0:00 - Introductions, short description of family home and neighbourhood in Hong Kong – which streets they live on and how he used to play with the neighbourhood kids.
Direct segment link:
0:11 - Childhood in Hong Kong in the 1950’s and 60’s, hardships due to father’s stroke. Family business and family separation when father moved to Japan to work as a chef and have a less stressful worklife.
Direct segment link:
2:46 - Describing his father’s work and explaining how the home banqueting business works. The types of homes they’ve visited and being able to see how some people lived luxuriously.
Direct segment link:
3:41 - Story of how his parents met, when he was born, and where they lived. His father being a private chef for a Shanghainese family and how the elderly couple taught him how to cook Shanghainese food. How they came to America and having no idea what was to come in the United States. Recounts the history of Britain’s colonial rule over Hong Kong, opium war, Japanese invasion and occupation, learning Kung Fu from a Kung Fu master.
Direct segment link:
12:27 - Experiences living under British rule and colonial powers. Learning history in school, furthering schooling in Taiwan and expressed desires to be a doctor and to study at the Taiwan National University but failing entrance exams. Getting a job through his godmother’s connection, working as a low-rank junior in the Tak Sing International Export & Import Co. Ltd., learning the trade from the boss and having a good relationship with him, studying accounting in evenings.
Direct segment link:
19:27 - Coming to America, immigration experience, feeling grateful for Mrs. Lee and Mr. Xu for their words and good deeds towards him. Describes further how the Chinese people were oppressed under British rule, how the British boys at school would bully the Chinese boys, 1966 Fascist riots. Describes the thrilling feeling of arriving at John F. Kennedy Airport in New York in 1971.
Direct segment link:
27:13 - Explains how difficult it was to get immigration papers to come to the United States, tells of sailors, students, and others who overstay their visas. Immigration policies were more lenient towards certain populations of people. Very few Fujianese people here but the population in the tri-state area has become a lot larger since. Father’s refugee status, Chinatown of 1977, working as a waiter trainee at Zhi Mei Lou Restaurant, getting used to working life here in America, work culture and length
Direct segment link:
30:14 - Stories of Chinatown and life in New York City back in the 1970’s. Living in the Bronx, getting used to restaurant work, fraternalizing and bullying from senior wait staff, earning his keep, helping his father repay his debts, putting off going back to school, and helping the family financially to sustain a living, working at the Reubin Restaurant and describing how it was to work with people outside of the Chinese community – Hispanic (Puerto Rican), Black, and Italians.
Direct segment link:
38:58 - Stories from the Reubin Restaurant, being one of three Chinese workers, describes his Chinese co-workers as timid and allowed bullying from others, helping his Italian co-worker with Chinese bone setting, earned respect from his non Chinese co-workers, describes discrimination that is faced here in America and how to not accept it and how important it is to fight back.
Direct segment link:
45:10 - After working at the Reubin, he helped his father establish a restaurant. Recounts how his father has helped several people establish and open restaurants in Port Washington and Boston. Closing of the Reubin due to heath code violations, crime and being robbed and how the police did nothing and let it happen, old Chinese community felt that they were not cared for. Chinatown in the 1970’s compared to now and the city’s indifference in attitude towards the Chinese community. The larger population
Direct segment link:
55:26 - Talks about his father and his brief life and experiences here in America, the hardships they have endured and his father’s burdens and overwhelming stresses that lead to his passing less than three years after moving to America, the burden then fell onto William’s shoulders after his father’s passing, describes the cycles of separation that his parents have endured during their marriage, Chinese attitudes and superstitions, and how his life would have been different if his father has insurance.
Direct segment link:
62:51 - Talks about being an accounting student as a mature adult, differences in other student’s attitudes, Chinatown and how it has changed on a business and government level, how to do business with foreigners, appreciating other cultures and setting good examples, going against Chinese superstitions, getting insurance for the first time. How September 11th, 2001, has affect his insurance business, economic slowdown, insurance premiums before and after.
Direct segment link:
71:03 - Where he was on September 11th, 2001, opinions and views on United States politics, lifestyles in America, criticisms of American life and their weaknesses, how America should be more like China, how to solve parking problems in Chinatown, how to improve the lives of the people living in Chinatown and businesses will become more prosperous, and his views on what to do for economic recovery. Tourism and travel’s impact, and how travel agents have suffered.
Direct segment link:
80:35 - Tourism in Chinatown and deepest depression Chinatown has faced, striving for survival, talks about his import and export business and how he had to shut it down, how restaurant business has diminished after September 11th, 2001, luxury markets and loss, his insurance business kept him afloat, explains the difference between the old and new Fuzhou immigrants, and illegal ways for immigration – “jumping off the ship”.
Direct segment link:
87:41 - Returning to Fuzhou in 1980 after being away for 10 years, bringing his mother home for the first time, seeing his grandparents, grandparents immigration to the United States, their desire to leave and go home and pass away in China, their diminished quality of life in the United States and how it compares to their home, compares how Fuzhou has changed since he has left, when the went back there was no infrastructure and now there has been massive improvements. Witnessing prosperous changes in F
Direct segment link:
94:44 - Golden Venture tragedy, helping to arrange and organise burials and contributed to charity work, helping to return the bodies of the deceased to their families in China, feelings of how America and the American dream is deception, United States is not a paradise, explaining to people that hopes to immigrate to America that it is not a easy life. Chinese media keeping Golden Venture tragedy a secret. Campaigning for improvements to be made for New York City Chinatown, reopening the Grand Store.
Direct segment link:
102:56 - Talks about the future of Chinatown and how things will improve but people must fight for them, relationship between the police and locals, the manners and the way the police treat the Chinese residents have improved, recounts a story of a Chinese police officer who mistreated a child and the confrontation afterwards, threats and the resolution of the incidents. The police community and the youth explorers’ programs, tells of the few good officers who actually care about the community.
Direct segment link:
110:17 - Talks about his children and his expectations of them, academic success, one son joined the Nation Guard Reserve, another son is a scientist, final views and reflections of his three decades in the United States, wishes for the future.
Direct segment link: