The Chinese in Canada

First published in 1988, The Chinese in Canada remains a provocative account of the history and development of the Chinese-Canadian community. One reviewer praised the first edition as written in an ‘extremely lucid and succinct fashion, admirably blending historical and demographic data’ (Canadian Review of Sociology and Anthropology), and another described it as ‘a credit to its author’, remarking that ‘it also helps to rehabilitate a field which is mesmerized by the notion of fidelity to native culture and by the illusion of ethnic inequality’ (Canadian Historical Review). The book’s success prompted the publication of a Chinese translation in 1992. In this second edition, Peter Li has expanded his original historical analysis to include the many changes that have taken place in the Chinese-Canadian community in recent years. In addition to explaining how and why the Chinese became targets of institutional racism, he offers new insights into why Canadian society continues to view Chinese-Canadians as foreigners, despite their occupational and economic success.