A Legacy Magnified: A Generation of Chinese Americans in Southern California (1980's ~ 2010's): Vol 3

By May Chen

A Legacy Magnified: A Generation of Chinese Americans in Southern California, 1980's-2010's (南加華人三十年史話英文版) is a monumental publication jointly authored by a team of renowned group of writers consisting of 17 chapters, nearly 1 million words, and more than 1,300 photographs, many of which are collected from historical archives. It is an unprecede

• Language: English
• Publisher: EHGBooks
• Release date: Jun 1, 2020
• ISBN: 9781647849870

May Chen

南加華人文史保存基金會( Southern California Foundation for the Preservation of Chinese Literature and History) and 陳十美May Chen, Editor-In-Chief：#President of American East Asian Culture & Education Foundation. #Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Southern California Foundation for the Preservation of Chinese Literature and History. #President of North America Chinese Writers' Association, Los Angeles. #Principal of Sunshine Education Center. #Publisher of So Cal Chinse Community, 1980-1989. #Founded Huaxing Academy and Sunshine Education Center in 1987. May Chen has resided in the United States for over three decades, during which she has spared no effort in engaging herself in a wide spectrum of activities promoting Chinese culture and civilization. She has dedicated her entire adult life to educate others about China's cultural heritage.

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Table of Contents

Table of Contents

Preface I

Preface II

Preface III

Preface IV

Introduction

CHAPTER NINE THE INHERITANCE OF CHINESE CULTURE AND LITERATURE

I. The Writing Careers and Different Destinies of the Two Canonical Writers

1. Eileen Chang--Splendorous and Yet Bleak Shadow of Life

2. C. Y. Lee--Splendid and Glorious Achievement in Literature

II. Resplendent and Colorful Chinese Community Gardens of Literature

1. The Garden of Literature Media Support

2. Literary Organizations and Prolific Literary Creation

2.1 North American Chinese Writers Association of Southern California

2.2 North America Chinese Writers’ Association LA

2.3 Los Angeles Chinese Writers' Association

2.4 North American San Fernando Valley Chinese Writers’ Association

2.5 The Way Literary Association

2.6 Overseas Taiwanese Pen Club

2.7 Taiwanese American Pen Club

3. Literary Training Organizations and Flourishing Reading Groups in Various Regions

4. Poets’ Societies and Refined Creative Works

4.1 New World Poetry

4.2 Fengti Poets’ Club

4.3 Plum Blossom Poets’ Society

4.4 Wen Fong Poetry Club

4.5 Dragon-Carving Poets’ Society

5. The Rise of Zhiqing Literature in China

6. Anti-Japanese Literature in Southern California

7. English Literature Published by the Chinese

III. Book Publishing and Translation Industry in Southern California -- A Bridge to Literature

1. A Small Number of Publishers

2. Closely Connected Business of Chinese Language Bookstores

2.1 The Early Bookstores in the City of Monterey Park

2.2 Once Prosperous Bookstore in Chinatown

2.3 The Bookstores in Other Regions of San Fernando Valley

2.4 The Rise of Digital Media Will Inevitably Replace Paper Publishing

2.5 The World Journal Sponsors an Activity Everybody Comes and Writes a Book

3. Exceptionally Eminent Translators

IV. Important Conferences on Literature and Exchanges among the Literary Circles in mainland China and Taiwan

1. Important Individual and Organized Activities

1.1 So Cal Chinese Community News Sponsored the first Symposium on Bo Yang’s Literature in Southern California

1.2 The Second Annual Meeting of Overseas Chinese Women Writers Association

1.3 The Rape of Nanking: The Forgotten Holocaust of World War II by Iris Chang

1.4 The Second Annual Meeting of North America Chinese Writers’ Association, Los Angeles

1.5 The Fourth Annual Meeting of World Association of Chinese Writers

1.6 Coffee Fragrance in Literature

1.7 The Book Launch for Lan Wang’s 100th Reprint of The Blue and the Black

1.8 Kwang-Chung Yu’s Poetry Recitation

1.9 Chun-ming Hwang’s and Ang Li’s Lecture Tour in Los Angeles

1.10 Hsien-yung Pai’s Talk on My Father and the Republic of China

2. Exchanges and Interactions with the Literary Circles in mainland China and Taiwan

2.1 Writers in Southern California Were Invited to Give Talks in Canada and Beijing

2.2 The Responsibility of Continuing the Overseas Literary Tradition Rests with Our Generation

V. The Conditions for the Chinese in Southern California to Transmit Cultural Heritage in Various Fashions

1. Overseas Chinese’s Home--Cultural Service Organizations for the Overseas Chinese in Southern California

1.1 Cultural and Educational Service Centers for Overseas Chinese

1.2 The China Press --the Center of Chinese Cultural Development

1.3 Chinese-American Associations in Southern California that Spread Chinese Culture

2. Gem of the Earth and Treasures of the Nature--The Museums on Chinese History and Culture in Southern California

2.1 Chinese American Museum

2.2 Bowers Museum

2.3 Pacific Asia Museum

2.4 Alhambra Historical Society Museum

2.5 San Diego Chinese Historical Museum

3. In Time, We Effect a Change--The Organizations and Activities for Promoting Traditional Chinese Culture in Southern California

