
Law wasn't even aware that she was pregnant when she had the first of three miscarriages at home. The Chinese infant mortality rate was also high: 71 per i,ooo live births in i9z9, compared to the city-wide rate of 49 per i,ooo.85 As was common for poor families in those days, all of Law's children were born at home with the help of neighbors or the local midwife. "Who could afford to go to the hospital?" she said. Only when one of her children caught pneumonia did she and her husband make use of the hospital, but by then to no avail. Their son was only three years old when he died. "He was a good boy.... I cried for a few years; it was so tragic," she recalled sadly. "We didn't have any money, and we didn't know better."
Although they had more girls (seven) than boys (one survived), her husband was more than willing to provide for them all regardless of sex. "He liked children," Law observed.
Other men would beat their children and kick them out of the house. He wasn't like that. Other men would scold their wives for having girls. One woman who had four children told me her husband would drag her out of bed and beat her because she didn't want to have any more children. We heard all kinds of sad stories like that, but my husband never picked on me like that.
Fortunately for Law, her husband turned out to be cooperative, supportive, and devoted. Until he developed a heart condition in the 19 50s, he remained the chief breadwinner, first cooking at a restaurant, then picking fruit in Suisun, sewing at home during the depression, and fi nally working in the shipyards during World War II. Although he refused to help with housecleaning or child care, he did all the shopping, cooked the rice, and hung out the wash. In Law's estimation of him as a husband,
He wasn't had. He did care about me. When he was afraid I wasn't eating, he would tell me to eat more. He was just a bit stubborn.... When he was first unemployed, he went and played Chinese dominoes one night. When he came back in the early morning, I said to him when he presented me with a chicken, "I don't want to eat your chicken; I don't like you to gamble." So he stopped going and went back to sewing.... I heard there was a building known as the Empress Building in Chinatown, where the wives beat the husbands if they were unemployed or did something wrong. But it wasn't so in our building.
He also asked a "Jesus woman" to come teach her English. But after her first baby, Law couldn't afford the time to study and told her not to come anymore.
It was not until her children were older that Law went out to work in the sewing factories and to the Chinese movies on Saturdays, but she still did not leave the confines of Chinatown. Prior to that, she went out so seldom that one pair of shoes lasted her ten years. Because they were poor, she was especially frugal. She gave most of her earnings to her husband (since he did the shopping), made her own clothes and those of her children, and managed to send periodic remittances home to her family. The neighbors in her building were all from the same area of Guangdong Province, and they became lifelong friends. They often chatted, and occasionally-three or four times a year-they would go out to visit friends in the evening or go shopping together. So insular was her life in Chinatown that to this day, Law still does not speak English or dare go outside Chinatown alone. And she still continues to wear Chinese clothing.
Marxist feminists like Heidi Hartmann would characterize Law Shee Low's life as oppressive. Because of the sexual division of labor at home and in the workplace, women like Law remained confined to the domestic sphere and in a subordinate position vis-a-vis men.86 But from Law's vantage point, although her life was hard, it was not "oppressive." She may have been restricted to the domestic sphere and stuck in lowwage work, but she was not subordinate or totally dependent on her husband. Because she also contributed to the family income, bore the responsibility of running the household, and provided cultural sustenance, their relationship was interdependent. As far as she was concerned, the family's well-being was of prime importance. Given the extra measure of racism that put Chinese at a disadvantage in the labor market, what counted between her and her husband was not economic equality, but the adequacy of overall family income.
Nor did she regard her housework and child care duties as a form of exploitation. Although doubly burdened by wage labor and household responsibilities, immigrant wives like Law were taught to regard the home as their domain and to rule it proudly with an iron fist. Most were strict with their children, demanding unquestioning obedience, adherence to traditional gender roles, and the continued observance of folk religion, Chinese language and food, and the celebration of annual festivals such as Chinese New Year, Ching Ming, Dragon Boat, Girls' Day, MidAutumn, and Winter Solstice. Preparations were time-consuming, but Chinese women took their role as culture bearer seriously and did not shirk their duties regardless of how hectic their lives were. Providing a cultural refuge became an important way for Chinese women to instill ethnic pride in their children and help their families resist the cultural assaults and racist denigration inflicted by the dominant society. Indeed, their daily struggle to improve the quality of life for themselves and their families was in itself an act of resistance.87 Although their family life exacted a heavy toll on their personal lives, it also served to sustain them. In this sense, family for them was a site of both oppression and resis- tance.88 Working hard had meaning for Chinese women because it enabled them to fulfill their filial obligations as well as provide a better future for their children. Many women shared Law's pragmatic views about life in America:
It took a lot of hard work, sweat, and tears, but for the sake of the children, it was all worth it in the end.... My kids have been good to me. They always remember my birthday. They chip in for my rent, electricity, insurance, everything; and they give me spending money. Thank God and thank heaven !89
Abused wives who were less fortunate than Law found new avenues of resistance through the help of Chinese reformers, Protestant missionary women, and, in some cases, even the American legal system. CSYP, representing both the nationalist and Protestant perspectives, consistently supported women's emancipation, printing numerous editorials and articles that condemned "barbaric" practices such as footbinding, polygamy, slavery, and arranged marriages and advocated women's education and rights. "For centuries we have erred in teaching our women to be obedient ... to not even step out into the courtyard but remain in their lonely quarters as captive prisoners.... Women with bound feet, weakened bodies, and undeveloped intelligence cannot attain equality with men," one editorial stated.90 The newspaper was also an important disseminator of information about resources for women in the community, as it often covered talks by social reformers on women issues, followed the efforts of Protestant organizations to improve conditions for Chinese women, and announced educational classes for girls and women.91
Although most immigrant wives like Law did not read the Chinese newspapers, they were affected by public opinion as filtered through their husbands, neighbors, and the social reformers. Law noted that after the 1911 Revolution it was no longer considered "fashionable" to have bound feet, concubines, or mui tsai in China or in Chinatown. And as housebound as Law was, she was aware of the mission homes that rescued prostitutes, helped abused women, and provided education for children and immigrant women. Although Law never had cause to seek their help, a number of her peers used them to settle domestic disputes, usually in their favor.
