VOL 41 NO 22 | MAY 28 – JUNE 3, 2022

PRSRT STD U.S. Postage Paid Permit No. 746 Seattle, WA

VOL 41 NO 22 MAY 28 – JUNE 3, 2022

FREE 40 YEARS YOUR VOICE

This Memorial Day will mark the first time Chinese American World War II veterans and their families will be able to celebrate the holiday with a Congressional Gold Medal that was awarded to them.

At a ceremony on Nov. 13, 2021 in Meydenbauer Center, sponsored by the Chinese American Citizens Alliance (C.A.C.A.) Seattle and the Seattle Regional Chinese American World War II Veterans Congressional Gold Medal Committee, the highest

civilian honor was presented to three of the five living veterans and the families of the deceased Chinese American World War II veterans from this region.

“It is an honor that was long, long overdue,” said Congressman Adam Smith, at the ceremony.

The in-person ceremony was preceded by a virtual ceremony on March 13, during which former Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan issued a proclamation naming that day in honor of the veterans.

Uwajimaya voices concern over CID link light rail station in 10-page letter

Graphic: Han Bui

A Sound Transit committee held a special workshop last week to discuss the multi-billion-dollar project that plans to provide light rail connections between West Seattle and Ballard. The routes will travel to and through numerous communities in Seattle including the Chinatown-International District (CID).

Final decisions about the project are expected next year. But residents and businesses in the CID are concerned that it’s happening too fast.

Uwajimaya sent a 10-page letter—signed by Denise and Miye Moriguchi and Kenneth Louie— asking Sound Transit to extend the deadline and take more time to study the impacts in partnership with community stakeholders.

It pointed to the inadequate environmental impact analysis in regards to connectivity, property acquisition and displacement, air quality, noise, and the impact on historic and cultural resources.

Uwajimaya stated, “The CID station area is the only station area densely populated by communities see LIGHT RAIL on 12

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see CACA on 11

Seattle Regional Chinese American World War II Veterans Congressional Gold Medal Committee.

From left (back row) Sue Mar, Michelle Locke, Cheryll Leo-Gwin, Tina Young, Vivian Chan, and Dorrienne Chinn From left (front row) JoAnne Lee, Bettie Luke, Cathy Lee, Terry Nicholas, and Kent Wong (Not pictured) Mimi Gan, Jerry Lee, Ming-Ming Tung-Edelman, June Wong

THE INSIDE STORY LETTER Reflections on history of anti-Chinese hate in Seattle and Washington state

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BUSINESS Louisa Hotel: History and mystery in plaster

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Nearly 4,000 people signed up to help clean up Seattle on May 21 in the first-ever “One Seattle Day of Service” and Mayor Bruce Harrell’s plan for people to help give back to the community.

see pictorial on 9

Little Saigon woes continue

By Ruth Bayang NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY On the heels of Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell’s One Seattle Day of Service—in which 4,000 volunteers signed up to clean up the city—business owners and community leaders in the Chinatown-International District (CID) say more needs to be done.

“Simple vandalism is a nuisance,” said retired Lt. Col. Michael Yaguchi of the Air Force and current commander of the Nisei Veterans Committee (NVC).

“The paramount issue is the overt use of drugs in our neighborhood, and the discarding of needles and other materials used to prepare those drugs amongst public areas or private property.”

Over the past two years, the area around NVC Memorial Hall at 12th Avenue South and South King Street has seen see LITTLE SAIGON on 15

Credit: Staff

By Mahlon Meyer NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY

Photo by Kent Wong

Chinese American WWII veterans honored

SPD dispersed people loitering outside Lam’s Seafood on May 24.

412 Maynard Ave. S., Seattle, WA 98104 • t. 206.223.5559 • f. 206.223.0626 • editor@nwasianweekly.com • ads@nwasianweekly.com • www.nwasianweekly.com

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asianweekly northwest

40 YEARS

MAY 28 – JUNE 3, 2022

■ NAMES IN THE NEWS

Human Services’ We Can Do This campaign to help spread the word about the importance of COVID-19 vaccines.

Car lovers gather in ID

Photo by Assunta Ng

Blackpink on Rolling Stone cover

A colorful array of cars with the Historic Chinatown Gate in the background.

Car enthusiasts gathered in the old Uwajimaya parking lot last weekend to admire unique cars of all kinds. We spoke to Joe Bui who bought his Mustang in Arizona in 2018 for $45,000 and then rebuilt it. 

Nathan Chen Day Korean girl group Blackpink has officially made history as the first allAsian female group to be featured on the cover of Rolling Stone.

The 55-year-old magazine tweeted, “The world’s biggest girl group give their most revealing interview yet about how they make music, deal with the demands of stardom, became family, and more.”

The June issue features a profile of the members Lisa, Jennie, Rosé, and Jisoo.

The group has set numerous records, including for the most subscribed artist on YouTube (passing Justin Bieber).

And they’re the first K-pop girl group to perform at Coachella. 

The state of Utah declared May 18, 2022 Nathan Chen Day in honor of the Olympic gold medalist. Chen, who is from Utah, recently partnered with the U.S. Department of Health and

Happy AAPI Heritage Month! As we work to build One Seattle, let's both celebrate the diversity of our communities and uplift what we have in common. Working together, we are building a safe and welcoming city for every neighbor.

— Mayor Bruce Harrell

Chen is a strong supporter of COVID-19 vaccines and boosters. 

Seattle-Tacoma Fukuoka Kenjinkai begins 115th year Regional kenjinkais (a kenjinkai is an association whose membership was originally based upon and conceived by people coming from the same prefecture in Japan) from several Japan prefectures assembled in the Fisher Pavilion for the Seattle Cherry Blossom Festival last month to share their prefecture’s points of interest with visitors. It was a great way to start the 115th anniversary year by visiting with familiar faces at the various prefecture booths, and the Seattle-Tacoma Fukuoka Kenjinkai President Christina Swadener (second Japan Business Associ- from left) with her nephew Ryo (left), Hiroshi Eto (right) and his wife, Mitsuko. ation. Live demonstrations and informative talks were offered on two stages throughout the day. 

MAY 28 – JUNE 3, 2022

YOUR VOICE

■ LETTER

asianweekly northwest

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Ref lections on history of anti-Chinese hate in Seattle and Washington state In recent times, anti-Asian hate has been a national and local issue. Weeks ago, there was a rally in the Doug Chin Chinatown-Inter national District (CID) focused on the 1886 anti-Chinese riot in Seattle—the worst race riot in this city’s history.

It came about because of the anti-Chinese movement, which began soon after the Chinese arrived in America in 1849. Indeed, the “Chinese Problem” was a major issue from the time Washington became a territory in 1853.

By the mid-1860s, after a small number of Chinese began to appear in the area, territorial lawmakers passed additional anti-Chinese laws. One law barred Chinese from testifying against whites in court.

Another measure, titled “An Act to Protect Free White Labor Against Competition with Chinese Coolie Labor and to Discourage the Immigration of Chinese in the Territory,” resulted in a poll tax levied on ev-

Photo by Randy Woo Eng

Excerpts from a March 17, 2022 speech by Doug Chin at the Seattle-International District Rotary Club

A crowd marches through the Chinatown-International District on May 15, 2021 to demand justice for John Huynh and end anti-Asian violence.

ery Chinese.

Over the next decade, however, hostility against the Chinese was not always evident. In railroad construction, for example, whites generally reacted without animosity to the employment of Chinese in Washington. The lack of white labor was too evident to cause even the most ardent anti-Chinese to resent their employment on the railroads. On occasions, the arrival of shiploads of Chinese laborers was greeted by cheers. It signaled economic progress for the area.

In 1882, the Chinese Exclusion Act was enacted, which (1) prohib-

ited the immigration of Chinese laborers to the U.S., (2) denied Chinese the right to become naturalized citizens, and (3) required Chinese laborers already legally present in the U.S. who later wished to re-enter to obtain “certificates of return.” In effect, the Exclusion Act curtailed Chinese immigration to the U.S. for decades.

Meanwhile, a severe economic downturn in the 1880s meant jobs were scarce. White settlers began to call for the removal of all Chinese from the Territory. Even though the Exclusion Act barred the further entry of Chinese laborers to the

United States, the white working men wanted no less than the total removal of the Chinese.

The anti-Chinese movement reached a crescendo in Seattle and the rest of Washington state after the completion of the railroads.

The Northern Pacific Railroad was completed in 1883 with the construction of the east-west connection at Pasco. Two years later, the Canadian Pacific Railroad was also completed. As jobs decreased in outlying areas, the Chinese laborers came to Seattle to seek work.

The immediate spark that precipitated the anti-Chinese outbreaks in

Seattle was the riot in September 1885 at Rock Springs, Wyoming, where 28 Chinese were murdered and over 500 driven out of town.

News of the event made an impression on locals.

On the night of September 5, a group of whites and Native Americans, armed with rifles, ambushed 35 Chinese at a hop farm in Squak Valley (now Issaquah), a few miles east of Seattle, killing three and injuring three. The attackers— five whites and two Native Americans—were acquitted after an eight-day trial.

On Sept. 19, the Chinese were driven from the coal mining town of Black Diamond, southeast of Seattle. Nine Chinese were injured in that incident. At the end of the same month, another coal mine east of Seattle ousted its Chinese workers. In yet another clash, a party of masked and armed men entered the Franklin mines and forced the Chinese onto a special train to Seattle.

Similar occurrences were reported at Newcastle and Renton. In all these incidents, no one was brought to trial.

The anti-Chinese forces in Seattle quickly split into two groups.

One group favored the direct and immediate removal of the see CHIN on 13

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MAY 28 – JUNE 3, 2022

40 YEARS

■ NATIONAL NEWS

New York’s hasty redistricting rewrite draws ire of locals

By MICHELLE L. PRICE ASSOCIATED PRESS NEW YORK (AP) — New Yorkers pride themselves on the dynamism of their metropolis, where it can feel totally different on the next block, where tourists walking in Chinatown quickly find themselves in Little Italy, where a neighborhood can be a proxy for a lifestyle or worldview.

Figuring out the city’s complexities is tough even for locals—and complaints are pouring in claiming that the two outsiders redrawing New York’s congressional districts have bungled the job by linking and slicing communities they don’t understand.

The retooling of the state’s political district maps was taken over this spring by a rural judge seated about five hours by car from New York City after a court sided with Republicans and ruled Democrats controlling the Legislature had engaged in illegal gerrymandering.

The judge, Patrick McAllister, hired a redistricting expert based in Pittsburgh to quickly come up with new maps. After new proposed congressional districts were unveiled on May 16, New Yorkers sent more than 2,000 letters to the court imploring the judge and his out-of-state expert to make changes before the maps are finalized.

Letters have poured in from around

Lo van Pham honored to be first Asian American NFL official

By ROB MAADDI AP PRO FOOTBALL WRITER Lo van Pham’s journey to the NFL began when he fell in love with sports upon arriving in Texas after living in refugee camps with his family.

More than 40 years later, van Pham is set to become the first Asian American to Lo Van Pham officiate in the NFL. “I never dreamed about being the first of anything,” van Pham said on the AP Pro Football Podcast. “It’s just a great honor. People reaching out to me, reminding me of how special this is, and I just want to do the right thing and carry whatever message I need to carry to represent not only our Asian culture and Asian friends, but also really to represent all minorities, whether Middle Eastern, just different backgrounds, different people that are out there. I want to communicate to convey the fact that if you work hard, prepare yourself, commit and do the things that you can control, your desires and your passion will carry you to the next level in whatever endeavor you choose.”

Before he was introduced to football in America, van Pham and his parents and two brothers survived traveling the jungles of South Vietnam and bounced around refugee camps in Laos, Thailand and the Philippines for about three years. He was too young to remember much of that experience, but his parents filled him in as he got older.

“They were telling me how, obviously, filthy it was, how dirty it was,” van Pham said. “But other than that, I remember my first night here in America. We stayed in a kind of a makeshift hospital where they boarded us for the first few weeks until we got our feet on the ground.”

Van Pham, 49, grew up surrounded

by Dallas Cowboys fans in Amarillo, Texas. He started playing football as a kid and continued through high school. He turned to officiating to stay connected to the sport while pursuing a graduate degree at the University of Colorado.

“When I signed up for it, it was kind of out of boredom and out of love for the game,” he said. “I remember telling my friends what I was doing, their first comment: ‘Are you nuts? Are you crazy?

You got better things to do on a Saturday and Sunday.’

“I actually love this. This is what I grew up playing, and I just absolutely love the game. And from there, it just made me want to get better.”

Van Pham attended officiating clinics and camps after moving back to Texas from Colorado. He trained with a high school association and developed his skills as an official.

Van Pham joins the NFL from the Big 12 Conference. He’ll work as a side judge while maintaining his day job because officials aren’t full-time employees. Van Pham’s background is civil structure engineering.

“Since being in Power Five football, most of my friends seem to think that football is really my full-time job, and my real job is my part-time job,” he said.

The NFL has 121 on-field game officials, 49 of them are women or minorities.

Being a dad is van Pham’s favorite job; he and his wife, Kelly, have two sons ages 7 and 2.

“They keep me humble,” he said. “They remind me of what my job is, that’s No. 1, be a father. That’s the most important thing to be a father and to be a great husband.” 

the state, but some of the most specific complaints are coming from New York City, where some complained the maps would divide culturally united neighborhoods and dilute the voting power of communities of color.

Among other things, the new maps would sweep the districts of four Black members of Congress into one new district, potentially forcing them to run either against each other or try to get elected in a district in which they do not live.

“It would make Jim Crow blush,” U.S. Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, a Brooklyn Democrat, said of the map.

He said it would fracture Brooklyn’s Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood, which

he represents. The neighborhood is a Black cultural hub once represented by Shirley Chisholm, the first Black woman elected to Congress.

Jeffries chafed at the idea that the new maps for the city were created under the supervision of a court in western New York’s Steuben County, along the Pennsylvania border.

“I don’t know where Steuben County is. Had no idea it existed. Neither do the overwhelming majority of New Yorkers,” Jeffries complained. “It’s in the village of Bath. Closer to Cleveland, Ohio; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; and Toronto, Canada.” see REDISTRICTING on 14

KING COUNTY, WASHINGTON NOTICE TO PROPOSERS

Sealed bids will be received for KC000565, Foothills Trail – Phase II Segment B; by the King County Procurement and Payables Section, via the E-Procurement system, until 1:30 PM on 7/06/2022.

Late bids will not be accepted. The public bid opening will only be conducted on-line following the Bid Close Date and Time; see Invitation to Bid for details.

There is a 15% minimum Apprentice Utilization Requirement on this contract.

There is a 15% minimum requirement for King County Certified Small Contractors and Suppliers (SCS) on this contract.

Community Workforce Agreement (CWA): A CWA applies to this contract.

Priority Hire Apprentice Utilization Goal: 27% of the Contract Price Priority Hire Journey Level Goal: 18% of the Contract Price.

King County in accordance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 78 Stat. 252, 42 USC 2000d to 2000d-4 and Title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, Department of Transportation, Subtitle A, Office of the Secretary, Part 21, Nondiscrimination in Federally-Assisted Programs of the Department of Transportation issued pursuant to such Act, hereby notifies all bidders that it will affirmatively ensure that in any contract entered into pursuant to this advertisement, disadvantaged business enterprises as defined at 49 CFR Part 26 will be afforded full opportunity to submit bids in response to this invitation and will not be discriminated against on the grounds of race, color, national origin, or sex in consideration for an award.

Brief Scope: This Contract provides for the extension of the Foothills Trail from the Boise Creek Bridge to the existing Foothills Trail in the City of Buckley. Work includes surface trail with various retaining walls, surface driveway, White River Bridge and elevated approaches, trail crossing facility, improvements to the existing Boise Creek Bridge, and mitigation planting.

Estimated contract price: $13,643,700 Pre-Bid: Please see Invitation to Bid for details Prospective bidders can view more details at: https://kingcounty. gov/procurement/solicitations Complete Invitation to Bid Documents, including all project details, specifications, and contact information are available on our web page at: https://kingcounty.gov/procurement/supplierportal

YOUR VOICE

■ NATIONAL NEWS

MAY 28 – JUNE 3, 2022

asianweekly northwest

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Navy ship to be named for Filipino sailor Telesforo Trinidad WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro announced on May 19 that a future destroyer will be named the USS Telesforo Trinidad— in honor of a Filipino sailor who rescued two crew members when their ship caught fire more than a century ago.

Fireman Telesforo De La Cruz Trinidad is the only Filipino in the U.S. Navy to be awarded the Medal of Honor. He received the honor for his actions on the USS San Diego in 1915 and at a time when it could be awarded for non-combat valor.

“Since being sworn in as Secretary, I have wanted to honor his heroic actions by naming a ship after him,” Del Toro said in a statemenT. “This ship and her future crew will be a critical piece in strengthening our maritime superiority while also emphasizing the rich culture and history of our naval heritage.”

The news cheered Asian Americans, veterans and civilians in both the U.S. and the Philippines who had urged the naming. They said a named ship would also honor the tens of thousands of Filipinos and Americans of Filipino descent who have served in the U.S. Navy since 1901, when the Philippines was a United States territory.

Trinidad, who died in 1968 at age 77, was aboard the USS San Diego in January 1915 when boilers exploded, killing nine. He was among the more than 250,000 Filipino soldiers who served in World War II, including thousands who died during the brutal 1942 Bataan Death March in the Philippines.

A future Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer will bear Trinidad’s name, Del Toro said. The statement said the destroyers are the backbone of the U.S. Navy’s surface fleet. 

Report: Gunman sent diary to newspaper before church attack

Girlfriend: Dallas shooting suspect feared Asian Americans

By AMY TAXIN and STEFANIE DAZIO ASSOCIATED PRESS

By JAKE BLEIBERG and JAMIE STENGLE ASSOCIATED PRESS

SANTA ANA, Calif. (AP) — The man accused of opening fire on a Southern California church congregation because of his political hatred of Taiwan dubbed himself a “destroying” angel in a sevenvolume diary sent to a newspaper before the attack, the paper said on May 18.

David Chou, 68, spent $16.10 to mail seven thick photocopied volumes of handwritten Chinese text and a flash drive to the World Journal office in the Los Angeles suburb of Monterey Park, according to photos published in the

Chinese-language paper.

The newspaper said the pages bore the title: “Diary of an Angel Destroying Independence” in an apparent reference to Taiwan’s self-government. The Chinese Communist Party continues to demand Taiwan reunify with China.

The diary pages were received in the daily mail on May 17, one day after authorities say Chou opened fire at a lunch gathering of older parishioners at Irvine Taiwanese Presbyterian Church in the community of Laguna Woods.

The newspaper didn’t report the contents of the diaries and nobody there see CHURCH ATTACK on 12

aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, police said. Smith is being held on $300,000 bond, according to jail records that do not list an attorney for DALLAS (AP) — The him. In public records, his age girlfriend of a man is listed as both 36 and 37. arrested in a shooting When asked at a May that wounded three 17 news conference if he women of Asian descent considered the shooting an in a hair salon in Dallas’ issue of racism, mental health Koreatown told police or both, Dallas police Chief that he has delusions that Eddie Garcia said it’s too early Asian Americans are to tell. trying to harm him, an “Right now, it’s an issue arrest warrant affidavit Jeremy Smith | Credit: Dallas of hate. It’s a hate crime.

Police Department states.

However that manifests itself, Jeremy Smith faces three charges of I’m not here to say that. I can tell you that I know our community sees it as a hate crime. I see it as a hate crime and so do our men and women,” Garcia said.

