The Changing Sounds of Chinatown

Ever since I can remember, walking the streets of San Francisco’s Chinatown, I could hear the sounds of Taishanese, my family’s native dialect, floating everywhere, amidst the dim sum restaurants and the souvenir shops.

Taishanese, a Chinese dialect derived from and similar to Cantonese, came from Southern China in the Guangdong province. It had dominated the streets of Chinatown, as most of the Chinese who had immigrated to the U.S. since the end of the 19^th century originated from Taishan.

In the 1960s, the sounds of Chinatown shifted to Cantonese, when immigration reforms lifted restrictions on immigration. Cantonese speakers then dominated the neighborhoods of Chinatown, emigrating from Hong Kong and mainland China.

However, I have noticed that the sounds of Chinatown have changed. From Taishanese and Cantonese to Mandarin, the shift is noticeable.

Chinese-American communities are partly to blame for the shift, as the communities have realigned. The Mandarin-speaking community is becoming more dominant as more Chinese from other parts of mainland China and Taiwan have immigrated to the U.S. predominantly since the 1990s.

Recent immigrants are gaining economic and political clout, said Peter Kwong, a professor of Asian-American studies at Hunter College.

Mandarin, the official and national language of China, is becoming more dominant in the streets of Chinatowns everywhere, nationally and internationally.

Parents are now pushing their children to learn Mandarin, even if their native language is Cantonese. As China is becoming a rising leader in the world, it is seen as more advantageous to learn Mandarin than Cantonese.

The shift is also evident in the schools, where Mandarin classes are beginning to be offered more than Cantonese classes. Parents would rather have their children learn Mandarin, even if it means they cannot communicate with their own relatives in their native language.

The shift in the language is a challenge to older people who only speak Cantonese, unless they learn Mandarin or English to coincide with the cultural shift.

Cantonese and Mandarin share the same written language and the same written characters, but when spoken, the pronunciations are different.

The possibility that Mandarin may eclipse Cantonese as the dominant language in Chinatowns across the nation and the world is high. As Cantonese had eclipsed Taishanese in the past, Mandarin may do the same. The sounds of Chinatown are ever changing.

By: Karen Lee

Santa Anita Race Track Japanese Assembly Center

Santa Anita Race Track in Arcadia, Calif. is usually associated with racing and being next to a large shopping mall but now it is also home to a new exhibit on the use of the track in World War II history. Dara Dunn, curator of The Arcadia Historical Museum, hopes that people will have a better understanding of the history and the exhibit brings some collective healing and better cultural understanding.

After the bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, President Roosevelt ordered Japanese Americans to internment camps. During the time that these camps were being built, Japanese Americans were held at assembly centers like Santa Anita beginning in March of 1942. 19,000 Japanese Americans were held at Santa Anita in barracks or converted horses stalls. The Army covered Santa Anita’s parking lot with rows of identical barracks and camp was divided into seven districts. Each person was given an Army bed, blanket, and straw tick. In these conditions, the racetrack was also surrounded by barbed wire and residents were not allowed to have any Japanese literature. By September 1942, residents were relocated to different assembly centers and Santa Anita camp was empty by the end of the month. The racetrack then turned into an Army training camp.

The Arcadia Historical Museum details Santa Anita’s history in an exhibit called “Only What We Could Carry: The Santa Anita Assembly Center.” The show includes photos, stories, and other artifacts opening November 10 through January 16. On November 14, there will be an opening reception for the exhibit beginning at 11AM.

WANTED: Asian Bone Marrow Donors

Who has spare time? Heck, go ahead and squeeze this into your schedule: Lambda Phi Epsilon is collaborating with Asians for Miracle Marrow Matches in holding a bone marrow drive. Minorities, especially Asian Americans, are highly encouraged to sign up because of the lack of registrars. Bone marrow matches greatly depend on ethnicity. Thousands of patients diagnosed with leukemia and other life-threatening diseases rely on these bone marrow transplants. All they need is to swap your saliva with a cotton swab, fill out some paperwork there, and you will be registered under their system.

UCLA alumni Matthew Nguyen was able to find a match when cooperating with Asians for Miracle Marrow Matches last quarter. He is now recovering after the recent transplant.

Now it is Janet Liang’s turn to find her match, who was diagnosed with leukemia this August. She is a fifth-year International Developmental Studies student currently going through chemotherapy that might last only up until May. Her family has been assisting this week’s bone marrow drive in hopes of finding a matching donor soon and to increase possible future donors for other patients.

“Coming from a Chinese background, Liang statistically has only a 7 percent of finding a donor, she said. For a person of Caucasian heritage, the chances are close to 80 percent, she added.” -Daily Bruin

Not pretty good, right? Let’s raise the percentage. Let’s raise it for other ethnicities too. I challenge you. So what are you waiting for? Go register!

Watch this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c9S8ktcM5xE

For more information:

Daily Bruin article on Janet Liang

Asians for Miracle Marrow Matches (A3M)

Stepfanie Aguilar is a 2nd undeclared student, hoping to major in World Arts and Culture. Someday, she will tour the world and own tons of albums full of postcards and photography.

