This book examines two large and generally overlooked diaspora communities, one Jewish and the other Slavic, which found refuge in Shanghai during the period 1900-1950. Victims of discrimination and persecution in their own lands--Central and Eastern Europe, Russia, and Ukraine--they chose Shanghai as their destination because no documentation was required to enter the city and settle there. In their struggle to survive and build a life in this Chinese open port, they encountered severe political, social, economic, and cultural challenges. The Jewish diaspora community began forming in the...