Since James Marshall found gold and the California Gold Rush began, many cultures came to mine for gold in the goldfields of California. There were the white miners, the Chinese miners, the Mexican and South American miners, nicknamed the “Chilenos,” and the Native Americans. The Chinese and “Chilenos” were not treated fairly.

The Chinese were often chased out of town, had their businesses run down, and they were beaten and robbed. Other things that Americans did to the Chinese were that they made a rule that the Chinese could only mine on claims where the white miners had finished, and most the gold was gone, and they were forced to give up any claim proven to be rich. Though the Chinese were treated so unfairly, they were grateful to even mine for gold, and they willingly gave up the claims when they were forced to.

The “Chilenos” were regularly beaten, and they were robbed of the gold they found. The Native Americans originally owned the land, and when the miners came, the miners rushed onto their land to mine for gold, the Native Americans saw their wildlife scared away, had their rivers polluted, and saw their beautiful landscapes destroyed. Many cultures were treated unfairly when they came to California to mine for gold.

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