One of the fascinating byproducts of my foray into Chinese American history is that I have been able to help people trace their personal family history. I was able to help several people locate their parents' immigration files at the National Archives, not an easy task, but most rewarding to read the transcripts of the interrogations that Chinese immigrants had to endure and survive.
One white reader who had adopted a girl from China sought advice about how to answer her daughter's question about which water fountain, the WHITE or COLORED, would she have had to drink from if she had lived in the South during the days of Jim Crow laws.
0 Comments
When I started writing about Chinese American history, I did not plan to give presentations, but fortunately, several community and historical organizations such as Chinese American history museums and activist groups invited me to talk. It was gratifying to see the positive response. At the same time, I was a bit surprised because I discovered I was not telling the audience much that they did not already "know' from their own experiences. I finally realized that much of their enthusiasm was because someone was finally helping tell and record "their" story. After each talk, several people would come up and tell me how applicable my experiences were to their own lives growing up as children of immigrants, irrespective of what part of the country they came from. |
Archives
December 2012
Categories
All
|