Almost two hundred people attended the book launch of the Chinese Canadian Historical Society of BC's book launch for "Finding Memories, Tracing Routes: Chinese Canadian Family Stories." Family and friends + interested listeners all crowded into the Alice Mackay Room at the Vancouver Public Library to hear about how self-confessed non-writers helped create the most significant new book about Chinese Canadian stories. CCHSBC executive members described how the 6 week writing project took place and what its' significance means to how history will be understood.    more »

Vancouver Sun: 100 Influential Chinese Canadians in BC... agree/disagree?


The Vancouver Sun published its pick of 100 most influential Chinese Canadians today. 
They write that senior editors and writers created a preliminary list that was then scrutinized by their colleagues at Chinese newspapers who added more names.  Next they consulted with officials at Univeristy of BC and Simon Fraser University, then with "trusted community members."

My first reaction was.... this is cool.  It's great that the Vancouver Sun would choose to recognize Chinese Canadians, being the largest single ethnic group in the Lower Mainland.  However over the past few years I have also criticized the Vancouver Sun for not paying attention to issues in the same community.  I think the Vancouver Sun and other mainstream media have often relegated important Canadian issues (of Chinese ancestry) and individuals to the back pages, or often ignored them.

Witness the very same Saturday paper.  "The feature article 100 Influential Chinese Canadians in BC"is on the front page.  But one of the most important issues in Chinese Canadian history is relegated to the backwater of page B8 - with only a green headline banner on page B1 - the front page of the Westcoast section.  The Globe & Mail put head tax on page 1 of their BC section with a colour photograph, whereas the Vancouver Sun had only a black and white photo.

It's nice to see friends Sid Tan, Don Montgomery, David Wong, Roy Mah, Sandra Wilking,  Mary-Woo Sims, and many others that I have known such as Ray Mah, Raymond Louie, Jenny Kwan, Bill Chu, Milton Wong, Bob Lee, Lydia Kwa, Maggie Ip, Robert Fung, Andrea Eng, Paul Wong, and Eleanor Yuen.

My next thoughts were that the list was missing many people that have been my own role models amongst my influences.  People like Joe Wai architect of the Dr. Sun Yat Sen Gardens and many other prominant projects in Chinatown, Beverly Nann OBC former social worker and former president of explorASIAN (Vancouver Asian Heritage Month Society), Jim Wong-Chu, excutive director and founding member of Asian Canadian Writers' Workshop and tireless vice-president of explorASIAN. 

Where is Shirley Chan?  Where is her naturopathic/chiropractic brother Dr. Larry Chan who has done so much for alternative healing in Vancouver and BC?  Where is Simon Johnston, playwright and executive director of the Gateway theatre?  Where is Ken Lum, recently listed in BC Almanac's Greatest British Columbians.

Where is Gabriel Yiu, recently written up in the revised edition of Saltwater City?  Where is Thekla Lit, leader of BC Alpha?  Both of whom also helped to champion an apology for the Chinese Head Tax.

Why does the list include 16 year old golfer Eugene Wong and not Lori Fung OBC OC, the Olympic gold medalist for rhythmic gymnastics?  Why pick 16 year old skater Mira Leung, but not veteran Megan Wing who skates pairs with Aaron Lowe (They were both born in Vancouver, but are living in Windsor and training in Michigan - but I am sure they come back from every now and then...)

Why is World Journal editor-in-chief Han Shang Ping on the list when he has only been in BC for 1 year, and most likely is NOT a Canadian citizen?

Can you call somebody a valid Chinese-Canadian if they are NOT a Canadian citizen.  Certainly the Taiwan born Han Shang Ping is of Chinese ancestry, but I would argue that caucasian SFU professor Jan Walls has contributed much more to the Chinese-Canadian community and Jan is a valid Canadian.

Lists are often controversial and the Vancouver Sun has also asked readers for nominate their own influential Chinese-Canadians by e-mailing: influential@png.canwest.com

You can bet that I will be. 

Here's some of the introduction of the Vancouver Sun article.

"History lost track of what became of that first "Chinaman," but his pioneering footsteps cleared a path for innumerable others.

Today, people of Chinese ancestry are the province's most populous ethnic minority, numbering almost 500,000 in the Lower Mainland. They wield immense influence on every aspect of our shared society. In field after field -- arts, politics, law, medicine, science, finance, business, religion, community affairs, philanthropy -- Chinese-Canadians have taken their rightful place as leaders and innovators.

In some ways, this is Canadian multiculturalism at its very best, a colour-blind gathering of talent and shared purpose.

There's just one problem: For most of our history, we have been anything but colour-blind. It wasn't the Anglo-Europeans of British Columbia who had to fight for the right to belong, or who endured a century of racism of the most despicable and institutionalized sort. It wasn't the Anglo-Europeans who were reminded over and over, for generations, that they were different, lesser than other Canadians: required to pay taxes but not allowed to vote.

These dark facts make the contemporary accomplishments of Chinese-Canadians in B.C. all the more impressive. Not only have they distinguished themselves in so many ways, but Chinese-Canadians have done so against a background of racism and discrimination that only just began to abate in the second half of the 20th century.

Prejudice has finally given way to politeness, but our divisive history lives on in the way the Anglo-European majority and the so-called Chinese community (actually not one homogenous group, but many sub-groups divided along linguistic, political and cultural lines) continue to conduct themselves as two solitudes: nodding acquaintances who sometimes still ignore one another."

List 1
List 2

I attend the head tax payment ceremony... Here is my account...... Ninety-nine year old Charlie Quan recieved the very first ex-gratia cheque for Chinese head tax redress, presented by Bev Oda, Minister of Canadian Heritage and Status of Women. Oda and David Emerson, Minister of International Trade and Minister for the Pacifc Gateway and the Vancouver-Whistler Olympics, were in town to present the cheques to Quan, Thomas Soon (aged 95) and Ah Foon Chin (aged 96) who could not attend and was represented by his daughter-in-law. In 1923, Quan had to pay $500 to enter Canada, estimated to be the cost of a house or two years wages back then. Only ethnic Chinese were charged the head tax. It was a concerted effort to keep Canada white, and discourage Chinese from coming to Canada. Beginning in 1885, the Canadian government imposed a $50 fee on Chinese immigrants, which was raised to $100 in 1900 and to $500 in 1903. But by 1923, Chinese were still coming, so the Canadian government passed the "Chinese Exclusion Act" which effectively banned all Chinese immigration, and was not rescinded untl 1947, after WW2,   more »

B.C. Coalition of Head Tax Payers, Spouses and Descendants is changing it's name to Head Tax Families Society of Canada and becoming a non-profit society. Attached please find petition to the Harper government for a head tax refund based on "one cerificate, one claim" principle. Please assist us in petitioning the government by printing out the petition form and having your friends and relatives sign the petition and mail to the address at the bottom by no later than November 15th, 2006. Thanking you in advance....   more »