Congratulations to the CHCP Uncovering Asian Experiences (UAE) Film Team! Their submission, "Uncovering Asian Experiences" film, has been selected as a recipient of the 2022 Dr. Jerry Hiura Inspiration Award which supported the theme of "How to Make This World a Better Place."

Contemporary Asian Theater Scene (CATS) would like to acknowledge the team as one of the three selected winners in the Performing & Media Arts Category, with a total of 10 award recipients. The CATS Selection Committee was thrilled to receive the thoughtful film which captured important and unique stories. CATS will be awarding the team with a $300 prize.

AWARD BACKGROUND

The Dr. Jerry Hiura Inspiration Award was established in honor of the late co-founder of CATS, who was a poet, visual artist, jewelry maker, and musician. He was a highly spirited visionary and had an extraordinary gift to bring positive change and impact to the Silicon Valley Arts and Asian American community. It meant so much to him to encourage and support gifted Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) talent!

FILM BACKGROUND

The “Uncovering Asian Experiences” film was developed in spring 2021 as a response to the continued rise in anti-Asian racism and crimes. Members of CHCP's Student Docent Cultural Ambassador Program (SDCAP) felt an urgency to uplift the voices of Asian Americans and share their stories to raise awareness about anti-Asian hate and racism through the sharing of thoughts and experiences of our community members. Topics covered included: reactions to current events, history (e.g. 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act), media, stereotypes, personal experiences with racism, hopes for the future, and fighting against anti-Asian hate. Twenty-two interviews from multi-aged, multi-ethnicities from the local Asian community were conducted in the hopes that by sharing these stories, others will be able to learn from them, gain further understanding of how racism affects Asian Americans, and show solidarity and unity with the Asian American community.

On May 22, 2022, CHCP debuted the UAE film, followed by a Speakers Panel consisting of CHCP Advisory Board Member/Historian Connie Young Yu, former Oakland Mayor Jean Quan, West Valley College President Stephanie Kashima, and West Valley College Psychology Professor Christina Shih.

The talent and teamwork of five SDCAP members with advice and guidance from the SDCAP Chair (pictured left to right, top row: Joshua Zhang, Vanessa Lam; bottom row: Jessica Phongsa, SDCAP Chair Brenda Hee Wong, Kasey Walker, Emmalynn Walker) led to the creation of the quality, educational, and empathetic UAE video that was recognized and awarded. Four other SDCAP members (Trinity Chan, Steven Luo, Melody Luo, and Metrica Shi) also had an opportunity to participate in the project.

To celebrate the honor of receiving the award, members of the UAE Film Team took a trip to San Francisco's Legion of Honor to view the "Guo Pei: Couture Fantasy" exhibit on November 20, 2022.

Congratulations to the SDCAP UAE Film Team and to SDCAP Chair/CHCP Director Brenda Hee Wong !

Professor Sue Fawn Chung's talk covered three men in California and Nevada who were miners, railroad workers, and entrepreneurs who came to the US and successfully built a career in the most challenging times against the Chinese. The three men covered in this talk are: Chung Kee, Lim Lip Hong, and Tom Ah Quin.

Former residents of the Chung Mei Boys Home in El Cerrito and their wives reunite for lunch at Tai Wu Restaurant in Millbrae.

The following is an excerpt from the 09/02/22 NBC Bay Area News:

By Joe Rosato, Jr.

The 80 and 90-something-year-old Chinese men shuffling into Millbrae's Tai Wu restaurant on a recent day had much more to share than just lunch. They were there to share a unique camaraderie as children who'd once lived in the Chung Mei Boys Home, an El Cerrito facility that took in Chinese boys between 1935 and 1954. 

Several times a year, the men and their wives gather together over hot tea and steaming pork buns to compare notes about their time in the home and life under its founder, Dr. Charles Shepherd, the British Baptist minister who founded Chung Mei Home and ran it with the precision of a military academy. Shepherd had witnessed dozens of abandoned and hungry children on the streets of San Francisco's Chinatown and felt compelled to do something. 

"Definitely there’s no other institution like this and never will be," said Richard Mar, who lived in the home from 1948 to 1953.

Shepherd established the original Chung Mei Home in Berkeley and then relocated it to El Cerrito in 1935 after outgrowing the previous home. The original El Cerrito building, which now houses a school, stands at 1800 Elm St. and has since been added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Buildings. 

For more information:  

• Read the full 09/02/22 NBC Bay Area article.
• View the 08/26/21 CHCP Speaker Series Webinar: "Chung Mei: Growing Up in an All Chinese Boy's Orphanage".
• View the 10/18/21 CHCP Speaker Series Webinar: "Bonds of Sisterhood: Life and Success after Ming Quong".
• View the 07/24/22 CHCP Speaker Series: Reminiscing on Resilience and Kinship.

CHCP members (Dave and Eleanor Yick, Connie Young Yu, Gerrye Wong, SDCAP member Jessica Phongsa, Brenda Wong, SDCAP member Kasey Walker, SDCAP member Emmalynn Walker, Leianne Lamb, and Peter Young)  plus CATS (Contemporary Asian Theater Scene) members celebrated with playwright Steve "Spike" Wong at the grand opening of his play, "White Sky, Falling Dragon," at the Mountain View Center for Performing Arts.

Banners from the "Chinatown to Battleground" exhibit (CHCP is a sponsor) by the Chinese American G.I. Project were on display at the theater, showcasing a few of the many Chinese American servicemen and women who have fought and served in the U.S. armed forces.

The following is an excerpt from the 08/16/22 Fortune magazine:

By Nicholas Gordon

A team of researchers has discovered what the Massachusetts Institute of Technology calls the “best semiconductor material ever found,” even better than silicon, the material used in just about every computer chip on earth.

In July, scientists from MIT, the University of Houston, and other institutions announced they had proved that cubic boron arsenide performs better than silicon at conducting heat and electricity, opening up new possibilities for smaller and faster chips. The team includes China-born professor Gang Chen, the former head of MIT’s Department of Mechanical Engineering, who was the subject of a yearlong investigation by the Department of Justice before the agency dropped espionage charges because of lack of evidence.

It could be decades before semiconductors based on cubic boron arsenide are used in commercially available chips—if they prove viable at all. But ultimately, the new material may help designers overcome the natural limits of current models to make better, faster, and smaller chips, and its discovery is the kind of research the U.S. risked missing out on with a now-disbanded crackdown on experts like Chen.

For more information:  Read the full 08/16/22 Fortune article.

CHCP's special celebration for Spirit of '45: Living History Day at History Park included:

Click flyer to enlarge.

The Speaker Series presenters (pictured in the first photo from left to right) are: William Lee, Richard Mar, emcee Chris Jochim, Janet Chang, and Elena Wong Viskovich.

In this Speaker Series event, alumni of Chung Mei boys' home and Ming Quong girls' home gathered together to share their stories of resilience and kinship. Alumni from both homes reminisced about their experiences growing up in their respective homes, how they survived and thrived, and ultimately, how it shaped their lives and their drive to succeed. 

View the recording of the Speaker Series event below:

Nona Mock Wyman, author of books on the Ming Quong home, who could not participate in the Speaker Series, has contributed a poem and haiku in lieu of her live presence.

‘TWO’ ALUMNI OF THE MING QUONG HOME ACHIEVED THEIR GOAL
WITH THEIR BAMBOO SPIRIT
THEY PERSEVERED, DELETED THE INFAMOUS WORD:
“PROSTITUTES”
FROM THE INNOCENCE OF YOUTH

MING QUONG’S NAME REPUTEDLY INTACT
THE SANITY OF THE MQ ALUMNI - AND-
THE MING QUONG STORE IN WALNUT CREEK
ARE RADIANTAS IT SHOULD BE;
FOR “MING QUONG” IN CANTONESE MEANS
“RADIANT LIGHT”

BEHIND THESE TWO WOMEN WERE DEDICATED
MING QUONG ALUMNI
THEIR ENCOURAGEMENT AND BELIEF COMPELLED THEM ON
EARNEST CONVERSATIONS;
WITH UPLIFT FAMILY SERVICES
BOTH PARTIES AGREED

THE ORIGINATORS AND TEACHERS OF THE MING QUONG HOME
CAN NOW REST IN PEACE
AS EACH ERROR CORRECTED - FOSTERS AMERICA’S TRUE HISTORY
AMEN - AMEN

This poem was inspired by the work of Elena Wong and Janet Chang for their passionate mission correcting the inaccuracies of the history of the Ming Quong residents.

Haiku by Nona:

CHUNG MEI-MING QUONG BROTHERS, 
SISTERS, 
COUSINS, 
FOUND THEIR SAFE HAVEN

Be sure to view the first two webinars in this Speaker Series: 

• 08/26/21 CHCP Speaker Series Webinar: "Chung Mei: Growing Up in an All Chinese Boy's Orphanage"
  
• 10/18/21 CHCP Speaker Series Webinar: "Bonds of Sisterhood: Life and Success after Ming Quong"

Also view: 

• 09/02/22 NBC Bay Area News: Residents of Chinese Boys Home Reunite Over Memories

The following is an excerpt from the 07/13/22 HJ News (Herald Journal News):

By Jeff DeMoss

The newest monument standing at Box Elder County’s Golden Spike National Historical Park is, by design, one of the first things visitors to the park now see as they approach the site at Promontory Summit.

The 24-foot-high sculpture, entitled “Monument to Their Memory,” was built to honor all the railroad workers from many different cultures and backgrounds whose backbreaking efforts were crucial in the construction of the nation’s first transcontinental railroad.

The sculpture consists of metal rails crossed with granite “ties,” reaching into the sky in a curving shape to create the sensation that it is visually crossing the plains mountains on a viewer’s journey to the unknown.

It is the creation of artist Ilan Averbuch, who is known around the world for his outdoor art installments. Averbuch was selected more than a year ago to design the piece.

Taking shape this spring after the annual celebration of the completion of the transcontinental railroad, the piece was officially unveiled at a ceremony on June 25.

Dignitaries from the Northwestern Band of the Shoshone, as well as cultural groups representing the Irish, Chinese and others who built the railroad, were on hand to witness the spectacle.

For more information:  

• Read the full 07/13/22 HJ News article.
• View the 06/25/22 Fox 13 News video about the unveiling of the sculpture (note that accomplished actor James Hong speaks at the end of the video).

This CHCP Speaker Series event explored wine industry insights with Ty Tia, Corporate VP at Constellation Brands. Ty injected much value-added and practical information into the presentation that one would not ordinarily get from winery tours.  In addition to providing information about the winemaking process, he presented wine industry insights such as how to judge a wine based on its label, how to tell the difference between a $5 vs $50 wine, how to drink red wine and truly experience it, and how to select the right wines to pair with foods.

In addition, CHCP Director Erwin Wong shared some information on how the Chinese contributed to the building and growth of the Napa Valley wine region.

Many comments received after the event indicated that the audience enjoyed the event immensely, showing the event to be both educational and fun.

View the video of the event: