By 1920, Mexicali's Chinese population outnumbered the Mexican 10,000 to 700.Stacy, Lee. 2003. Mexico and the United States p. 183 A group of 5,000 single Chinese males started the Asociación China, a Mexicali social organization at least partly devoted to finding Chinese wives from overseas. This organization remains active to present day. In 1927, a series of Tong wars here and other parts of Northern Mexico erupted over control of gambling and prostitution rings. Mexican alarm over the Chinese organized crime led to the government-encouraged Movimiento Anti-Chino. In the late 1920s, a wave of anti-immigrant sentiment that swept the country and led to the torture and murder of hundreds of Chinese in northern Mexico. However, the Chinese in this city were numerous enough and politically strong enough to protect themselves.
