than 130 years in the making. the city of san jose apologizes to all chinese immigrants and their descendants who came to san jose, and were victims of systemic and institutional racism. reporter: as part of the city s attempt to combat rising anti-asian hate during the pandemic, this formal apology acknowledges san jose s role in passing anti-chinese policy in the late 1800s, including a declaration of chinatown as a public nuisance. issuing orders for its residents to leave. leading to an arson in may of 1887 that destroyed the thriving community of 1,400 people. we are walking on the site of market street chinatown. reporter: connie young yu s grandfather was a teenager at the time who emigrated from china to san jose. and there s this feeling, already, that the chinatown was that they d have to but i don t think they expected a fire. reporter: the san francisco daily examiner reported on the
more than a century after arson decimated its thriving chinatown, the city of san jose is finally formally apologized for its past racism and injustice. cnn s natasha chen reveals how city leadership set the tone for anti-chinese attacks in the 1880s. this ceremony late last month in san jose, california marked a moment more than 130 years in the making. the city of san jose apologizes to all our chinese immigrants and their descendants who came to san jose and were victims of systemic and institutional racism. as part of city s attempts to combat rising anti-asian hate during the pandemic, this formal apology acknowledges san jose s role in passing anti-chinese policy in the late 1800s including a declaration of chinatown as a public nuisance, issuing orders for its residents