3.1 Chinese Culture Center at California State University, Los Angeles

3.2 Chinese Cultural Revival Association in Southern California

3.3 The Society for Confucian Studies of America

3.4 American East Asian Culture and Education Foundation

3.5 Southern California Foundation for the Preservation of Chinese Literature and History

3.6 The Institutes and Academies Promoting Chinese Language and Culture

4. In Memory of the Late Veteran Chinese Cultural Promoters in Southern California

VI. Promoters of New Overseas Immigrant Literature

1. Carrying the Influence of Home Culture and Clashing with Experience of Foreign Land

2. Possessing Multi-Cultural Resources with Border-Crossing Perspectives

3. Studying and Thinking to Attain Deep Comprehension and Expressiveness

CHAPTER TEN NOTABLE ACCOMPLISHMENTS IN THE ARTS

I. Chinese Calligraphy, Seal Cutting, the Arts of Pottery, Stone and Painting

1. Noted Chinese Calligraphers in Southern California: Fangwey Yen, Terry Yuan and Howard Shih

2. Noted Seal Cutters and the Artists in Pottery and Stone

2.1 Highly Skillful Veteran Seal Cutters: Disheng Tang, Wenyuan Chen, Shang Delin and Qingnian Tang

2.2 Noted Artists in Pottery and Stones: Oliver Lin, Fenghsiung Liu and Ruiqi Wang

3. Traditional Chinese Paintings that Use Brush and Ink and Different Schools of Painting

3.1 Artists of Different Schools

3.2 Businesses for Mounted Paintings

3.3 Organizations of Traditional Chinese Paintings in the Chinese Community

4. Chinese Modern Heavy Color Painting, Oil Painting and Mainstream Art

4.1 Gorgeous Heavy Color Painting

4.2 The Chinese Oil Painters and Critics in Southern California

II. The Art of Photography Makes History and Beauty Coexist

1. Some Photographer’s Master Pieces

1.1 Shen-chih Cheng’s Walking on Gum Saan

1.2 Nick Ut’s Wartime Photos of Villagers Fleeing a Napalm Strike

1.3 Wendell Chang, One of the First Disciples of Jingshan Lang.

2. Li-Jen Kao and Others Establish Chinese Photography Societies in Southern California

3. Volunteers of Chinese Community Recorded Meaningful History of Painting

3.1 Emerson Chen：Volunteer Photographers in the Community

3.2 Mingyuan Jun, Photography Lover in the 1980s

III. Dramatization of Chinese History in Foreign Theaters—Chinese Drama in Southern California

1. Cantonese Opera Found Audiences Speaking the Same Dialect

1.1 Susanna Lam Advocated Cantonese Drama for Many Years.

1.2 Jingchuan Huang Supports Chinese Artists Bar Wo Association at Los Angeles

2. Magnificent Traditional Chinese Operas Gather Many Talents

2.1 Opera Performers’ Clubs that Have a Long History

2.2 Performance of Famous Actors and Actresses, and Establishment of Performance Centers

3. A Piece of Kunqu Opera Stirred the Quiet Mind

3.1 Jennifer Hua Wenyi Led a Delegation to Perform In the U.S.

3.2 Liangji Yu and Cheng Ching Ying Yu, Ardent Promoters of Kunqu Opera

4. Local Operas Such as Yu Opera, Huangmei Opera and Gezai Opera Have a Large Audience in the Chinese Community

IV. Masters of Stage Play and Crosstalk and Their Performance

1. A Prelude to Ling Luen Drama Club in Southern California

1.1 Star of the East Dramma Club Staged Dances with Money

1.2 Frank Chang and His Seeing Peach Blossom Land Again

1.3 Late May Chang’s Life Is So Beautiful

2. In Southern California, Crosstalk Means Jau-nan Wu

3. David Chen, Eric Chen and Their Specialty as Magicians

4. Stage Performance Organized by Janice Yin and Perry Nee

5. Weihan Yang and the Music Business Man Who Ran Night Life Club in Los Angeles

V. The Feast of Music, the World Language

1. The Pioneers Who Integrated Eastern and Western Music

1.1 Karen Han Brought the Erhu String Instrument to Hollywood

1.2 Wu Man Brought the Pipa to Western Music

1.3 Zhiming Han and Cynthia Hsiang, the Best Partners in Performing Traditional Chinese Music

2. Traditional Chinese Stringed and Woodwind Instruments and Ethnic Drum Music Troupe

3. Flourishing Choral Music Organizations in Southern California

4. Chinese Artists Who Had Outstanding Performances in the Mainstream Musical World

4.1 Yeh Shen, Conductor

4.2 Timothy Landauer, Cellist

4.3 Hu Yi, Violinist

4.4 Yun Tang, a member of the Los Angeles Philharmonic

4.5 Yo-Yo Ma, a World-renowned Cellist

4.6 Yujia Wang Changed Traditional Image of Chinese Musicians

4.7 Cecilia Tsan, Principal Cellist of Long Beach Symphony

4.8 Lei Liang, a Genius in Musical Composition

5. The Making of Young Chinese Musical Geniuses

5.1 Rachel Yu Chen, Cellist

5.2 Youngest Chinese Winner at the Bradshaw & Buono International Piano Competition

5.3 Young Chinese Sisters Won the Prize at American Prodigies International Piano and Strings Competition

5.4 Isabella Tong, Award Winner at the Age of Eight

5.5 Marc Yu, a Child Prodigy in Music

5.6 Gigi Yip and Her Teacher Won the Prize Together

6. Excellent Music Teachers and Organizations in Southern California

6.1 MTAC Piano Teacher

6.2 Yin Yin Huang teaches music, life lessons

6.3 Church Chorus

6.4 Olympia Youth Orchestra at San Gabriel

6.5 Performing Arts Foundation for Asian-Americans Established by Julia Wu and Richard Liao

VI. The Classical and the Modern Dance Together

1. Chinese-American Dancing Group

2. New Stars in Classical Ballet

3. Explorers in Modern Dance and Diversity:

VII. Rich Chinese Elements in Hollywood

1. Early Images of the Chinese in Hollywood Movies

1.1 Yellow Terror in Hollywood at the Age of Silent Movies

1.2 Charlie Chan in Hollywood’s Golden Era

1.3 The Flower Drum Song Was Adapted into Opera and Movie

1.4 The Last Emperor Changed the Chinese Images in the Movies

2. Stunning Beauty of the Early Chinese Movie Stars

2.1 Anna May Wong—Her Body Ran with the Chinese Blood

2.2 Nancy Kwan

2.3 Lisa Lu—Reed Flowers as White as Snow Reflecting Sunset Glow

2.4 Tsai Chin—Picking Celery in the Floating Life of Duckweed

3. Chinese Kungfu Movies

3.1 Bruce Lee—Becoming an Instant World Star

3.2 Jackie Chan—More Humorous and Comic

3.3 Jet Li—A Show of True Chinese Kungfu

4. Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon—a Milestone for Chinese Movies

