An Atrocity Still Being Unearthed
The DailyYou’re reading The New Yorker’s daily newsletter, a guide to our top stories, featuring exclusive insights from our writers and editors. Sign up to receive it in your in-box.In today’s newsletter, the 1885 massacre in Rock Springs, Wyoming—and its frightening echoes today. Plus:• “Severance” fetishizes the office• London is a local-news desert• How many immigrants will die in U.S. custody?Chinese laborers in Rock Springs Photograph from Union Pacific Coal Company Collection at Western Wyoming Community CollegeMichael LuoExecutive editorOnly one man’s face is clearly visible in the photograph. He is wearing a brimmed hat, an oversized coat, and boots. He seems to be mid-stride, with one foot in front of the other, as though he’s walking out of the frame. He’s staring straight at the picture-taker, his mouth slightly agape, in what appears to be a grimace. The photograph was taken after one of the most gruesome episodes of racial terror in American history. On September 2, 1885, white rioters killed at least twenty-eight Chinese miners in Rock Springs, Wyoming, and burned down the town’s Chinese quarter. The rest of the Chinese population fled. About a week later, several hundred Chinese miners returned, guarded by federal troops. The photograph is a tableau of that moment, when those who came back set up camp next to the railroad tracks. My eyes are invariably drawn to the man in the hat. I wonder about his story.After the killings, the town’s newspaper noted, “Nothing but heaps of smoking ruins mark the spot where Chinatown stood.”Photo illustration by Mike McQuade; Source photographs from Library of Congress / Union Pacific Coal Company Collection at Western Wyoming Community CollegeMy piece in this week’s issue is an account of the tragedy in Rock Springs and of the effort today to uncover what happened. (It is drawn from my book, “Strangers in the Land: Exclusion, Belonging, and the Epic Story of the Chinese in America,” which will be published on April 29th.) The massacre was the opening act of a harrowing—yet under-examined—period in American history that became known as “the driving out,” when dozens of communities expelled their Chinese residents. Part of what I was trying to understand in my book is how fury about an entire people can spill over the way it did against Chinese immigrants at the end of the nineteenth century. Today, we’re once again in a moment when anger toward immigrants is coursing through the country. They’re seen as strangers, making them an easy target for politicians on the right and left. Their stories also deserve to be told. Read the story »The Briefing RoomIllustration by Anuj ShresthaDonald Trump plans to detain more immigrants than ever before: Read Jack Herrera on why this will likely lead to more deaths, and how the Administration might conceal them »The alliance between Eric Adams and the President: Listen to the staff writers Eric Lach and Andrew Marantz discuss the alleged quid pro quo »Trump says he’s reclaimed the Panama Canal: BlackRock, an American company, has struck a deal to buy a controlling stake in the Chinese company that operates the canal’s ports. But Panama maintains that it remains in charge. Read Robin Wright on the power struggle »The Supreme Court rules against the E.P.A.: The decision, regarding how much sewage San Francisco can pump into the Pacific Ocean, could make it harder for the Environmental Protection Agency to regulate water standards. Read Bill McKibben on the state of the agency under Trump »More Top StoriesLondon Is a Local-News Desert. What Comes Next?How “Severance” Makes a Fetish of the OfficeShould Aaron Judge Get a Chinstrap?Daily CartoonCartoon by Sarah KempaCopy link to cartoonCopy link to cartoonLink copiedShopShopMore Fun & GamesPlay today’s smallish puzzle. A clue: 2024 Sabrina Carpenter hit with the lyric “I know I Mountain Dew it for you.” Eight letters.Shouts & Murmurs: In Times like TheseP.S. The boxer Cassius Clay took the name Muhammad Ali on this day in 1964. Just a couple of weeks before, he had faced off against Sonny Liston, who was the reigning heavyweight champion of the world. “That’s the only time I was ever scared in the ring,” Ali told David Remnick, reminiscing. “First time. First round. Said he was gonna kill me.”
In today’s newsletter, the 1885 massacre in Rock Springs, Wyoming—and its frightening echoes today. Plus:
• “Severance” fetishizes the office
• London is a local-news desert
• How many immigrants will die in U.S. custody?
Michael Luo
Executive editor
Only one man’s face is clearly visible in the photograph. He is wearing a brimmed hat, an oversized coat, and boots. He seems to be mid-stride, with one foot in front of the other, as though he’s walking out of the frame. He’s staring straight at the picture-taker, his mouth slightly agape, in what appears to be a grimace. The photograph was taken after one of the most gruesome episodes of racial terror in American history. On September 2, 1885, white rioters killed at least twenty-eight Chinese miners in Rock Springs, Wyoming, and burned down the town’s Chinese quarter. The rest of the Chinese population fled. About a week later, several hundred Chinese miners returned, guarded by federal troops. The photograph is a tableau of that moment, when those who came back set up camp next to the railroad tracks. My eyes are invariably drawn to the man in the hat. I wonder about his story.
My piece in this week’s issue is an account of the tragedy in Rock Springs and of the effort today to uncover what happened. (It is drawn from my book, “Strangers in the Land: Exclusion, Belonging, and the Epic Story of the Chinese in America,” which will be published on April 29th.) The massacre was the opening act of a harrowing—yet under-examined—period in American history that became known as “the driving out,” when dozens of communities expelled their Chinese residents. Part of what I was trying to understand in my book is how fury about an entire people can spill over the way it did against Chinese immigrants at the end of the nineteenth century. Today, we’re once again in a moment when anger toward immigrants is coursing through the country. They’re seen as strangers, making them an easy target for politicians on the right and left. Their stories also deserve to be told.
The Briefing Room
Donald Trump plans to detain more immigrants than ever before: Read Jack Herrera on why this will likely lead to more deaths, and how the Administration might conceal them »
The alliance between Eric Adams and the President: Listen to the staff writers Eric Lach and Andrew Marantz discuss the alleged quid pro quo »
Trump says he’s reclaimed the Panama Canal: BlackRock, an American company, has struck a deal to buy a controlling stake in the Chinese company that operates the canal’s ports. But Panama maintains that it remains in charge. Read Robin Wright on the power struggle »
The Supreme Court rules against the E.P.A.: The decision, regarding how much sewage San Francisco can pump into the Pacific Ocean, could make it harder for the Environmental Protection Agency to regulate water standards. Read Bill McKibben on the state of the agency under Trump »
- London Is a Local-News Desert. What Comes Next?
- How “Severance” Makes a Fetish of the Office
- Should Aaron Judge Get a Chinstrap?
Daily Cartoon
- Play today’s smallish puzzle. A clue: 2024 Sabrina Carpenter hit with the lyric “I know I Mountain Dew it for you.” Eight letters.
- Shouts & Murmurs: In Times like These
P.S. The boxer Cassius Clay took the name Muhammad Ali on this day in 1964. Just a couple of weeks before, he had faced off against Sonny Liston, who was the reigning heavyweight champion of the world. “That’s the only time I was ever scared in the ring,” Ali told David Remnick, reminiscing. “First time. First round. Said he was gonna kill me.”