My Mom is a Fob

We affectionately call each other a “fob” when we speak ungrammatically, watch anime, or even eat chicken feet for Dim Sum, but at one point in the past, the term “F.O.B.” had been derogatory.

When the term F.O.B. was first coined in the 1980s, it was used as a racist and derogatory term to describe a person with an ethnically diverse background, specifically to those who had recently immigrated to the U.S. from another country.

F.O.B., which stands for “Fresh Off the Boat,” was a term to stereotype immigrants and those of “foreign” descent. It was also used to describe those who had not yet assimilated to American culture.

However, the term has taken on a vastly different connotation, one that is endearing and tongue-in-cheek. Those of us with immigrant parents can now embrace our differences in culture and language, and can now feel proud of our roots and what makes us different from everyone else.

The term F.O.B. has transformed into the term “fob,” which is a term to describe something, essentially, “super-Asian.” The pronunciation has also changed, from pronouncing the letters as an acronym to pronouncing it as an actual word. With the change in pronunciation, the meaning has also evolved.

The websites mymomisafob.com and mydadisafob.com are filled with humorous photos, messages, and sayings that are dedicated to “fobby” moms and dads. The entries can be submitted by anyone, and the websites have garnered popularity and attention from within the Asian American community.

The websites were established in October of 2008 by Serena Wu, a recent graduate of U.C. Berkeley, and Teresa Wu, a senior at U.C. San Diego.

Defending the term “fob,” Teresa Wu has said:

We think our moms and dads are awesome; we’re not embarrassed by them. Maybe they can’t speak perfect English, but the things they do are so lovable that we just want to share them.

The websites are a way of showing off pride in your fobby parents, and for relating to one another the humorous and endearing things that parents say and do; Asian Americans growing up with immigrant parents can share their stories and express their affections and bond over their experiences with their fobby yet lovable parents.

By: Karen Lee

Oakland City Council considers moratorium on nail salons

Oakland city council has decided to consider regulation on nail salons and possibly a moratorium on these businesses in the city. Most of the nail salons employ Vietnamese immigrants who would be severely affected economically by a moratorium. The city’s business leaders stated a high concentration of one kind of business can be fatal for a neighborhood and there are also worries about health and safety hazards at nail salons.

Vice Mayor Ignacio De La Fuente states, “Right now we have absolutely no controls or regulations over nail salons, which have proliferated and, I think, become a problem. I wouldn’t be surprised if Oakland has 1,000 of them.” Pamela Drake, director of the Lakeshore Business Improvement District, adds “A neighborhood shopping district only works if it serves the neighborhood. A proliferation of nail salons is not serving the neighborhood.

The city also wants to crackdown on health and safety hazards as workers often suffer from respiratory and reproductive problems because of the toxic chemicals in nail polish, polish remover and cleaning supplies. Meanwhile, the nail salon owners want to assist with the writing of regulations that would be implemented. They hope the new rules are not too burdensome and that Vietnamese immigrant workers are adequately informed.

Dana Paredes, organizing director of Asian Communities for Reproductive Justice, reminds us that “Nail salons are the cornerstone of the Vietnamese community. People are already feeling pinched by the economy. Workers don’t want to have to choose between their health and a paycheck.”

A customer of the nail salons, Michelle Robinson, tells the San Francisco Chronicle, “It’s tranquil. It’s relaxing. And they work with integrity. There’s so much competition, they’ve raised the bar. Why would you go anywhere else? It’s not the same. You’re wasting your money.” For now, the nail salons will continue their business as the issue has been referred to the Planning Commission and will return to the council in a few months.

by Tran Le

Charges dropped against Hmong community leader

Charges dropped against Hmong community leader Vang Pao in connection with alleged plot to overthrow the government of Laos

Federal prosecutors have dropped criminal charges against prominent Hmong community leader Vang Pao. The original charges were from the summer of 2007 relating to a plot to violent overthrow the government of Laos.

Arrests were conducted when it was claimed many of the defendants had immediate plans to travel to Thailand to execute the plot against the communist regime. As charges against Vang Pao have been dropped, two new defendants have been charged in a new indictment. The twelve other defendants named in the new indictment are charged with violating the Neutrality Act and scheming to overthrow a government at peace with the United States.

In each court appearance Pao made, supporters rallied outside the federal courthouse in Sacramento. There was much protest from the Hmong community, Vietnam War veterans, and some members of Congress over Pao’s indictment. An editorial in the New York Sun states that “it is hard to recall a prosecution as misguided as that which was brought against the general whose army, in league with the Central Intelligence Agency, played a heroic role in the fight against the communists during the long war in Indochina.”