5. Shining Chinese American Luminaries and Oscar Awards

5.1 The Best Photographer Award—James Wong Howe

5.2 The Best Supporting Actor—Haing S. Ngor

5.3 The Best Director—Ang Lee

5.4 Best Composition, Photography and Music Awards

5.5 The Best Documentary Feature Award

6. The Chinese Artists in Hollywood

6.1 Noted Chinese American Actors, Actresses and Directors

6.2 More Chinese Movie-Makers and Directors

6.3 Promising Chinese Talents in Special Effects, Composition and Animation: Larry Fong, William Hoy and Nathan Wang

6.4 Jerry Ha Initiated Hollywood 3-D Animations

6.5 The Chinese Work Force at DreamWorks Studios

6.6 Heroes behind the Screen: Chinese Stunt and Substitute Actors and Actresses

7. The Film Gala Sponsored by the Chinese in Chinese American Film Festival

8. Chinese movie artists are brought into the International Movie Industry

VIII. In This Fertile Soil, the Art Will Flourish in Southern California

CHAPTER ELEVEN SPLENDID SPORTS AND RECRETIONAL ACTIVITIES

I. The Rise of Chinese Athletic Champions in the Olympic Games

1.      Changchun Liu, a Sole Representative of 400 Million Chinese

2. Chuan’guang Yang Amazed the International Athletic Arena

3. Cheng Chi, the Reindeer of Asia

4. Two Medalists—Gold and Bronze— at the Same Time in 1984

5. Chinese Sport Champions from Southern California

5.1 Michelle Wingshan Kwan, a Butterfly on the Ice

5.2 Michael Te-pei Chang, Who Always Presses On

5.3. Tiffany Chin, a Chinese Porcelain Doll

5.4 Yueling Chen, an Angel on the Road

6. Sports Stars of Tomorrow

6.1 Softball for All

6.2 Young Table Tennis Champions, Twinkling Like Stars

6.3 The Little Stars of the Badminton Game

6.4 The Doubles Tennis Player Vania King

6.5 The Little Flying Fish Adrian Huang, a Stalwart Swimmer

7. Chinese American Sport Champions in Southern California

8. The Contribution of Chinese Trainers and Coaches to International Gymnastics and Sports Championships

8.1 Liang Qiao

8.2 Eva Na

8.3 Kevin Tan

8.4 Ying Chen

8.5 Hua Li and Xiaoying Yao

8.6 Howie Liang and Jenny Liang who Coached the U.S. Gymnastics Team

8.7 The Volleyball Champion Di Lin Collaborated with Irvine City

8.8 Jun Gao, an Invincible Table Tennis Champion

9. High Profiles of the Chinese Sportsmanship in American Sports

9.1 Patrick Soon-Shiong Huang, a Trustee of the Los Angeles Lakers

9.2 Jenny Ting, an Agile Cheerleader

9.3 Weimin Wu, a Designer and Manufacturer of Olympic Badge

II. Sports and Recreational Activities in the Chinese Community of Southern California

1. Yongzhong Zhang and Early Chinese Sports Activities

1.1 Chinese Stars Soccer Association and the Basketball Team of the Consolidated Benevolent Association

2. New Immigrants and Sports Organizations

2.1 Shusen Gong and the Chinese Athletic Association in Southern California

2.2 Li-di Ying of Shoe City Generously Offering Financial Support

2.3 Southern California Council of Chinese Schools Participates

2.4 The Formation of Varied Sports Organizations

3. Communal Activities

3.1 May Chen and the First College Basketball Championship

3.2 Roy Gao Committed to the 30th Global Chinese Basketball Championship

3.3 Jingcong Wang, a Physician and International Table Tennis Players

3.4 The American Asian Sports Headquarters in California and the Chinese Immigrants from Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos.

