Imagine being coerced or torn from your homeland, to a foreign land, living under the harshest conditions, finding yourself stripped of your dignity, rights… the very essence of your identity. In 1890 this was the reality for hundred of thousands of Chinese immigrants in 19th-century America — a story that’s rarely told and largely forgotten. Peter Desberg’s latest novel, Let’s Send Him to America, thrusts this painful history into the spotlight, revealing the brutal treatment that Chinese immigrants faced in a country that promised them a better life but delivered only hardship and discrimination.
The Shocking Truth: A History Shoved into the Shadows
The legacy of Jim Crow laws and the enduring struggles of African Americans’ post-slavery experience is well-documented, yet the harrowing experiences of Chinese immigrants in the 19th century remains largely supressed. Drawn to the United States by the allure of prosperity, these immigrants faced a harsh reality marked by exclusion, violence, and institutionalized discrimination.
Instead of helping, the U.S. government made their situation even worse. In 1875, with the pressure of Chinese laborers taking away American jobs the government passed the Page Act barring Chinese women from entering the America so the Chinese couldn’t reproduce here. This left Chinese workers leading solitary lives. This pressure was amplified by the passage of The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882. It shut the nation’s doors to Chinese immigrants until 1943. The courts added further discrimination against the Chinese, stripping them of their right to testify in court. Chinese men were left vulnerable to crimes like theft, assault, and even murder, with no legal recourse to seek justice. And we’re just dipping our toes into the government’s discrimination against the Chinese.
A Tale of Survival and Resilience
Let’s Send Him to America provides a glimpse into one of the darkest corners of American history, seen through the eyes of Lo Wan, a young Chinese healer who failed to save the life of a powerful Chancellor’s daughter. This Chancellor thought killing him would be too merciful. He wanted a punishment that would last forever…so he had the healer shanghaied and shipped off to exhile in California, where he is forced to endure backbreaking labor in the mines and worse under conditions of relentless persecution within a society that views him as less than human.
Lo Wan is small in stature and appears to be easy prey…expect for two sets of skills his father taught him. He was trained from a young age to become a master healer and an invincible martial artist. In learning how to heal, he was provided with the knowledge of where to strike to control any opponent. His father warned him to his martial skills a secret.
Watch as this seemingly frail young man is pushed to his limits. Can he survive the crushing weight of a world determined to break him, or will he rise above and carve out a future against all odds? Let’s Send Him to America masterfully builds tension and suspense, leaving readers eager to discover how Lo Wan’s story unfolds.
About the Author
Peter Desberg is a university professor and licensed clinical psychologist with a Ph.D. from the University of Southern California. His research has been cited in numerous scholarly articles and quoted by prominent publications like The Wall Street Journal and Psychology Today. Desberg studied boxing and Wing Chun and has a black belt in Tae Kwon Do. He has had 24 books published including Pitch Like Hollywood and Now That’s Funny! Desberg’s latest novel showcases his talent for weaving compelling, resonant stories that entertain while making a point.
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