Missionary records provide both a quantitative and qualitative picture of the nature and outcomes of these domestic problems. The Methodist Mission Home handled a total of twenty-three domestic cases involving Chinese women between 1903 and 1913, while the Presbyterian Mission Home had seventy-eight such cases between 1923 and 1928.92 Although many of the cases stemmed from physical abuse, wives also came to the mission homes for help because their husbands smoked opium, drank excessively, practiced adultery or polygamy, or were negligent in providing for the family. In one case, a mother and her seventeen-year-old daughter sought help at the Methodist Home when they discovered that the prospective groom already had a wife and family in China. The home was able to help the daughter get out of the marriage and return to China.93 Ex-residents of the mission homes, such as Wong Ah So, sought later help from the homes when problems arose in their marriages, often owing to cultural clashes in gender roles. There were also cases of widows who had been robbed of their inheritances, mistreated, or threatened by their husbands' relatives. One twenty-year-old widow had all her jewelry taken and was about to be sold into prostitution when missionary workers stepped in to protect her. She later married an interpreter, and the couple chose to return to China. In another case, a widow came to the home with her daughter seeking protection from her husband's relatives, who were demanding $500 cash and possession of the daughter before they would allow the woman to remarry.94
In most cases of family quarrels or mistreatment, missionary workers attempted to mediate by counseling the husbands and persuading them to agree to mend their ways. One husband accused of beating his wife promised to do better and then, by way of compliance, rented a room for her near the Methodist Mission Home. Another couple reconciled only after the husband signed an agreement stipulating that he would give up opium, treat his family more kindly and provide for them, and send the children to
the Presbyterian Mission Home or to their grandmother should the wife die. If marital relations failed to improve, the homes would then temporarily house the wife and children at the husband's expense, help the woman find employment, and, if necessary, file on her behalf for divorce. Missionary workers did not regard arranged marriages as legitimate, so they had few qualms about breaking them up and encouraging women to remarry in the Western tradition. Annulments were also sought when undesirable arranged marriages involved minors. Here again can be seen the imposition of moral values on the part of missionary women that clashed with traditional Chinese views on marriage. While such intervention was likely resented by most Chinese in the community, it did provide a way out for Chinese women in abusive situations.
Whereas divorce was increasing in the white middle class by the 19zos, it remained rare among Chinese American women. No woman was listed as divorced in the 19oo or 1920 manuscript censuses for San Francisco. Only one woman was listed as such in 191o-a twenty-year-old immigrant who resided at the Presbyterian Mission Home. Between 1867 and 1929, the divorce rate rose 2,000 percent in the United States, and by the end of the 19205 more than one in every six marriages ended in court.95 For Chinese Americans, the divorce rate in 1920 was only five times as great as that in 1890. Most of these cases were filed by missionary women on behalf of rescued prostitutes or abused wives.96 Chinese women such as Mrs. Chan Sung Chow Bow, who filed for divorce on her own, were exceptional. According to newspaper accounts, she sued for divorce in 1921 because her husband gambled and refused to take her out, "telling her that movies and other amusement places were intended for men and not for women." As she argued, that might be all right in China, where they were married in 1911, but it was not acceptable in San Francisco, where she observed that "as many women as men attend the movies and other places of amusement. "97 Yet another woman knew how to take advantage of this legal option when she wrote Donaldina Cameron in 192-3, asking, "Let me enter your Home and study English [because] I am going to divorce with my husband for the sake of free from repression."9s Even with the help of Protestant missionaries, it was not an easy decision for Chinese women to file for divorce. As Mrs. Hsieh Gin, a long-time resident of Chinatown, recalled, "In 1929, there was one divorced woman in Chinatown, and she was a marked woman. Men made nasty remarks to her while women even refused to talk to her."99 The Chinese community may have been willing to support women's emancipation, but it was not ready to condone divorce.