3.5 Yungtai Hsu Revving Up Amateur Players

3.6 Kenjohn Wang and Tom Liaw Initiated Golf Tournaments

3.7 Steve Chiang and Pan-Chinese Golf Forum

3.8 The Ma Families as Swimming Champions

3.9 The Marathon and the Chinese Community

3.10. Howard Chen and Dragon Boat

3.11 Chinese Martial Arts Transcend Boundaries

III. The All-Round Recreational Activities in Southern California

1. Activities for the Elderly

1.1 The Yuan-ji dance

1.2 The Happy Dancers in Los Angeles

1.3 Cindy Fang and the Folk Dance Club

1.4 Tai-chi and Hexaphase Boxing

1.5 Guiyang Meng and Tai-chi

1.6 Rick Chiu and His Nursery Workshops

1.7 Annual Exhibitions of Home Gardening and Nursery of World Journal

1.8 Tony Chen and Tea and Calligraphic Arts

1.9 Margie Yang and Tea

1.10 Ten Ren Tea and Tea Booths

1.11 Other Aspects of Leisure Life

2.  Leisure Activities of Younger Generations

2.1 South California Chinese Motorcycle Club

2.2 Air Travelers

2.3 Shooting Ranges and Physical Training

2.4 John Tu and JT and California Dreamin'

2.5 Line Dancing, A New Pursuit

IV The Sick Men of East Asia Have Stood Up

CHAPTER TWELVE THE VITALITY OF MASS MEDIA AND JOURNALISM IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

I. A Sketch of the Evolving Chinese Mass Communication in Southern California

II. The Early Stage of Reclaiming Wasteland

1. The Earliest Newspapers and Journals in the 20th Century

2. Nascent Electronic Facilities for Chinese Media

3. World Journal (Chinese Daily News) Established in New York and San Francisco

III. The Status of the Newspaper Media of the Chinese Community in the 1980’s

1.      Community Weekly Bulletins as a Testing Stone

1.1 So Cal Chinese Community News, a local paper that served the old and new Chinese immigrants

1.2 Vietnamese Chinese and Their Journalism

1.3. Various Journals Published by the Taiwanese

1.4. California Daily News or Subsequently, the California Tribune and Jiang Jingguo Zhuan

2. The Magnates of Chinese Journalism

2.1 International Daily News, a major newspaper

2.2 Centre Daily News

2.3 China Times U.S. Edition

2.4 The Young China Morning Paper

2.5 Journalism is Like a Battlefield in Which One Must Fight a Winning Game

3. TV Media in the 1980’s

3.1. Recruiting Anchors for TV Programs in Southern California

3.2. International Video-Audio Company, a Joint Venture of Three Taiwanese TV Stations

4. Daily Broadcasting of Chinese Language Programs

4.1 Channel 18, a Favorite Station of the Chinese Community

4.2 Hong Kong’s Television Broadcasts Limited and Its Cantonese-language Programs

4.3. Mingwei Li and Shan Ba Took Over the Voice of China

4.4 Sophia Woo Tang Started the Federation Broadcasting Station

4.5 North America Satellite TV Company

IV. The Flowering of Media in Southern California in the 1990’s

1. Mass Media in Southern California Keeps Pace with the Times

1.1 Jingyu Zhang and Steve Chiang Published The Liberty Times

1.2. China’s The China Press, the First Journal That Moved to Southern California

1.3. Construction of World Journal’s New Building

2. Monterey Pass Road in the City of Monterey Park

2.1 Chinese Media Correspondents Report from Out of State

2.2 The Case of Ranbing Ji That Rocked the World of Mass Communication

3. Computers and the Internet Has Greatly Impacted Chinese Language Print Journalism and Electronic Media

4.  Other Local Chinese Newspapers and Journals

4.1 Sino Times

4.2 The Overseas Edition of the People’s Daily and Wen Wei Po

4.3 Shanghai’s Xinmin Evening News

4.4 Chinese L.A. Daily News and China Daily News by L. A. Web Inc

4.5 Master Hsing Yun and His Merit Times, North America Edition

4.6 Star Magazine, Supported by U.S. Capital Investments

4.7 Tomorrow Times

4.8 The Epoch Times That Changed from Weekly to Daily

5. Video-Audio Media Catching Up

5.1 CTi News Targeted the Chinese Globally

5.2 U-Best Satellite TV Was the First Station to Make Use of the Digital Positioning System

5.3. EDI Media Inc. Established KWRM AM1370

5.4. Arthur Liu and His Kingdom of Radio Broadcast and Television

V.  Severe Competition in the Media World at the Turn of the Century

1. The Reshuffle, Decline, and Restitution of Mass Communication in Southern California

1.1 The Winding Way of the Taiwan Daily

1.2 Employees of the World Journal and Their Vain Attempt at Forming a Workers’ Union

1.3 To Standardize the Horizontal Line-Reading Format, the Media Systems Have Adopted the European Alphabetical Arrangement

2. Video-Audio Media Systems Have Emerged as a New Force of the Century

2.1 High Charges Incur Financial Burden for the Chinese Language Stations and Chinese Cable Subscribers

2.2 Chinese Investors Took over the Media System of Southern California

3. The TV Viewers’ Wide Selection of Stations

3.1 Cable TV Viewers and the Cost of Usage

3.2 Wireless TV Programs People Can View with Antennas

3.3 GETV Runs the 24-Hour Programs

VI. Chinese Print and Radio-TV Media in San Diego

1. Forerunners of the Local Newspaper from the 1960’s to 2000’s

2. Jiatun Xu and the San Diego Mass Media

VII. The Current Situation of the Chinese Media in Southern California

1. Radio Stations and the Promising Prospect of Their Business Development

2. Promotion of FM Radio Programs as an Urgent Task

3. The Advanced Media Enterprise of China and Taiwan That Came To Southern California

4. The TV Magnate International Chinese Network Inc. (ICN)

VIII. Achievements, Inadequacies, and Challenges of the Chinese Media Communication in Southern California

1. Hard Work and Struggle Has Benefited the Chinese in Southern California

2. Abiding Exemplars of the Cultural Workers

3. Moderate Competition in the World of Media

4. A Need for the Media Workers to Maintain Professional Quality

5. Equitable Remuneration to Encourage Media Professionals and Experts

6. Concerted Effort of Four Regions Needed to Amass Financial and Professional Power to Create a Chinese Media Stronghold

7. Let Us Guard against Bias, Be Self-Sufficient, and Look Forward to a Bright Future in the Chinese Media Enterprise

CHAPTER THIRTEEN THE STRUGGLES AND DEVELOPMENT IN THE FIELD OF CHINESE AND WESTERN MEDICINE

I. The History of Western Medicine and Medical System for the Chinese Americans in Southern California

1. Chinese Americans Gradually Took Charge of Mainstream Medical Undertakings

1.1 The Formation of AHMC Healthcare Inc., the Largest Chinese Financed Medical Group in Southern California

1.2 The Difficulty Involved in Taking over French Hospital in Chinatown and Changing Its Name to Pacific Alliance Medical Center

