Moving Sidewalk

Why so many posts about Chinese Americans? It just worked out that way.

On the Times City Room blog, Peter Kwong of Hunter College has been answering questions about the gentrification of Chinatown. In discussing “the decline of New York’s Chinatown as a viable living, working and shopping area for new immigrants,” he cites the closing of the garment factories (despite paying low wages, they can’t compete with China) and the rise of real estate speculation. He worries that Chinatown will turn into “an ethnic theme park without its ethnic population.” This has certainly happened to some Italian American neighborhoods. Chinatown also suffered quite a bit from the events of 9/11, but he says the process started before then.

If you haven’t noticed any gentrification, he points out what to look for, and in a second round of discussion he gives a brief overview of the neighborhood’s history. Highly recommended for anyone interested in the patterns of immigrant settlement and evolution of neighborhoods.

Papers for Chinese laborer Goon Bow; photo from Brooklyn Historical Society

Finally, I made it to the Brooklyn Historical Society’s exhibit Living and Learning: Chinese Immigration, Restriction & Community in Brooklyn, 1850 to Present, which, happily, has been extended to October 18.

Through a series of panels with photos and a couple of census books, the exhibit discusses the reception that Chinese immigrants found in New York in the late 19th century and how they began to make Brooklyn a home. The caricatures are appalling, but they’re not only directed at the Chinese; apparently, there was something of an Irish resistance to Chinese immigration, and defenders of the Chinese did not hesitate to stereotype the Irish in comparison. And Chinese laundries not only offered economic competition but carried a more insidious threat: if men did laundry—women’s work—the sacred concept of manliness was in danger.

Overall I found it a very interesting introduction to the history of Chinese immigration to New York, with a rare focus on street-level Brooklyn and the churches and businesses that were part of Chinese life at the time.

The exhibit also takes a brief look at Sunset Park today, and on the historical society’s website you can download the oral histories of some Chinese-American residents of Sunset Park.

If you’re counting the days until the grand opening of the Museum of Chinese in America on Sept. 22, definitely pay a visit to the BHS.

More on Chinese Americans: Alison Leigh Cowan in the Times writes about the strategies of hopeful Chinese immigrants after the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, which barred most unskilled laborers from China. Immigrants would use study aids to pretend that they were the children of Chinese who were legal residents—or just to make sure they could prove who they actually were. Desperation to get into the United States is nothing new.

You can look at the notebook pages through the Times link above; it even includes a map of the family’s ancestral village. For more on this topic, one commenter recommends the book Paper Families by Estelle T. Lau.

The Lunar New Year starts today, but festivities continue through the week. The Queens Library in Flushing will host a free day of events on Saturday, Jan. 31.

From 10:30 am to 12:30 pm: Learn how to prepare Japche, a delicious noodle dish from Korea, or miniature spring rolls from China; learn how to make Chinese red envelope lanterns (first-come, first-served basis, supplies limited!). (I’m not sure whether these events will be conducted in Korean, Chinese, English, or a mixture.)

At 1 pm,there will be traditional Korean drum and dance with Vongku Pak; at 2:30 pm, a ribbon dance and song from China; and at 3:30 pm, the Chinese Lion Dance.

The library is located at 41-17 Main St, Flushing. The event is funded by The National Endowment for the Humanities.

As a former newspaper copy editor, I lament the alarming decline of print journalism. Still, change is inevitable, and some news publications will adapt well—or they already have. Kirk Semple in The New York Times* today reports on plans to shut down the Ming Pao Daily News. This is not quite as terrible as it sounds, because Ming Pao produces a free almost-daily newspaper that is expected to continue, and there are three other Chinese-language dailies in New York.

It seems to me that Semple is pushing a bit of a skeptical attitude toward  Ming Pao’s prospects. It may be warranted; barely a day goes by that I don’t refer to the world going to hell in a handcart. But for people who care about disappearing newspapers, the most important thing is to think creatively about the future. Fighting change is futile; trying to influence it is the way to go.

In 2001, according to the Gotham Gazette, the New York ethnic press comprised nearly 200 magazines and newspapers in 36 languages—the largest number in the city’s history. I’m sure that has declined substantially; I’ll try to find out. You can link to some of them through New America Media; that’s a handy resource that wasn’t available in 2001.

*Now, if the New York Times were to go online only—a possibility I refuse to take seriously—it would drastically alter my life. But I can see a bright side to that.

Jack Eichenbaum will lead a Municipal Art Society tour of Flushing’s Chinatown on New Year’s Day. According to their website, “In less than a generation, this immigrant destination and commercial center has come to rival its Manhattan antecedent. Taiwanese rather than Cantonese at its core, Flushing’s Chinatown plays host to a variety of overseas Chinese groups. Rezoning and greater land availability support unusual real estate developments that include office buildings, hotels, residential condos, specialty shops, cultural institutions and malls. Lunch is available in more than 100 Asian restaurants nearby.”

I took the churches of Flushing tour with Jack Eichenbaum last year, and it was very interesting.

(There’s a late gift idea, too. Municipal Art Society gift certificates are good for walking tours and programs. For more information, call Tamara Coombs, director of programs & tours, at 212-935-3960, ext. 294, or email tcoombs [at] mas.org.)

Meet at 1 pm Thursday, Jan. 1, at St George’s Church, 39th Ave and Main Street. You can take the 7 train to Main Street and walk one block north. $15, $12 MAS members.

In last Saturday’s New York Times, Kirk Semple wrote about the artists from China, mostly men, who draw portraits and caricatures in Times Square. Sometimes more than 200 artists are vying for tourist business; prices range from $5 to $30. It’s an interesting life, but not a highly lucrative one.

This weekend, August 2 and 3, is the 18th Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival at the Lake in Flushing Meadows–Corona Park, Queens. Races are from 9 am to 5 pm Saturday and Sunday, and entertainment includes an array of music and dance, including Mexican, Ecuadorian, Peruvian, and Irish performances, as well as Shaolin Kung Fu demonstrations and traditional Chinese crafts. The dumpling-eating contest is at noon Sunday. Free.