The FBI said it has opened a federal hate crime investigation along with federal prosecutors in Texas and the see DALLAS SHOOTING on 12

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asianweekly northwest

MAY 28 – JUNE 3, 2022

40 YEARS

■ COMMUNITY CALENDAR THRU JULY 10 EMBODIED CHANGE: SOUTH ASIAN ART ACROSS TIME Seattle Asian Art Museum, South Gallery Fri-Sun, 10 a.m.–5 p.m. seattleartmuseum.org THRU FEB 19, 2023 EXHIBIT, “WE ARE CHANGING THE TIDE: COMMUNITY POWER FOR ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE” The Wing Luke Museum, 719 S. King St., Seattle Thu-Sun, 10 a.m.–5 p.m. wingluke.org/we-arechanging-the-tide

MAY 6-29

ARTIST AKIO TAKAMORI WITH A GALLERY SHOW Vashon Center for the Arts, 19600 Vashon Hwy. SW, Vashon 5-8 p.m., First Friday Free admission gallery. vashoncenterforthearts. org

Association 522 7th Ave S, Seattle 3-4:30 p.m.

Free

30 77TH ANNUAL MEMORIAL DAY SERVICE Lake View Cemetery, 1554 15th Ave. E., Seattle 10-11 a.m.

206-919-1465

29

JUN

CID COMMUNITY WATCH SELF-DEFENSE WORKSHOP FOR SENIORS Chong Wa Benevolent

CLUB MEETING WITH ILONA LOHREY

2

9

5:30 p.m.

In person or via Zoom Register at https://bit.ly/371tvOh

AND AHI MARTINMCSWEENEY ABOUT WA STATE LBGTQ+ Chamber of Commerce 11:30 a.m.–1 p.m.

For Zoom link, contact rotaryofseattleid@gmail. com

5 CACA SEATTLE 2022 ANNUAL BANQUET China Harbor Restaurant 5:30 p.m. $48/member, $70/nonmember, $450/table of 10 Register at cacaseattle. org

FUJIMATSU VILLAGE OPEN HOUSE Wing Luke Museum, 719 S. King St., Seattle 4-6:30 p.m.

4

CID COMMUNITY WATCH SELF-DEFENSE WORKSHOP FOR EVERYONE Chong Wa Benevolent Association 522 7th Ave S, Seattle 3-4:30 p.m.

Free

DENISE LOUIE EDUCATION CENTER 2022 DINNER & AUCTION, “THE FUTURE IS BRIGHT!” Magnuson Park Hangar 30 Seattle

2022 VIRTUAL TOMODACHI GALA 7 p.m. youtube.com/c/JCCCWA jcccw.org/tomodachigala

12 CHOW MEIN DINNER AND BAKED GOODS SALE RETURN! NVC Memorial Hall 11 a.m.-4 p.m.

KING COUNTY, WASHINGTON NOTICE TO PROPOSERS Sealed bids will be received for KC000586, RENTON AVENUE SOUTH SIDEWALKS PHASE 3; by the King County Procurement and Payables Section, via the E-Procurement system, until 1:30:59 PM on 06/09/2022. Late bids will not be accepted. The public bid opening will only be conducted on-line following the Bid Close Date and Time; see Invitation to Bid for details.

There is a 15% minimum Apprentice Utilization Requirement on this contract.

There is a 15% minimum requirement for King County Certified Small Contractors and Suppliers (SCS) on this contract.

King County in accordance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 78 Stat. 252, 42 USC 2000d to 2000d-4 and Title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, Department of Transportation,

Subtitle A, Office of the Secretary, Part 21, Nondiscrimination in Federally-Assisted Programs of the Department of Transportation issued pursuant to such Act, hereby notifies all bidders that it will affirmatively ensure that in any contract entered into pursuant to this advertisement, disadvantaged business enterprises as defined at 49 CFR Part 26 will be afforded full opportunity to submit bids in response to this invitation and will not be discriminated against on the grounds of race, color, national origin, or sex in consideration for an award.

Synopsis: Improvement of Renton Avenue South by clearing and grubbing, roadway excavation, removing asphalt pavement, gravel surface, curb and gutter, guardrails, pavement markings, catch basin; plugging culvert pipe;

grading; installing drainage improvements; constructing structural earth wall and gravity block wall, cement concrete curb, gutter, sidewalk, driveway entrances, handrails, ADA ramps, and bus shelter pad; hot mix asphalt preleveling and overlay; erosion control; installing painted and plastic pavement markings, temporary traffic control, landscaping, and other work Estimated contract price: $1,438,895 Prospective bidders can view more details at: https://kingcounty.gov/procurement/solicitations Complete Invitation to Bid Documents, including all project details, specifications, and contact information are available on our web page at: https://kingcounty.gov/procurement/ supplierportal

View the solution on page 14

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The only weekly English-language newspaper serving Washington’s Asian community. The NW Asian Weekly has one simple goal: “To empower the Asian community.”

The Editorial Board reserves the right to reject any advertisement, letter or article.

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YOUR VOICE

MAY 28 – JUNE 3, 2022

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asianweekly northwest

■ BUSINESS

40 YEARS

MAY 28 – JUNE 3, 2022

Louisa Hotel History and mystery in plaster

By Andrew Hamlin NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY

Louisa Hotel mural

Photos by Joe Mabel

On a semi-sunny day in late April, Tanya Woo, from the Woo family in charge of the historic Louisa Hotel, guided photographer Joe Mabel, and myself, to the murals found along a Louisa staircase, former entrance to the Club Royale jazz club.

Joe moved around those steps with his camera and tripod, looking for optimal shots. Woo cautioned us not to get too close.

I heard a scraping sound behind me, and my heart leapt. No harm done— thankfully. But my backpack had just brushed up against a swath of Seattle’s history.

Woo’s father bought the Louisa Hotel in 1963.

“The mural staircase led into the basement, where Seattle’s first Chinese bakery had its kitchen,” she recalls. “I remember as a child going down the staircase and crying because the hand above the ‘Club Royale’ sign would scare me.”

As repairs and restoration of the building went along, discovery of the artwork happened in phases.

Louisa Hotel sign Louisa Hotel Club Royale entrance ceiling

“We knew of the murals on the right side of that stairway. But when crews took down the supply chute on the left side of the staircase, we saw murals that covered the entire staircase.

Our architect donated his time to redraw the plans, and resubmitted the permits to relocate

the basement exit and save the murals in place.”

The Club Royale basement speakeasy operated from August 1930 until a wild police raid in February 1931, featuring cops jumping onstage to handcuff the piano player.

In violation of Prohibition anti-liquor laws, the Club never reopened.

“Club Royale’s clientele was diverse see LOUISA on 16

MAY 28 – JUNE 3, 2022

YOUR VOICE

asianweekly northwest

■ PICTORIAL “One Seattle Day of Service” Nearly 4,000 people signed up to help clean up Seattle on May 21 in the first-ever “One Seattle Day of Service” and Mayor Bruce Harrell’s plan for people to help give back to the community.

n volunteers | Credit: FLS

Friends of Little Saigo

Graffiti cleanup in the Maynard alley | Credit: Assunta Ng

in Goldste Thomas Stephanie d n ie and fr ered to clean volunte up CID.