2. A Review of the Major Illnesses Contracted by the Chinese Americans over the Years

3. What Poor Immigrants Should Know When They Receive Treatment at a Public Hospital

4. The Role and Significance of Medical Insurance for the Chinese Immigrants

5. The Background of the Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act in California

6. Obama Care in California

7. The Founding of the First Asia Pacific Mental Health Center

8. The Diverse and Strong Medical Volunteer Organizations in the Chinese Community

8.1 The Significance of Tzu Chi Free Clinic

8.2 Herald Cancer Association’s Concern for the Chinese Cancer Patients

8.3 The Community Health Lectures at Torrance Memorial Medical Center

9. The Chinese Professional Medical Organizations in Southern California

9.1 The Taiwan Medical Society

9.2 North American Taiwanese Medical Association, Southern California Chapter

9.3 Chinese American Dental Society of Southern California

II. The Struggles for Legitimization of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) in Southern California

1. The Early Cases of Struggle for the Legitimization of Traditional Chinese Medicine

1.1 Moses Yu and His Medical Practice in Secret

1.2 Miriam Lee’s Unexpected Disaster

1.3 Boqi Bian Received a Summons from the Court

1.4 Governor Ronald Reagan Vetoed Several Proposals Related to the Legitimization of the TCM

1.5 Acupuncturists in California Had to Fight to Legitimately Practice Medicine

2. Reflections on the Early Stages of the Chinese Fight for Legalization of Acupuncture

3. Seeking Even Larger Space for the Development of TCM in California

4. Leland Y. Yee, Member of State Assembly, Put Forward Five Important Proposals

5. Final Triumph in the Disputes over the Status of Acupuncture

6. Acupuncture Education and TCM in Southern California Still Has a Long Way to Go

7. Findings of Researchers Affect the Integration of Eastern and Western Medicines

8. Discovery of a Type of Solid Water under Normal Pressure and Temperature

III. Chinese American Practitioners of Chinese and Western Medicine Should Unite to Work for the Health and Well-being of People

Postscript

Donors List

Rosemead Gardens-Mary Liu

Appendices included in the original Chinese version

Editorial Board of the Original Chinese Version

Preface I

by

Larry Wong 黃金泉

A Remarkable Generation

Who Passes Down the Cultural Torch and Forges Ahead into the Future

It has been over one hundred and sixty years since the Chinese came to settle in Southern California. I arrived Los Angeles in 1948 when I was seventeen. I heard the hardship of our predecessors and witnessed racial discrimination in the land. The hardships experienced were indeed unspeakable. I joined the Chinese Benevolent Association, Los Angeles羅省中華會館during my adolescent years without the slightest hesitation for the sake of help achieve solidarity and promote cooperation among the Chinese. I vowed to contribute my own part to the service of the Chinese. Owing to my unremitting effort and zeal, I was welcomed and my efforts appreciated by the leaders of the Chinese community and won the trust of the Chinese American community at large. I was thrice elected chairman and twice as chief supervisor監事長 of this organization. Subsequently, I was requested to organize and found the Chinese Benevolent Association in the United States全美中華會館, Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association中華公所, National Association of Overseas Chinese Benevolent Associations華僑總會聯誼會, and Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association, USA 美洲中華公所 and have served as its chairman and executive secretary up to the present. How time flies! I am now at the age of eighty-five! It is no exaggeration to say that I have dedicated my life to the service of the overseas Chinese.

I have been living in the U.S. for nearly seventy years. In the first twenty years, the Chinese I encountered called themselves laoqiao 老僑 or older generation overseas Chinese. Although they no longer worked as miners and railway workers, they made a living predominantly by running restaurants or laundries. Chinese Americans then were manual labors. In the second twenty years, Chinese came here in increasing numbers as students at institutions of higher learning. Although they were much better educated, constrained by their financial resources and living under a variety of pressures, they found it difficult to merge into the mainstream American society. They remained marginal. In the last thirty years, however, there was an influx of so-called xinqiao 新僑 or recently arrived overseas Chinese. The pleasant and salubrious climate in Southern California made it an ideal place for these newcomers. Among them, there is no lack of professionals with various expertise, skills, and financial capabilities. Gradually, those who came as students successfully completed their graduate education and established themselves professionally. They have contributed significantly to the Chinese communities here in Southern California and are responsible for the rising socio-political status of the Chinese Americans. This dramatic development is in sharp contrast to the situation I witnessed during my first forty years here. 

I have been living in Southern California since my adolescent years. I boast of being a living witness to the history of the Chinese in Southern California. I often thought to myself that if this history exists only in my memories it would be forgotten once I pass away. Fortunately, May Chen 陳十美, concurrently President of American East Asian Culture and Education Foundation美國東亞文教基金會, Principal of Sunshine Education Center 陽光教育中心, and President of North American Chinese Writers Association, Los Angeles 北美洛杉磯華文作家協會, has spent many years planning for the project and has mobilized hundreds of individuals to write and compile the book A Legacy Magnified: A Generation of Chinese Americans in Southern California, 1980’s-2010’s 南加華人三十年史話, a massive publication that contains nearly one million Chinese characters. The book records and reports the evolution and transformation of the lives of the Chinese in Southern California in the past thirty years. It has concurrently filled the gap of knowledge about the Chinese activities in the past half a century.  This book will definitely transmit to our posterity China’s rich cultural heritage. This is a true blessing to the Chinese in Southern California. We are all profoundly indebted to Madame Chen for her courage and sustained effort indeed.

