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The History of the Chinese Labour Corps in WWI

The History of the Chinese Labour Corps in WWI

Update: 2025-11-10
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Chinese Labour Corps

Welcome to Season 5, Episode 45! Today's episodes takes us back in history to the first "great war." We're focused on the forgotten participants in World War I… This is the story of the Chinese Labour Corps. During World War I, over 140,000 Chinese men crossed oceans to support the Allies. Their story is often forgotten and kind of ended in betrayal.

China hoped to earn respect and reclaim lost territory, especially Shandong Province. But in the end, the Allies broke their promises, reinforcing racial stereotypes and leaving China humiliated.

In our opening segment we celebrate the recent political wins by API in the November elections including Zohran Mamdani and Michelle Wu. We also celebrate the Dodgers 2nd World Series win. In our recurring segment, we bring back another segment of What Are We Reading to talk about The Strength of Water by Karin K. Jensen and Katabasis by R.F. Kuang.

If you like what we do, please share, follow, and like us in your podcast directory of choice or on Instagram @AAHistory101. For previous episodes and resources, please visit our site at https://asianamericanhistory101.libsyn.com or our links at http://castpie.com/AAHistory101. If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, email us at info@aahistory101.com.

Segments

  • 00:25 Intro: Celebrating the Dodgers and the Big API Wins in the November Elections
  • 05:15 The History of the Chinese Labour Corps in WWI
  • 17:17 What Are We Reading: The Strength of Water by Karin K. Jensen and by Katabasis by R.F. Kuang

Chinese Labour Corps gathered

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The History of the Chinese Labour Corps in WWI

The History of the Chinese Labour Corps in WWI

Gen & Ted Lai