Mimi Gan and Ka Credit: Jerry Lee therine Cheng outside Fortune Ga

rden

g

ssunta N

Credit: A

Volunteers pose for a photo at Fortune Garden.

Credit: Jerry Lee

Volunteers painted and removed graffiti at Tai Tung, Fortune Garden, and City Produce.

Credit: Jerry Lee

of Little Friends LS Credit: F

olunteers

Saigon v

Fred Brow

n painting Ta Credit: Jerri Tung y Lee

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asianweekly northwest

40 YEARS

MAY 28 – JUNE 3, 2022

■ PUBLISHER’S BLOG

t c e j e r I y Wh Asian cultural values

Photo by Assunta Ng

Asian culture emphasizes modesty. As a result, we shy away from promoting ourselves and speaking the truth even during critical times.

In America, you have an obligation to share your knowledge as it can save your co-workers’ time and your employer’s money.

Yes, it might involve marketing yourself and even drawing attention to yourself, but, to me, sharing your skills and expertise is not bragging. Sometimes, it’s the best thing to do for yourself and your company. After all, how are you going to reach the stars if others don’t know your abilities and contributions? Do you want to break the glass ceiling?

Marketing yourself at the right time and the right place is the key for Asian Americans to rise as leaders.

From left: Ming Fung, Stephanie Schuessler, Melissa Camp, and Ellen Bjorge at a festive birthday party. The women said they bought their outfits online.

speaking your mind is a mistake.

As publisher, I’ve learned that we have to challenge authority and injustice when it comes up.

Asking questions will change your life.

You have a voice, and it’s up to you to use it. The more you use it, the more powerful it becomes. see BLOG on 14

MAKE SOME NOISE

When you read that headline, you probably thought, “Is she crazy? What is she thinking?”

Within me, I embody 5,000 years of Chinese culture and wisdom. It makes no sense that I am declaring— especially in Asian American Heritage Month—that I don’t endorse Asian cultural values.

But let’s be honest, even Asian cultures have their faults. So what are the dark sides of my Chinese heritage that I distance myself from?

What are the Chinese cultural values with which I identify most?

WHAT I LIKE ABOUT ASIAN CULTURES

only listen, but to also accept what they say, even though they may be wrong. Only in my 50s did I muster all my courage and tell my parents that they were wrong many times.

However, my sons often tell me, “Mom, you made a mistake.”

They have liked to correct my English pronunciations and point out my ignorance

A Korean dance group performs during the AAPI Heritage

Photo by Assunta Ng

By Assunta Ng NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY Reprinted from May 2013

I love the fact that we Festival at the Seattle Center on May 1, 2022. are hard workers. Loyalty is in our name, and we would sacrifice toward technology and popular culture everything to support our family. Family is ever since they were kids. No, I don’t mind our foundation. that my children seem to be smarter than Humility helps us to build character to me. They are my best teachers sometimes. some extent.

The more they grow, the more I treat them We don’t need financial gurus like Suze as equals. If I said that to my mother, she Orman in the Asian community because our would feel that I was being disrespectful. motto is “save, save, and save.” Americans like to spend and borrow while many of my “FACE” RUINS LIVES Asian friends hate to be in debt.

We worry too much about what others According to the 2010 Census, Asian Americans have the highest income and think of us. Saving face is a big cultural education level compared to others. We burden among Asian immigrants. How place high priority on education. We might many times are we afraid of doing something not spend much money on luxurious items, because of someone’s disapproval or the but we are more than willing to pay for chance at gossip, even though we know our kids’ expensive tuition at Ivy League it’s the right thing to do? Is it important to please yourself or to please everyone else? colleges and private schools.

Some Asians force themselves to buy an expensive house or accept a prestigious job HIERARCHY OBSTRUCTS PROGRESS because of “face.”

Asian culture teaches us to obey authority Getting rid of the “face” burden takes and elders and to respect hierarchy. courage, but freeing yourself will be the When an elder speaks, we have to not reward.

I was raised to be quiet and obedient, to not make noise or rock the boat. However, not

Jerry Kirsch and Terry Allen showcase their origami artwork at the Seattle Cherry Blossom Festival at Seattle Center recently.

Photo by Assunta Ng

MODESTY IS NOT THE BEST ANSWER

YOUR VOICE CACA from 1 Following that lead, other officials have proclaimed March 13, 2021 and Nov. 13, 2021 as Chinese American World War II Veterans Day. SERVING DESPITE RACISM Officials paid respects to the sacrifices made by all Chinese American World War II veterans who served proudly despite the racism of the time.

“Why is it that they fought on behalf of this country, a country that excluded immigration of people of Chinese ancestry, a country that banned ownership of land by Asian Americans, why did they fight for a country that discriminated against them?” said former Governor Gary Locke, at the March 13 virtual ceremony. “Because they believed in the essential goodness of and destiny of America that, despite our flaws, had great promise.”

It was not until 1965 that the full force of the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act—barring immigration of people of Chinese ancestry— was repealed, he noted.

“Your impact has been felt for generations and will continue to inspire for generations as long as we keep telling the story of your heroism,” said Dow Constantine, King County Executive at the Nov. 13 ceremony.

THE VETERANS Among veterans receiving medals were two Seattle men who in different ways played roles to the success of the sustained war effort.

Gene Moy, 105, the oldest living Chinese American World War II veteran in the United States, immigrated to the U.S. from China when he was 13 and grew up cooking in a Chinese restaurant. At Fort Lewis, he cooked for troops during basic training and then overseas.

Upon receiving his medal, he said, smiling, “Wow, 75 years! How lucky I am to be able to live long enough to receive this medal!”

He added, “And I want to thank everybody that’s been involved.”

Lip Mar, 95, who performed nursing and other duties, was visibly moved upon receiving the medal. “Very nice,” he said softly. “There it is.”

CHINESE AMERICANS IN WWII Nearly 20,000 Chinese Americans fought in World War II, in every branch and all theaters of the war. And yet 40% of those were not eligible to become citizens.

One out of every five Chinese Americans living in the U.S. at the time served in that war.

They earned Combat Infantry Badges, Purple Hearts, Bronze Stars, Silver Stars, Distinguished Service Crosses, Distinguished Flying Crosses, and the Medal of Honor, the highest U.S. military award.

“Stand tall, Chinese American WWII veterans, because you have joined the ranks of other distinguished recipients of the highest award that Congress can bestow on behalf of the American people,” wrote Major General Robert G.F. Lee, the design chair of the Congressional Gold Medal, in a letter included in the commemorative book.