Madame Chen is a publisher, educator, writer, and philanthropist in one person. She is a gifted woman as well as a lady of amazing caliber. It would be difficult to find her equal. Over thirty some years ago, she founded the So Cal Community News 南華時報, which served as a effective media advocating for the Chinese. It was one of the few Chinese paper media active at the time. The newspaper provided important information for the Chinese community, a great contribution in and by itself. I made acquaintance with her back then. As we had much in common in terms of ideas and values, we have become close friends who are oblivious of their respective ages.

Before the publication of A Legacy Magnified, Madame Chen approached me to furnish a preface. Neither a scholar myself nor is writing my forte, I feel humbled for this task. I composed the above as a token of my appreciation for Madame Chen’s sincerity and tireless effort.

Larry Wong

Fall 2013

Chinatown, Los Angeles, California

Preface II

by

Yong Chen 陳勇

A Monumental Work on the History of Chinese Immigration

The publication of A Legacy Magnified initiated and compiled under the leadership of Madame May Chen 陳十美, President of American East Asian Culture and Education Foundation, is an occasion for jubilant celebration. This masterful work comprehensively documents in great detail the robust growth of the Chinese in Southern California during the past several decades. This book is a milestone in itself. It makes it possible for this important chapter of Chinese American history to be documented and passed down from generation to generation.

Throughout American history, the Chinese play a pivotal role. First of all, the immigration of the Chinese to America has served an important link that connects Chinese and American economies and cultures. In 1784, the first merchant ship of the US, the Empress of China, arrived in Guangzhou, which signaled the American involvement in flourishing Chinese trade business. At the beginning of the 1830s, American missionaries went to Guangdong in droves. This opened the door for the further Sino-American exchanges, which paved the way for Chinese emigration to America. Moreover, the Chinese who came during and after the Gold Rush made indelible contributions to the development of the American West, especially California. In 1870 the Chinese represented almost ten percent of the overall population in California and over twenty percent of its labor force. We can say without exaggeration that without the Chinese, there would be no American West of today.

The Chinese experience also constitutes an important part of the development of cultural diversity and human rights in the US.  The Chinese 49’ers, who came primarily from the Pearl River Delta in Guangdong, were the first large wave of Asian immigrants to arrive in America. And Chinatown was the first permanent Asian settlement in the country. Later, the Chinese suffered from intense persecution and discrimination. They were driven out of hundreds of towns in the American West. Their houses were burned down; their properties were robbed; and many of them lost their lives. In 1882, the American Congress passed the notorious Chinese Exclusion Act. This was the American act that restricts the immigration from a country on the basis of race. Besides forbidding the Chinese workers from coming to the US, this act also reiterated the racist principle that Chinese immigrants could not become naturalized American citizens. Nonetheless, the Chinese did not remain passive victims of racism but continuously fought against in the media, courts, and other areas.  In doing so, they promoted cultural diversity in American society and upheld the principle of equality and justice as stipulated in the Constitution.

In spite of its significance, much of Chinese America history was forgotten over time. Mainstream Americans have little interest or ability in recording the overseas Chinese history. And most Chinese Americans themselves did not have the resources or training to record their own experiences. Recently, there is some notable progress in the study of Chinese community in America, but much of the attention has been directed to big cities like New York and San Francisco. Southern California has not received due attention, creating a big gap in our understanding of the history of the Chinese in America. As early as the 1850s, traces of the Chinese presence appeared in this area. In 1871, in an anti-Chinese riot in L.A, 18 Chinese were killed, which signaled the beginning of a large scale anti-Chinese violence in the American West. But the Chinese pioneers persevered. In the first half of the 20th century, Chinese medicine spread to various ethnic communities through the L.A. area, which serves as a bridge among different cultures. Since the 1960s, Southern California has become an important destination for new immigrants. The immigrants from Taiwan established suburban communities away in cities like Monterey Park, which became known as Little Taipei, from traditional Chinatowns.  In the 21st century, Southern California has become one of the largest Chinese population centers. In the newly developed cities like Irvine, a new type of Chinese community, which I have characterized as post-modern Chinatown, has emerged.

A Legacy Magnified fills an important gap in our understanding of Chinese American history, covering seven counties throughout southern California. The grand scale of this book is truly impressive. Another feature of the book is its coverage of a comprehensive list of topics, ranging from history to politics, culture, economy, and the daily lives of the Chinese. The many people involved in writing and collecting materials come from various professions and different cities. This makes the book a very meaningful undertaking for the Southern California Chinese community. The rich materials and the profound insights of this book will benefit not only the community but also those who wish to understand the past and present of Chinese America. 

This grand work is the fruit of May Chen’s many years of hard work, unselfish dedication, and leadership, which mobilized and inspired many individuals from different walks of life to participate in the writing and research of this book over a long period of time.  When I first drove from Irvine to her Foundation in Rosemead to review some chapters of this book, numerous scholars and community leaders from different parts of Southern California were already there. We all sat obediently and quietly behind the student desks for hours, using the pen and paper she provided to work on the parts of the draft that she assigned each of us.  It vividly demonstrated the profound impact of this project as well as her enormous appeal as its chief architect.  Therefore, when she called me to write a preface, I could only oblige! 

Yong Chen

Professor of History

University of California, Irvine

Preface III

by

Su Chen陳肅

Closing a Historical Gap

It is at the kind invitation of Madame May Chen, I compose this preface to A Legacy Magnified. Although I am not a specialist in Asian American Studies, I am fully cognizant of the significance of this book in terms of its collecting, arranging and preserving the historical documents for the Chinese and the community at large in Southern California. I wish to take this opportunity to share my personal observations and reflection with its readers.

