Leslie T. Chang : Conditions are harsh , but people ignore the full stories of Chinese workers . She says factory jobs have provided upward mobility , new opportunity in China . People look back admiringly at heroic work of immigrants to U.S. 100 years ago , she says . Income from migrant work is the biggest source of wealth accumulation in rural China . Chang : The story is that they were able to build a life for themselves and their families here.
Leslie T. Chang : Conditions are harsh , but people ignore the full stories of Chinese workers . She says factory jobs have provided upward mobility , new opportunity in China . People look back admiringly at heroic work of immigrants to U.S. 100 years ago , she says . Chang : The story is that they were able to build a life for themselves and their families here.