C100 Webinar: Men of Iron and the Transcontinental Railroad

Join the Committee of 100 (C100) on September 24 at 5:00 PM PT (8:00 PM ET) for a unique fireside chat focused on the Chinese laborers who were instrumental in the building of the American Transcontinental Railroad. 

The two speakers will be Gordon Chang, the distinguished Stanford University history professor and Committee of 100 member, who has written extensively about the topic, including “Ghosts of Gold Mountain: The Epic Story of the Chinese Who Built the Transcontinental Railroad (2019)”, and Jindong Cai, the Director of the U.S. China Music Institute at Bard, who is staging an extraordinary oratorio production of Pulitzer Prize-winning composer, Zhou Long's "Men of Iron and the Golden Spike" at the Rose Theater, Jazz at Lincoln Center on October 11. This large-scale symphonic oratorio honors the thousands of Chinese laborers who built the Transcontinental Railroad in the 1860s. The performance will feature an 80-piece orchestra, a 120-voice chorus, and six vocal soloists.

During the fireside chat, Professor Chang will talk about this important moment in the history of this country and Jindong Cai will talk about how the story was transformed into the powerful oratorio. Professor Chang was a collaborator when the oratorio was created. A short video clip of the oratorio will be shown during the webcast.

Chinese and Chinese Americans have contributed greatly to advance the success of this country in many ways – in industry, science, the arts, agriculture, philanthropy, political leadership, architecture, business, and more. The sacrifices and the contributions that were made by the Chinese laborers who helped to build the Transcontinental Railroad are an unheralded part of American History.

Peter Young, Committee of 100 Board Member and New York Regional Chair, and Chair of the Asian American Career Ceilings Initiative, will moderate.

After the conclusion of the fireside chat, there will be a Q&A session during which members of the audience may ask questions. There is no fee for the webcast.

REGISTER HERE