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Transcript/Script((PLAYBOOK SLUG: CTown San Francisco (2 of 11)
HEADLINE: San Francisco’s Chinatown: Forged by Discrimination, Now Cultural Treasure
TEASER: From 'Gold Mountain' to Silicon Valley, the evolution of Chinese immigration in and around San Francisco
PUBLISHED: 5/28/24, 9:23 am
BYLINE: Matt Dibble
CONTRIBUTOR:
DATELINE: San Francisco, California
VIDEOGRAPHER: Matt Dibble
VIDEO EDITOR: Matt Dibble
ASSIGNING EDITOR:
SCRIPT EDITORS: ELee, Reifenrath
VIDEO SOURCE (S): VOA original, Library of Congress, Lawrence & Houseworth, Arnold Genthe, Alfred A. Hart, Locke Foundation
PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV X RADIO _X_
TRT: 3:21
VID APPROVED BY: sb
TYPE: TV/R
EDITOR NOTES: Editors, please note this is for the Chinatown series. When copy-edit is complete, please place in the Chinatown folder with HFR in Teams. The release date is TBA.))
((INTRO)) [[ America’s oldest Chinatown sustains traditions even as members of the Chinese diaspora continue to spread out and evolve. Matt Dibble has the story from San Francisco, California.]]
((B-ROLL: dragon passes, WS dancers, Lion dancers, crowd, flag bearers pass, walk through crowd ))
((NARRATOR))
Traditions and festivals in San Francisco’s Chinatown date back almost 200 years – when Chinese immigrants arrived and settled in this city on the U.S. California coast.
((B-ROLL: Hsu and family along parade route))
((NARRATOR))
Sen Hsu, originally from China, brought his children here to connect with their roots.
((Sen Hsu, San Jose Resident))
“We want them to know where they come from and to keep the tradition going.”
((NAT POP))
((B-ROLL: fireworks at intersection street, 5 shots shoppers at Cheung store))
((NARRATOR))
In the middle of all these Chinese-owned businesses is Buddha Exquisite, the Cheung family’s store, where another Chinese tradition is alive. Shoppers can find paper products to burn ceremonially in tribute to their ancestors.
[[FOR RADIO: Rebecca Cheung runs the store with her mother.]]
((Rebecca Cheung, Buddha Exquisite))
“There are a couple seasons throughout the year that we want to visit our ancestors, and this is what we send them.”
((B-ROLL: WS Chinatown street, produce market, school, hospital, social club, tourists take picture, Taipei mayor and group walk by))
((NARRATOR))
Chinatown's twenty-four blocks include shops, restaurants, schools, a hospital, and social clubs. It’s also a place tourists and dignitaries visit. But Chinese people have not always been welcomed in San Francisco.
((B-ROLL: Chinese miners lithograph))
((MANDATORY COURTESY: Library of Congress))
((NARRATOR))
Chinese migrants faced discrimination with the discovery of gold in California’s foothills in 1848.
((END COURTESY))
((B-ROLL: Chinese miners by tree))
((MANDATORY COURTESY: Library of Congress/ Lawrence & Houseworth))
((NARRATOR))
Thousands from Southern China, faced with poverty and
((END COURTESY))
((MANDATORY COURTESY: Library of Congress / Alfred A. Hart))
((NARRATOR))
civil war at home, were either recruited or lured to what they called “Gold Mountain”
((B-ROLL: laborers and rocks))
((MANDATORY COURTESY: Library of Congress)/ Alfred A. Hart)
((NARRATOR))
… to work in mines and railroad construction.
((END COURTESY))
((MANDATORY COURTESY: Library of Congress / Arnold Genthe))
((B-ROLL: men reading notices))
((NARRATOR))
Those who remained in California endured a long period of racism.
((END COURTESY))
((MANDATORY COURTESY: Locke Foundation))
((B-ROLL: sketch of workers levee construction))
((NARRATOR))
With the completion of the railroads, many Chinese laborers
((END COURTESY))
((B-ROLL: pan river to levee, levee and farmland, Levee Street sign, pan Locke
main street))
((NARRATOR))
found work constructing over 1,700 kilometers of levees, transforming the
Sacramento River delta into farmland. Drawing on their knowledge from home, they
worked on farms and settled in towns along the Sacramento River. One of them is
the town of Locke, about 120 kilometers northeast of San
Francisco.
((B-ROLL:Chu closes door, Chu walks then enters museum, Chu inside, passes
mask))
((NARRATOR))
Chinese settlers from the Guangdong province, built Locke in 1915.
Hong Kong native Clarence Chu operates three museums in town.
When he first arrived in Locke almost 50 years ago, Chu was amazed at how traditional culture still lives on here.
((Clarence Chu, Locke Business Owner))
“To me, though, coming from Hong Kong and so Westernized, I thought that I better learn something from them about the Chinese culture!”
((B-ROLL: pan old photo, man walks on main street))
((NARRATOR))
Once a haven for thousands of Chinese farmworkers, Locke’s population has since dwindled.
((Clarence Chu, Locke Business Owner))
“Some of the younger people started to leave because they have better opportunity, go to college, go to get jobs easier in the city.”
((B-ROLL: woman with shopping cart, man loads groceries, walk past shops, Chen and friends approach))
((NARRATOR))
Today, new Chinese immigrants to the San Francisco area are mostly highly skilled tech workers or students. Many of them live or work south of the city in Silicon Valley. Strip malls catering to Chinese Americans like this one in Cupertino, can be found throughout Silicon Valley. Here for lunch, Ernie Chen works across the street at Apple headquarters.
((Ernie Chen, Software Engineer))
“The Chinese community, I think, is pretty spread out. So, you can find similar shops in
many places already.”
((B-ROLL: tilt from Lipo, kids in costume, dragon passes))
((NARRATOR))
Still, some Chinese Americans head back to the Chinatown in San Francisco to feel a stronger sense of community and celebrate their Chinese heritage.
((Matt Dibble, VOA News, San Francisco)
NewsML Media TopicsArts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
Subtitles / Dubbing AvailableNo
NetworkVOA
Embargo DateMay 28, 2024 09:52 EDT
BylineMatt Dibble
Brand / Language ServiceVoice of America - English, US Agency for Global Media
