Settlerhood Unsettled?

Entangling Chinese Migrants in the Settler Colonial History of Early British Columbia ,1858-1923

Authors

  • Letian Wang Simon Fraser University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.14288/bcs.no223.199819

Keywords:

Chinese, settler colonialism, social history, cultural studies

Abstract

The question of Chinese settlerhood in early British Columbia has long been overlooked in scholarly circles due to the historiographical gap between Chinese Canadian history and settler colonial studies. To bridge this gap and decolonize Chinese Canadian history, I apply the 'entangled histories' method to examine it through the lens of settler colonialism. Drawing on Canadian history, Chinese diaspora studies, and Cantonese cultural analysis, this study reveals that the Chinese were 'settlers without settlerhood': they were largely unable and unwilling to displace Indigenous peoples permanently, yet they played a crucial role in reinforcing settler colonization in early British Columbia and beyond. This paper aims to demonstrate that anti-Asian exclusion and settler colonization were not isolated phenomena but intricately interconnected and mutually reinforcing.

Author Biography

Letian Wang, Simon Fraser University

Letian Wang is a master's student in history at Simon Fraser University. His research explores the complex dynamics between the Chinese and Japanese communities in early 20th-century Vancouver. Wang approaches Asian Canadian history through a lens that extends beyond conventional narratives of confrontation and interaction between the dominant society and individual Asian groups. His broader academic interests focus on the interactions among various racialized settler/migrant groups and Indigenous Peoples. He is particularly interested in uncovering the often-overlooked intersection of settler colonialism and anti-Asian racism.

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Published

04-03-2025

Issue

No. 223 (2024): Autumn

Section

Research Note