When Vang Pao was originally arrested, the Sun wrote, “He is a freedom fighter who will tower over any courtroom into which he is brought.” There is substantial support for Vang Pao as shown by the thousands of Hmong who came out in numbers across the country from Sacramento to Minnesota. In an LA Times article Vang Pao’s youngest son stated “His supporters can’t wait to see him to celebrate this momentous occasion.”

by: Tran Le

Asian Americans Heading to the Polls

I’ve been on a mission to get people to register to vote recently. In the midst of wrapping up my mission, I read a short article on Asian American’s and voting. With a rapidly growing population, it only makes sense that more Asian Americans are heading to the polls. In fact, according to a recent LA Times article the Asian American voter turnout rate went up by 39% in last year’s presidential election. Bye bye apathy. Hello civic engagement. Naysayers of Asian Americans’ political involvement can move aside. Asian Americans are a political force to be reckoned with and we do have the power to rock the vote to make a political statement.

by: Shirley Chau

Hungry adventurer ready to travel to her next destination.

UCLA’s Ethnic Studies 40th Anniversary Celebration

Chancellor Gene Block announced a dedication of the academic year to the theme of “Celebrating 40 Years of Ethnic Studies at UCLA,” in honor of the anniversary. This acknowledgment calls for a reminiscence of the civil rights movements that paved way for the formation of such studies. The movement consisted of the longest student strike known in the nation’s history, lasting for almost a year from 1968 to 1969. Since then, our golden state has progressively become more ethnically diverse, becoming perhaps the most diverse in the country.

Various universities in the state, such as San Francisco State and UC Berkeley, echo this assortment of different societies and cultures from around the world with the development of corresponding ethnic research centers. However, UCLA is currently the only one in the U.S. to have four of such organizations, one of which includes the Asian American Studies Center. The centers here at UCLA have worked together in many aspects, aspiring to represent the interethnic collaboration that much of our society has yet to apprehend is necessary. They are constantly involved in various issues, such as immigration reforms and health care services, and make a persistent effort looking for solutions through engagement with community organizations and its leaders.

To commemorate the centers’ achievements, as well as the achievements of the university’s promotion of diversity, a wide range of activities will occur both on campus, as well as off throughout the county. Mark your calendars for November 18, as Pacific Ties presents Pacific Ties: Breaking Ground to Asian American and Pacific Islander Student Media, a forum including a panel with Giant Robot Magazine Founders and Current/Past Editors of Pacific Ties Newspaper.

More information of the specific events for this celebration can be found at the centers’ website: http://www.ethnicstudies40th.ucla.edu/index.asp

Written by Huong Pham

WonFu at UCLA

What were you doing around lunch time last Friday? Anyone hear an underground pop band or see them rocking it out on the Bruin Plaza stage? WonFu (not Wong Fu Productions), a Taiwanese music band of two girls and two guys performed at UCLA while some students were in class, at the gym, or having lunch. Unfortunately I was one of those students that missed the chance to watch their live performance, but some of their songs are available online.

UCLA was one of their first stops to play their music live in their West Coast tour in the United States. I would say that their music is a combination of pop, rock, folk, and even a bit of country; the mixture of these elements make their music sound unique. They do not sing in English, but they still seem to catch a good amount of audience. The song “Lady’s Night” reminds me of a more contemporary-style disco. Their songs overflow with sweetness and upbeat energy but does not convey a teenybopper style. On their Myspace music page under the category “Sounds Like,” they say that their music is “a smiling face” which I absolutely agree.

So if you want to bring some sunshine on your playlist, add them!

Stepfanie Aguilar is a 2nd undeclared student, hoping to major in World Arts and Culture. Someday, she will tour the world and own tons of albums full of postcards and photography.

Recognize Pilipino-American History Month

October is not just for wearing Halloween costumes and collecting candy. It is the month for Pilipino-Americans to celebrate their heritage. Samahang Pilipino (SP), a student-run organization based on Pilipino culture, presents a series of events from Week 2 to Week 5 to honor this time. The kick-off event was the Pilipino-American History Month (PAHM) Art Exhibit on Monday, October 5th hosted at Kerckhoff Art Gallery. Many were enraptured by the various art work covering the walls such as traditional paintings to pop art. Artists include Lor Sumagaysay, Susanito Sarnate, Fred Juson, Rodney Martinez, Revo Yanson, and Rommel Clavecillas. Rick Bergancia and Rafael Maniago were also there to perform live art by sketching and painting visitors. Loralei Rose Bingamon, a collage artist, was also there to speak. For the opening, the Tinig choral group performed “Mga Munting Tinig”. It was a crowded night. Afterwards, several visitors mingled with the artists, some gazed at the art, and some donated money to a disaster-relief fund to assist the flood victims in the Philippines. Visitors ranged from students to local residents.

For Week 3, students included storytelling on “coming out” in the Student Activities Center for the National Coming Out Week, recognizing the LGBT community among Pilipino-Americans. Tonight at 5:30pm at Kerckhoff Grand Salon is a special event for Pilipino authors and veterans to share their stories of hardships and achievements with students. Next Wednesday night, there will be an open mic night for singers, musicians, poets, and dancers to express themselves.

by Stepfanie Aguilar

Stepfanie Aguilar is a 2nd undeclared student, hoping to major in World Arts and Culture. Someday, she will tour the world and own tons of albums full of postcards and photography.