A revelatory history of the trafficking of young Asian girls that flourished in San Francisco during the first century of Chinese immigration (1848-1943) and the “safe house” on the edge of Chinatown that became a refuge for those seeking their freedom
From 1874, a house on the edge of San Francisco’s Chinatown served as a gateway to freedom for thousands of enslaved and vulnerable young Chinese women and girls. Known as the Occidental Mission Home, it survived earthquakes, fire, bubonic plague, and violence directed against its occupants and supporters–a courageous group of female abolitionists who fought the slave trade in Chinese women. With compassion and an investigative historian’s sharp eyes, Siler tells the story of both the abolitionists, who challenged the corrosive, anti-Chinese prejudices of the time, and the young women who dared to flee their fate. She relates how the women who ran the house defied contemporary convention, even occasionally broke the law, by physically rescuing children from the brothels where they worked, or snatching them off the ships smuggling them in, and helped bring the exploiters to justice. She has also uncovered the stories of many of the girls and young women who came to the Mission and the lives they later led, sometimes becoming part of the home’s staff themselves. A remarkable story of an overlooked part of our history, told with sympathy and vigor.
“An eye-opening account of the valiant work of a handful of Christian women against the enslavement of Asian girls in San Francisco’s Chinatown from the mid-1870s well into the next century. In her latest impressive work of research and storytelling, Siler delves vigorously into a shocking story of racism and oppression. [She] vividly portrays both the vibrant, violent milieu of Chinatown of the era—amid the fear and hatred of the Chinese by whites and the effects of laws such as the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882—and the lives and dedication of the extraordinary women of the Mission House. An accessible, well-written, riveting tale of a dismal, little-known corner of American history.”
—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“Meticulously researched and inspiring … a reminder that our political gestures and small wins accumulate and create ripple effects in ways we cannot often measure. ”
— Anisse Gross, The San Francisco Chronicle
“In “The White Devil’s Daughters,” Ms. Siler offers readers a sympathetic if at times critical account of this largely unknown story. Her smooth prose and vivid descriptions, as well as the numerous photographs reproduced throughout the book, create a compelling picture of life in the rough-and-tumble world of San Francisco’s Chinatown.”
— Maura Elizabeth Cunningham, The Wall Street Journal
“Vividly captures the atmosphere of sex trafficking in the late 19th and early 20th centuries . . . A wonderful storyteller, Siler places determined Dolly Cameron, leader of the Presbyterian Mission Home, and her assistant Tien Fuh Wu at the center of the struggle and brings to light a little-known chapter in U.S. history.”
— Elizabeth Taylor, The Minneapolis Star Tribune
“Absolutely fascinating”
— Otessa Moshfegh, The Boston Globe
“A solid introduction to an inspiring and, yes, heroic struggle against a barbaric practice . . . Siler has provided a usefully broad view of the fight against slavery in San Francisco’s Chinatown, one especially effective in giving voice to previously underappreciated figures.” —Gary Kamiya, The New York Times Book Review
“An astonishing tale of devotion and heroism [and] a revealing glimpse into mid-19th-century San Francisco . . . It’s the women themselves who fill the book’s pages—Bessie Jeong, who became one of the first women physicians of her era, and Tien Fuh Wu, who became Cameron’s longtime ally in the fight for women’s rights . . . Siler’s descriptions of the crowded Cameron House are indelible.” —Georgia Rowe, The Mercury News
“In this incisive history, journalist Siler uses the biographies of Donaldina Cameron and her longtime assistant, Tien Fuh Wu, to tell the story of San Francisco’s Presbyterian Mission Home. . . . Their campaigns included literal rescues from sexual or household slavery as well as providing protection and a home to women and girls fleeing enslavement, forced marriages, and other forms of exploitation. . . . Siler offers a fascinating example of the urgency and ambiguity of turn-of-the-century social reform movements and reformers.”
—Sara Jorgensen, Booklist
“Gripping . . . Siler vividly recounts a shocking episode from America’s past . . . This strong story will fascinate readers interested in the history of women, immigration, and racism.”
—Publishers Weekly
“This thoroughly researched work is highly recommended for those interested in the Chinese American experience or the history of San Francisco.” —Joshua Wallace, Library Journal
“At the height of the California gold rush, thousands of men streamed in from China in search of jobs. Women followed, of course, and many encountered challenging and dangerous conditions—including involuntary prostitution. In The White Devil’s Daughters: The Women Who Fought Slavery in San Francisco’s Chinatown, Julia Flynn Siler recounts the history of these girls and women, as well as the social pioneers who battled Chinatown gang leaders and the city bureaucracy to rescue them from sex slavery and indentured servitude.”
—BookPage
“Intensely well-researched as was her book Lost Kingdom, the lives and activities of Cameron and Wu — early feminists, agents for change, civil rights activists, some men, and yes, women faithful to Christian or other religious beliefs and practices — are riveting and personal. Siler provides sweeping perspective on the era’s racism, immigration, and women’s position in society. She draws intriguing parallels between prostitution and marriage, establishing contrast between justice and the law but never allows facts to bog down the narrative. Photographs throughout the book offer vivid reproductions of San Francisco at the turn of the 20th century. Even more striking are images of young girls made victims of sex trafficking. If there is a mandate delivered, it is to step up and make difference, to break the laws of convention, possiblly even break actual laws. The task is daunting — all the more reason to act.”
—Lou Fancher, Oakland Magazine and the East Bay Monthly
“Julia Flynn Siler has written a diamond of a book—solidly researched, polished, and crafted with a cutting edge. The White Devil’s Daughters tells an unforgettable story of exploitation, oppression, and resistance, showing how the enslavement of Chinese women was woven into the birth of Asian America in nineteenth-century San Francisco. Most important, Siler rescues the remarkable women who waged war on this criminal trade, inside and outside the law, even as they battled pervasive anti-Chinese bigotry. This book is not only rewarding, but necessary.”
—T.J. Stiles, winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Custer’s Trials and The First Tycoon
“With a flair for archival digging and literary narrative, Julia Siler unveils a remarkable and controversial chapter of Chinatown history. Sounding a warning gong in a world still plagued by human trafficking and cursed by political exploitation of the global scourge, The White Devil’s Daughters is a timely book and a valuable lesson in caring for the suffering of fellow humans while looking for a real cure.”
—Yunte Huang, author of Inseparable
“Eye-opening…this strong story will fascinate readers interested in the history of women, immigration, and racism.”
—Mary Jeneverre Schultz, Asian Avenue