THE RECOGNITION PROJECT Ed Gor, past national president of C.A.C.A., led the “Chinese American WWII Veterans Recognition Project” that called upon the organization’s 20 lodges in 12 states to fundraise and lobby Congress to pass the Congressional Gold Medal bill.

Support also came from the American Legion and the families of the veterans. Along the way, C.A.C.A. garnered 30 endorsements from veterans and military organizations, Asian American and Pacific Islander organizations, as well as state and municipal organizations.

MAY 28 – JUNE 3, 2022 Years of efforts culminated in the signing of Public Law 115-337 on Dec. 20, 2018. During a national virtual ceremony on Dec. 9, 2020, Congress awarded the Congressional Gold Medal collectively to the Chinese American World War II veterans in recognition of their service.

Regional lodges of CACA later held their own ceremonies for the veterans.

FINDINGS OF THE ACT The Congressional Gold Medal Act enshrines key findings about their service.

Chinese Americans served in combat and support roles “in all four theaters of war,” including in the European and African theaters, in the Normandy D-Day invasion, and in liberating Western and Central Europe.

They served in infantry units and combat ships in the Battle of the Atlantic, including aboard Merchant Marine convoys vulnerable to submarine and air attacks.

In the Pacific, they also served in air roles, including bomber missions. The first all Chinese American group was the 14th Air Service Group in the China-Burma-India Theater, against the Japanese military in China. The Chinese American soldiers were “widely acknowledged for their role in the 14th Air Force, widely known as the “Flying Tigers.”

Many Chinese American women served in the Women’s Army Corps, the Air Force, and the Naval Reserve Women’s Reserve, and some became pilots, air traffic controllers, flight trainers, weather forecasters, occupational therapists, and nurses.

“Chinese Americans, although small in numbers, made important contributions to the World War II effort,” the act states.

THE CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL The medal itself was designed to enshrine the Chinese American World War II veterans’ contributions.

The front of the medal features seven figures, to represent the six branches of the armed forces, in which Chinese Americans served, along with a figure of a Chinese American nurse, to represent the Chinese American women who served, according to Brigadier General John Y.H. Ma, U.S. Army (retired), who described the medal during the Nov. 13 ceremony.

On the back of the coin is the “equipment of the war,” he said. This includes P40 fighter planes used over the China-BurmaIndia Theater, an M4 Sherman tank, used in Europe and the Pacific, and the Battleship Missouri, symbol of the Navy, and also site of the signing of the treaty to end the war.

The Congressional Gold Medal is in the Smithsonian Museum in Washington, D.C. A bronze replica of the medal has been or will be gifted to each registered Chinese American World War II veteran, courtesy of C.A.C.A. National.

C.A.C.A. SEATTLE Cathy Lee, C.A.C.A. Seattle president, besides assisting in lobbying on a national level, presided over the formation of the committee that organized the Seattle regional efforts.

“Each member took on jobs, they were all so passionate,” she said.

Members of the Seattle Regional Chinese American WWII Veterans Congressional

Gold Medal Committee include: from C.A.C.A. Seattle, Mimi Gan, Cathy Lee, Jerry Lee, JoAnne Lee, Cheryll LeoGwin, Bettie Luke, and Ming-Ming TungEdelman; from the American Legion Cathay Post #186, Terry Nicholas and Kent Wong; from the Wing Luke Museum, Vivian Chan; from Catalyst Presents, Michelle Locke; and community members Dorrienne Chinn, Sue Mar, June Wong, and Tina Young.

Dorrienne Chinn was the first who contacted C.A.C.A. Seattle about honoring the Chinese American veterans and organizing a Congressional Gold Medal event. Chinn said she was inspired by her father, James M. Mar, a lieutenant colonel in the Army, who had devoted his life to efforts to help the community.

“We grew up knowing that the years my father was in the Army were formative and impacted his life greatly,” said Chinn.

The Seattle Regional Chinese American World War II Veterans Congressional Gold Committee worked practically non-stop for four years to honor and share the legacy of the Chinese American World War II veterans.

Fathers, family members, and friends of the committee members were among the 20,000 who served during World War II. Committee members contacted and helped veterans and their families to register for the Congressional Gold Medal. They volunteered their time and skills and raised almost $40,000 that included $10,000 from Cathay Post #186 for the recognition project.

The funding of $30,000 produced two events: the virtual event on March 13, 2021, honoring the Seattle region living veterans, and the Nov. 13, 2021 event at Meydenbauer Center in Bellevue, honoring Washington state’s living and deceased veterans. With support from C.A.C.A. National, the funding included the $48 cost per bronze medal replica as a gift presented to each veteran.

Spearheaded by Jerry Lee, almost $10,000 was raised for the printing of the commemorative book, featuring a page for each of the nearly 200 regional Chinese American World War II veterans. Committee members helped the veterans and family members to share their stories, which culminated in the publication of “Chinese American World War II Congressional Gold Medal Recipients of Washington State,” a gift to each veteran’s family from the book’s sponsors.

Looking out from the pages are men and women from eight decades ago in uniforms, bomber jackets, sailor suits and hats, and in various locales around the world.

“Working on the book was a way to honor my father,” said Tina Young, whose father was a veteran. “For the children, nieces and nephews, cousins, widows, and family members, the awarding of the medals made them talk with each other about where they had come from and deepen their sense of self,” said Young. “And the commemorative

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book has created a very strong community between those on the committee that worked on it.”

“For members of the Seattle Regional Committee, working on the recognition project has been an honor to share and celebrate the legacy of our heroes,” said the committee in a statement.

CATHAY POST #186 Committee members Terry Nicholas and Kent Wong with Cathay Post #186 said Cathay Post #186 holds the distinction of being founded by Chinese American veterans in Seattle following the end of World War II. The post is part of the American Legion, our nation’s largest wartime veterans’ service organization. Today, Cathay Post #186 has a diverse membership and is open to all veterans.

Since 1945, Cathay Post #186 has a legacy of patriotism and service to the community, such as sponsoring spaghetti feeds to raise funds for scholarships, working closely with the Nisei Veterans Committee, participating in the annual Chinatown-International District Seafair Parade, and hosting the annual Memorial Day Ceremony, which is on Monday, May 30 this year at 4 p.m. at Hing Hay Park. More than 20 organizations will be participating in the ceremony and presenting memorial flowers.

THE STORIES GO ON In her closing remarks at the Nov. 13 Seattle Regional Congressional Gold Medal Ceremony, Cathy Lee said to the more than 400 attendees, “We are lucky to have been a part of this project to recognize and celebrate our Chinese American WWII veterans. We have been inspired by every story we heard and every person we met along the way. It has been an unforgettable experience.”

After the event, one participant emailed Lee that he had “tried to sing along” with “America the Beautiful,” the closing song, “but halfway through, I started to cry.”

Another praised the committee for making it possible for her to remember her deceased father.

“I will always remember walking on the stage, holding my dad’s photo, and receiving the medal from the Major General,” she wrote. “What an honor.”

To watch videos of the Seattle Regional Congressional Gold Medal Ceremonies: the March 13, 2021 Virtual Ceremony and the November 13, 2021 in-person ceremony at Meydenbauer Center, go to cacaseattle.org/ index.html.  Mahlon can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.

Members of the Seattle Regional Chinese American World War II Veterans Congressional Gold Medal Committee contributed to this article.

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asianweekly northwest

MAY 28 – JUNE 3, 2022

LIGHT RAIL from 1 of color in the West Seattle and Ballard Link Extensions (WSBLE) project corridor. A majority of CID residents are of Chinese ethnicity, but there are also sizable communities of residents of Japanese, Vietnamese, Korean, and Filipino ancestry.

“Sound Transit should select an alternative that considers and accounts for these equity issues and avoid selecting an alternative that creates greater disparity and further harm to this historically under-resourced community.

Sound Transit’s Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) presents two Alternatives—the 4th Avenue Alternative, with a shallow (CID-1a) and deep option (CID-1b), and the 5th Avenue Alternative, with a shallow (CID-2a), shallow diagonal CID 2a), and deep option (CID-2b).

Uwajimaya wrote, “Although the DEIS does not identify a preferred alternative, the environmental analysis indicates Sound Transit’s unstated preference for the 5th Avenue Shallow Alternative, particularly the CID-2a diagonal option.

This is evidenced by the skewed analysis that underreports the comparative benefits of the 4th Avenue Alternative, while downplaying the adverse impacts of the 5th Avenue Alternative. Although we maintain the DEIS does not adequately analyze the environmental impacts of any of the CID Alternatives, the information provided to date confirms the 5th Avenue Alternative options would once again marginalize this important minority community.”

Here are other excerpts from Uwajimaya’s letter: PROPERTY ACQUISITION AND DISPLACEMENT The DEIS fails to adequately evaluate property acquisition and displacement impacts. The DEIS notes the 5th Avenue Shallow Alternative would result in acquisition of 16-19 properties. But it does not clarify or consider that several of these properties are located in the cultural heart of the CID and owned by people of color.

During the years of CID Station construction, the Historic Chinatown Gate would be covered for protection. The symbolism of Sound Transit literally covering up the Historic

DALLAS SHOOTING from 5 U.S. Department of Justice’s civil rights division.

Police have said the May 11 shooting at Hair World Salon might be connected to two previous drive-by shootings at businesses run by Asian Americans. But Garcia said that police are still investigating whether Smith, who is Black, was involved. The description of the suspect’s vehicle was similar in all three shootings.

According to the affidavit, Smith’s girlfriend told detectives that he had been delusional about Asian Americans ever since being involved in a car crash two years ago with a man of Asian descent. She said he had been admitted to several mental health facilities because of the delusions.

Whenever Smith is around an Asian American, “he begins having delusions that the Asian mob is after him or attempting to harm him,” his girlfriend told police. She said he was fired for “verbally attacking” his boss, who was of Asian descent.

Garcia declined to comment on whether Smith has been diagnosed with a mental illness or whether Smith legally obtained the gun used in the shooting, saying both questions are still being investigated.

Anti-Asian violence has risen sharply in recent years amid the pandemic of COVID-19, which was first reported in the Chinese city of Wuhan.

CHURCH ATTACK from 5 apparently read through them before sending them to the police through the paper’s attorney, said an employee who declined to be named because they weren’t authorized to speak openly.

The newspaper’s lawyer, however, told The Orange County Register that the papers were given to him on May 17 and he still had them.

Attorney Maxwell Lin of West Covina said that he will share the papers with law enforcement when he receives a subpoena.

“We have no intention of withholding anything,” Lin told the Register.

Lin could not confirm the reported title.

“The document will speak for itself, but how you call it is subject to a reporter’s interpretation,” said Lin, who had not fully read the papers.

“Time will tell how important” the papers are, Lin told the Register.

40 YEARS

Chinatown Gate so that it can acquire CID property—from people of color—and strip this unique community of its historic identity would be a significant misstep and a repeat of historic public-project mistakes that we urge Sound Transit not to make.

AIR QUALITY The DEIS fails to analyze air quality impacts on the CID as required by federal regulations.

A 2020 CID Healthy Community Action Plan study showed that people living and working in the CID are less healthy than those in other neighborhoods in Seattle and King County, with an average lifespan seven years shorter than that of most well-off communities.

With this inequity lens, we would expect Sound Transit to exceed requirements to study air quality for this vulnerable population that already is experiencing significant health disparities.

then, in a few short paragraphs, acknowledges all the CID Alternatives would adversely affect the historic resources of the CID, and this acknowledgement is the extent of the analysis. The DEIS does not provide any evaluation of the nature of these impacts on the historic vitality of the CID community, or any other meaningful issue that should have been addressed in this context. This omission is particularly concerning when dealing with a historically unique and marginalized community.

HISTORIC AND CULTURAL RESOURCES The DEIS notes the CID is listed as a National Historic District with many historic buildings and spaces. The DEIS

REQUESTED COURSE OF ACTION We therefore ask that Sound Transit defer selection of a preferred alternative and conduct a more thorough evaluation of the impacts of the CID Alternatives—in partnership with key community stakeholders—and provide more meaningful and specific mitigation.

Additionally, we urge Sound Transit to incorporate more coordinated and inclusive planning into the CID Alternatives. Specifically, Sound Transit should address the community’s vision for the Jackson Hub. The Jackson Hub concept plan was finalized in March 2019 through a coordinated effort led by the Alliance for Pioneer Square, Seattle Chinatown International District Preservation and Development Authority, and Historic South Downtown. This coalition sought input from numerous government agencies, including Sound Transit. Based on this input and feedback from the community, the coalition produced a vision for a Jackson Hub as an activated and welcoming pedestrian-transit center that provides missing connections between the CID, Pioneer Square, and the numerous transit corridors scattered throughout the area.

Similar to the WSBLE, the purpose of the Jackson Hub is to provide connectivity and enhance community vitality. However, the DEIS is oddly silent regarding coordinated planning to achieve this Jackson Hub vision.

The CID is a unique and treasured community that merits special consideration. We appreciate Sound Transit’s continued outreach and listening to this community, because it is only through a deep understanding of—and meaningful engagement with—this community that Sound Transit will be able to make the right decision. 

Last year, six women of Asian descent were among the eight killed in a shooting at massage businesses in and near Atlanta, heightening anger and fear among Asian Americans.

In February, a man from Midland, 330 miles west of Dallas, pleaded guilty to federal hate crimes for an attack in 2020 on an Asian family because he believed they were Chinese and responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic.

