Participants’ Passion and Commitment for Chinatowns Energize Summit

Chinatowns are often thought of as tourist destinations, but their origins trace back to the 19th century when Chinese immigrants, who came to the U.S. and Canada during the California Gold Rush and to help build the Transcontinental Railroad, created communities to face life as outsiders. Today, there are 62 Chinatowns throughout North America, and nearly one-third of them were represented this October at the 2nd Annual U.S.–Canada Chinatown Cultural Preservation & Revitalization Conference, a gathering that aims to connect business and cultural leaders across Chinatowns and address their systemic challenges.

“There aren’t many platforms or organizations with the capability and resources to connect Chinatown communities across the U.S. and Canada, to foster stronger knowledge exchange, solution strategies, and collaboration,” said Carrie Leung, director of events and partnerships for the Vancouver Chinatown Foundation, and Brian Pang, COO, and head of partnerships for Stand with Asian Americans. The two, members of the 2023–2025 U.S. & Canada Chinatown Solidarity Summit Planning Committee, responded to Convene’s questions about the event in a joint email. Limited resources, travel expenses, and the lack of a viable venue have posed challenges for Chinatown leaders to gather together face-to-face in the past, they said, but since the conference launched last year in Vancouver, funding partners have covered the participants’ travel expenses and accommodations so they can convene.

Chinatowns across North America have faced a number of challenges in recent years, including weathering economic headwinds and, unfortunately, instances of history repeating itself — rising anti-Asian sentiments and associated safety concerns, “particularly following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic,” Leung and Pang said. Two of the event’s core pillars, Economic Revitalization and Public Safety, tackle these issues head on, along with a third, devoted to Cultural and Historic Preservation.

The main takeaway from the event, Leung and Pang said, is that despite the isolation they’ve experienced, attendees’ “passion and commitment to these often-overlooked neighborhoods are remarkably strong. Participants left the summit feeling inspired, knowing they are not alone in their efforts to revitalize these historic areas.”

Casey Gale is managing editor of Convene.

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