Boston Chinatown Banquet - Family Associations

Traced back to Southern China and the clannish nature of Chinese culture, family associations play a unique role in U.S. Chinatowns. During the Chinese Exclusion Act and in times of extreme discrimination, family associations were not simply a social haven. They provided work and housing opportunities, translation and legal services, and protection. Today, with the advent of social service agencies, their role has evolved into a symbol of longevity and cultural values and serves as a social nexus for elderly Chinese.

Storytellers: Neil Chin, Paul Lee, Helen Liu, Mike Liu, Kim Wong, Reggie Wong

Video footage: Mike Blockstein, Victory Fong, Kim Wong

Interviews: Mike Blockstein, Victor Fong, Jackson Hau, Eun-Joung Lee, Peter Pang, Kim Szeto, Andrew Tong, Kathy Tran, Carol Wong, Kim Wong, Johnny Yong

Images courtesy of: Chinese Historical Society of New England, The Sampan, Kim Wong

Producer: Mike Blockstein

Editor: David Lawrence

A Chinatown Banquet is a series of short educational films about Boston Chinatown, sparking learning and dialogue across generations, disciplines and geography. The Banquet offers an unprecedented glimpse into the history, culture, and character of the neighborhood. This multimedia project highlights the Asian American experience and Chinese culture in Boston and was created as an educational tool by youth in the Asian Community Development Corporation (ACDC or AsianCDC) Young Leaders Network (YLN) which has grown to become A-VOYCE (Asian Voices of Organized Youth for Community Empowerment). These "courses," offering a rich view of the forces that shaped and continue to influence Chinatown, consist of audio and video interviews with community members and others who offer insight into specific issues, interspersed with contemporary and historic footage, images and information, music and ambient sounds. As a part of the Chinatown Heritage Project, the Banquet is a compendium of Chinatown's history, political struggles, culture and physical environment and living conditions.

http://www.chinatownbanquet.org/index2.html
http://www.asiancdc.org/heritage/home.html
http://www.asiancdc.org/

Category:

Nonprofits & Activism

Tags:

• Boston
• Chinatown
• Asian
• American
• Chinese
• Culture
• Education
• Community
• Development
• Corporation
• ACDC