I made acquaintance with Madame Chen, editor-in-chief of this book, at the inauguration of the Taiwan Academy 台灣書院 back in October 2011. I learned that she was in the process of mobilizing writers for the publication of A Legacy Magnified: A Generation of Chinese Americans in Southern California, 1980’s-2010’s. I was both excited and curious. I was excited because I was able to meet Madame Chen and her team and to understand more about the source materials for the book as well as how these materials are to be utilized. Such information would be useful for UCLA’s East Asian Library to gain understanding of the community and to serve the Library’s patrons better. I was also curious. One and a half centuries have elapsed since the Chinese landed in Southern California. Chinese are found everywhere in the Southland. As the second largest Chinese conglomeration in America, how could it be possible that no one has ever written a book on the history the Chinese in Southern California in general and in Los Angeles in particular?

Intrigued by this question in mind, I searched various bibliographies and data banks. To my surprise, I discovered that although over 800,000 of Chinese from various parts of the world have settled here in the Los Angeles area, there are only some scattered family histories are in existence, such as Louise Leung’s Sweet Bamboo: A Memoir of a Chinese American Family, written by a grand-daughter of Tom Leung 譚良. In this book, the author details Tom Leung’s experience and the life of his family in Los Angeles. The author also mentions Leung’s association with Kang Youwei 康有爲 and with Kang’s Society for the Preservation of the Monarchy 保皇會. I was unable to locate any historical work that studies the overseas Chinese as a whole. This being the case, the work of Madame Chen and her team most definitely fills in the gap in this unprecedented undertaking. She and her team command my highest respect. 

How does Chen’s team cover the overseas Chinese as an integral whole? To find out, I visited the office of the book’s Editorial Board situated in a large classroom at the Sunshine Education Center, a Chinese language school founded by May Chen. On the blackboard, an outline of the book was clearly written, containing a total of 17 chapters. Along the walls of the classroom there were tables upon which all the collected books, documents, and other materials were on display. Plans and progress for each chapter and their respective sections were also made available on these tables. A Legacy Magnified is extensive in scope. It covers Chinese American communities, Overseas Chinese organizations, political participation, rights campaign, mass media, education, arts, urban construction, large and medium-sized enterprises, business and industries of all kinds, family structure, ethics, and religious beliefs. It amounts to nothing less than an encyclopedia of the Chinese Americans in Southern California. Chen’s team wishes to document and to present a panoramic perspective of the Chinese Americans in this region during the past 30 years through this book.

As a librarian, I am particularly interested in the collection of source materials. Since Madame Chen was previously the editor-in-chief of So Cal Community News, she relied upon the input of a vast number of Chinese here. Her team adopted a variety of means to collect materials. The team convened source collection meetings, solicited historical photographs from private collections, and sought print as well as digital archives. They not only extensively solicited materials from the local residents, but also collected relevant information from phone books, census data, and other statistics available pertaining to Chinese Americans in the Southland. This is conducted in such a manner so that the multi-perspective, multi-dimensional, and comprehensive nature of this book on the subject of Chinese Americans in Southern California can be meaningfully completed.

Why does the book choose to cover only 30 years? Perhaps, this is the question that many readers would ask. Madame Chen explained that they intend to record the part of history that they themselves have experienced or witnessed. Further, these three decades coincide with the dramatic transformation in Southern California, of which Chinese Americans are an integral and significant part. These 30 years of drastic change are also emotionally relevant to them. Many are inspired and responded in unison to undertake this monumental and gap-filling task together.

I have to say regrettably that up until now no university library in Southern California has systematically collected, catalogued, and preserved the historical records of Chinese Americans in Southern California, hence any scholarly research on their lives and experiences is extremely difficult. Chinese have lived and worked on this land since 1850. If one wanted to know what happened to the Chinese around 1900 in terms of their lives and work and to know how they survived in spite of discrimination, one would not be able to find any systematically presented materials to assist them in their research. A Legacy Magnified has blazed a new trail. It inspires and impels all the Chinese Americans in Southern California to cherish and to consciously preserve their own history. The effort of Chen’s team has successfully provided us and our posterity with important clues to understand what has transpired in the past 30 years. Had there not been such a publication, much of the history would have been lost into oblivion in the long river of history.

The history of the Chinese Americans in Southern California belongs to us all. We should not only continue to create history and continue to collect and preserve historical documents, we should also encourage more people to study our history. A Legacy Magnified is a pioneering work and I am profoundly grateful for its publication. It is my hope that additional historical works of this kind will be made available.

Su Chen

Head, East Asian Library

University of California, Los Angeles

Preface IV

By

Min Zhou周敏

Turning of the Tide

In 2011, I received a call from Shui Yin Lo 盧遂顯, a Ph.D. in quantum physics from the University of Chicago. A meticulous researcher, Dr. Lo was looking for a specialist in Chinese American Studies with bilingual proficiency and found me from UCLA’s Asian American faculty roster. He told me that Asian-American Cultural and Educational Foundation, which he led, was working on a book entitled A Legacy Magnified: A Generation of Chinese-Americans in Southern California, 1980’s to 2010’s (in Chinese). His wife, May Chen, served as the chief editor. I was deeply moved by the passion, effort and dedication of Dr. and Mrs. Lo and all the people who were directly or indirectly engaged in this immense project. When I was invited to write a preface for this book, I felt honored and delighted. As an immigrant from China and a student of contemporary Chinese diasporas, I also consider it a rare opportunity that allowed me to immerse myself in my own history. 

Looking back, the history of the Chinese in America was filled with hardship, humiliation, struggle and triumph. The passage of the Chinese Exclusion Act by U.S. Congress in 1882 plunged Chinese Americans into a deep abyss, which lasted for 60 years. During WWII, the Act was repealed, but its negative effect still lingered even as Chinese began to rise up in American society. The lenient sentence made in the murder case of Vincent Chin in 1982 is a good case in point. This case reflected deep-rooted discrimination against the Chinese in American society. Fortunately, on June 18, 2012, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a resolution to apologize to Chinese-Americans. Members of both Houses issued an apology for the Chinese Exclusion Act. This historical event resulted from years of concerted effort on the part of Chinese-Americans. Incidentally, A Legacy Magnified covers the period framed approximately by these two historical events. I would guess that the compilers of this book may have had these two events in mind when they decided on the time frame for the book.

