In 19th century America, merchant ship captains used press gangs to force men to work on their ships, known as Shanghai. Port cities like Portland and San Francisco were notorious for this practice, which was eventually outlawed. Today, “Shanghai” means forcing someone to “volunteer” for a project or task.
There were few less attractive jobs in 19th century America than working on a merchant ship. The work was demeaning, the food was inedible, and the pay was minimal. Captains of merchant ships, especially those docked in ports along the Pacific coast, sometimes resorted to illicit recruitment methods to maintain a sufficient crew. Local thugs called “press gangs” would be hired to find suitable recruits in saloons, alleyways, gambling houses, and other locations. As many of the ships headed for the Orient, this practice of involuntary servitude became known as Shanghai. For Shanghai, someone had to force him to “volunteer” in his services under extreme pressure. The organizers of these press gangs were often paid in the form of the sailors’ unfortunate first month’s wages.
Port cities such as Portland, Oregon and San Francisco, California became especially notorious for organized press gangs and the Shanghai surprise. Although there were various attempts to outlaw the practice, local politicians were often under the influence of the captains or crime bosses who actually ran the Shanghai operations. One particularly successful crime boss threw himself a huge birthday party to attract potential recruits. While local men enjoyed free food and alcohol, a gang of shanghai press systematically blacked them out.
However, American ship captains and crime bosses were not the first to use involuntary servitude. The British Navy faced the same manpower shortage for its military operations, so from time to time officers would have a draft drive, meaning they could force any man with any sailing experience into military service. . Unlike the American practice of the Shanghai surprise, however, the British Navy did not accept men in questionable health or those who lacked navigational skills. American press gangs were often paid for every warm body they could in Shanghai, regardless of the victim’s health, experience, or moral turpitude.
Eventually, federal laws made the Shanghai practice illegal, but by then the need for involuntary sailors had all but disappeared. Steamships reduced the crew size of most ships, and merchant ship captains could recruit experienced sailors without the need for violence. By the 1920s, the days of the Shanghai surprise were over.
In a modern sense, for Shanghai someone means forcing you to “volunteer” for a project or errand. The element of involuntary service is the key to a good Shanghai. A boss may assign a humiliating or demeaning project to a department head, who in turn may share his good fortune with subordinates or co-workers. The situation is now ripe for a Shanghai, as asking for willing volunteers would be pointless and the job still needs to be done. The head of the department can simply order one or two subordinates to stop what they are currently doing and take over this project. While a shanghai can be expressed in the form of a polite request, the reality is that refusal is not a viable option.
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