In the mid-19th century, the gold rush attracted a large number of Chinese to San Francisco (called Gold Mountain by the overseas Chinese) in California. Later tens of thousands of Chinese workers came to construct the First Continental Railway. Suffering from homesickness and racial discrimination, the Chinese still made an indelible contribution to the farming, manufacturing and service sectors in the development of California. Now, the Chinese constitute 10% of the overall population in the state. They play an important role in its social and economic development. Southern California is well-known to the world as a major center of entertainment, mass media, aeronautics and space research, pharmaceuticals, and other high-tech industries. It is also home to reputable academic institutions such as UCLA, Caltech, USC, Claremont McKenna College, and Harvey Mudd College. Currently, the overall Chinese population in America is about 3.8 million (according to the 2010 Census). The Chinese population in Southern California alone is over 800 000. In the past 30 years, the Chinese in this region have flourished and distinguished themselves in politics, economy, education, technology and the arts. Many have successfully merged themselves into the mainstream society in America. Success stories include Dr. Judy May Chu趙美心, the first Chinese Congresswoman in American history, Dr. Roger Youchien Tsien 錢永健, a Nobel Laureate in Chemistry from University of California, San Diego, Ming Hsieh 謝明, an entrepreneur who donated US$85 million to the University of Southern California, and Walter Wen-hsiang Wang王文祥, a successful entrepreneur and philanthropist. The list goes on and on. They are all the pride of the Chinese in Southern California. As we look back, we cannot help but sigh. There is a great change of fortune for Chinese Americans here. Indeed, as a Chinese saying goes, there are thirty years’ ebb and there are thirty years’ flow.

The Asian-American Cultural and Educational Foundation was established in 1989, chaired by Ms. May Chen. Chen was formerly a lecturer in the Department of Chinese at the Chinese Culture University in Taiwan. She came to America in 1977. In 1980, she ran Nanhua Daily, the first Chinese community newspaper in L.A., which appealed to both new and old Chinese-Americans. This pioneering work promoted prosperity in the Chinese newspaper industry. In 1987, Chen plunged herself into the field of education and established Huaxing College and Sunshine Education Center. She has also become a pioneer in pre-school education and after-school programs. Over three years ago, she took the initiative to organize and compile this huge historical piece entitled A Legacy Magnified. This work proceeds with a line of thinking that is very creative. Instead of brooding over a sad and, at times, bloody, historical past, it focuses on the success stories of Chinese-Americans today. It sheds a positive light on the Chinese in America.

In the process of writing this voluminous work, we see the unity and cooperation of the Chinese in Southern California at their best. Under a limited budget, the compiling committee made light of many difficulties. Besides sorting through articles solicited from the public, they also conducted interviews with over 500 persons from various classes and professions. The interviewees included many eminent Chinese. The committee collected the material from oral history, while sorting, verifying and synthesizing them on the basis of individual experience, reflections and life paths. As a result, the book before you is a great work with distinctive viewpoints and convincing arguments. Besides the history of immigration and the history of political participation, the compilers give prominence to the arduous journey that the Chinese underwent to protect their civil rights. The book also elaborates on the accomplishments that the Chinese have achieved in technology, education and high-tech companies. Besides these, the book also surveys the essence of Chinese culture such as philosophy and thought, language, medicine and literature, and arts. The essence of Chinese culture is an indispensable spiritual pillar for the Chinese, which they cannot lack even as they seek to merge into the mainstream society. Furthermore, the book highly commends the stable Chinese family structure, eminent Chinese women and new-generation Chinese. It appeals to the Chinese to give back to society, respect different religious beliefs, and to respect American values, as a way to merge into mainstream society.

Admittedly, no one in the compiling team is a professional historian specializing in the study of Chinese-Americans. They have made their utmost effort, and are meticulous in putting together a book that approaches perfection in both form and content. Their objective is to adopt a broad vision and take a positive angle, using solid data and plain language to portray the glorious journey that has been undergone by Chinese-Americans. It is meant to inspire Chinese-American readers in all ranks to move forward, to feel proud of being Chinese in America, and to instill in them a sense of optimism. The compilers have clear objectives and position themselves well. The book has quite a few distinctive features. In particular, the historical material it uses comes from grassroots communities with various backgrounds. The grassroots nature of the source material and its originality especially characterize this book.

Finally, this book has a rich content, presented sometimes by narration, and sometimes by commentary. It is only appropriate that shihua 史話, or informal historical narrative, is adopted here. I believe this book is good news for the overseas Chinese in America and elsewhere. It is also a good reference book for those engaged in the study of the history of overseas Chinese immigration and contemporary Chinese immigration.

The Chinese edition of A Legacy Magnified was published as a commemorative collection with 3,000 hard copies. The English edition will be published as an e-book made available online, and serve as a reference for those of Chinese descent, or descendants of other ethnic groups, as well as relevant academic and immigrant-run institutions. More importantly, this book will inform Chinese descendants of what their predecessors have accomplished, and inspire them to pass on the cultural torch. Indeed, the book has significance for now, and forever. I appreciate their ideas and their efforts. I heartedly congratulate them on their success today and tomorrow.

Los Angeles is a city where I have lived and worked for more than 20 years. The Chinese community here serves as not only my research site but also my home base. It holds dear to my heart, and I owe it a debt of gratitude. Between 2013 and 2016, I moved to Singapore when the Chinese