The salon in Dallas where the shooting happened is in the heart of Koreatown, which is in a part of the city that was transformed in the 1980s from an industrial area to a thriving district with shopping, dining, markets, medical offices and salons.

Authorities have said a man dressed all in black opened fire in the salon, then drove away in a maroon minivan. Garcia said investigators found that a similar vehicle had been reported as involved in two other recent shootings. Someone opened fire in an April 2 drive-by near the salon and Garcia said a similar vehicle was also linked to a May 10 shooting about 25 miles southeast of there. No one was injured in either of those shootings.

Garcia said the suspect walked into the salon with a .22-caliber rifle and fired about 13 times. One woman was injured in her arm, one in her foot and another in her lower back, he said. They have all been released from the hospital and are recovering, according to police.

One of the women injured in the shooting spoke at a community meeting with police. Her arm in a sling, she said in Korean that she was worried about how she would continue to make a living.

“There are lives that have changed forever because of this,” Garcia said.

Police Sr. Cpl. Soo Nam also addressed the reporters at the news conference, delivering a statement on the arrest in Korean for Texas-based Korean-language journalists in attendance. Garcia said the department has 10 officers who speak Korean.

Dozens of people had filled a room at the Korean Culture Center of Dallas on May 16 for the town hall meeting with police on safety. At the meeting, Garcia had assured attendees that detectives were working nonstop on the case. Some attendees expressed thanks to police while others asked questions on what was being done to make the community safer.

John Lee, a board member and previous president of the Greater Dallas Korean American Chamber of Commerce, said he thought it was healing for attendees to get reassurances from police. He noted some attendees “were more angry and let it be known and some were a little more appreciative.“ “I think the emotions ran the entire gamut from anger to pain to fear to all of that,” Lee said. 

NOISE The DEIS similarly failed to adequately evaluate noise impacts on the CID community. The DEIS lists the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) Category 1 and Special Building Noise Sensitive Receivers that were analyzed.

This list does not include any properties within the CID, but the entirety of the “Seattle Historic Chinatown District” is considered a special use that merits “special consideration.”

Per the FTA Transit Noise and Vibration Impact Assessment Manual, “historic sites” require “special consideration.”

“Historic sites” are defined to include any historic districts in the National Register of Historic Places. The “Seattle Historic Chinatown District” was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1989 and includes a majority of what is commonly characterized as the CID today.

Therefore, specialized analysis of noise impacts to the “Seattle Historic Chinatown District” is required.

Investigators were aware of the reports that the journals were sent to the newspaper, according to Orange County sheriff’s spokesperson Carrie Braun.

One person was killed in the shooting and five were wounded. Chou could face life in prison or the death penalty if convicted of murder and attempted murder. He has not yet entered a plea and remained jailed without bail in Orange County pending a June 10 arraignment.

County District Attorney Todd Spitzer has said Chou was motivated by hatred for Taiwan, where he was born after his family was forced from mainland China when Communists prevailed in a civil war that ended in 1949. He apparently chose the church at random and didn’t know anyone there before he drove to California from Las Vegas the day before the shooting, authorities said.

Authorities have said Chou sat through a

church service before attending the luncheon in honor of a former pastor, where he mingled with the parishioners for about 40 minutes before chaining and nailing shut exit doors and opening fire.

When the gunfire erupted, Dr. John Cheng, 52, charged Chou and was shot but authorities said he disrupted the attack and may have saved dozens of lives.

The former pastor, Billy Chang, then picked up a chair and threw it at Chou, who fell on the floor. Chang said he rushed at Chou and several congregation members held Chou down and tied him up.

Chou was armed with two legally purchased 9 mm handguns and concealed bags holding ammunition and four Molotov cocktail-style devices in the church hall where the luncheon was being held, authorities said.

The wounded ranged in age from 66 to 92 and were expected to survive.

The shooting shook Southern California’s

Taiwanese community.

“I am starting to worry about our people,” Dr. Simon Lin, a leader at the Taiwan Center Foundation of Los Angeles, said at a news conference. “The Taiwan Center is very friendly. It’s open to the public. We never check your background.”

The small community center lacks the budget to hire full-time security, he added.

Louis M. Huang, director general of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Los Angeles, said he has confidence in U.S. law enforcement to carry out the investigation and that justice would be served.

He called on Taiwanese Americans to respect differences in opinion but said no one has a right to infringe on other people’s rights or to take someone’s life.

He urged community members to report to the police if they see something that concerns them.

“Don’t keep silent,” he said. 

MAY 28 – JUNE 3, 2022

YOUR VOICE

■ ASTROLOGY

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Predictions and advice for the week of May 28–June 3, 2022

By Sun Lee Chang Dragon—Understanding what is going on doesn’t mean you agree, but it could help you to navigate it.

Monkey—Has something recently caught your curiosity? Unlike most other things, the more you find out, the more questions it generates.

Ox—As your awareness grows, so does your determination to continue to make strides forward and avoid sliding back.

Snake—Can you sense a shift in the winds?

Some quick adjustments should enable you to take advantage of the change.

Rooster—Is the old approach becoming outdated?

Consider switching to something that will work better for the current conditions.

Tiger—If your aim is to improve your position, then it is important that you do not make any unforced errors.

Horse—Does the deck seem stacked against you today? Luckily, the tide will soon turn in the other direction.

Dog—An area of concern is starting to recede. Do keep an eye on it, in case it starts to flare up again.

Rabbit—You have many good options to choose from, but you must pick soon to optimize your return on investment.

Goat—To make the best of an odd situation, look for something that you can turn into a positive.

Pig—Do you need someone to fill in the blanks? It is worth finding a trusted source for the information.

Rat—Being at the top of your game shouldn’t stop you from learning. To the contrary, doing so can keep you there.

WHAT’S YOUR ANIMAL SIGN? RAT 1912, 1924, 1936, 1948, 1960, 1972, 1984, 1996, 2008, 2020 OX 1913, 1925, 1937, 1949, 1961, 1973, 1985, 1997, 2009, 2021 TIGER 1914, 1926, 1938, 1950, 1962, 1974, 1986, 1998, 2010, 2022 RABBIT 1915, 1927, 1939, 1951, 1963, 1975, 1987, 1999, 2011 DRAGON 1916, 1928, 1940, 1952, 1964, 1976, 1988, 2000, 2012 SNAKE 1917, 1929, 1941, 1953, 1965, 1977, 1989, 2001, 2013 HORSE 1918, 1930, 1942, 1954, 1966, 1978, 1990, 2002, 2014 GOAT 1919, 1931, 1943, 1955, 1967, 1979, 1991, 2003, 2015 MONKEY 1920, 1932, 1944, 1956, 1968, 1980, 1992, 2004, 2016 ROOSTER 1921, 1933, 1945, 1957, 1969, 1981, 1993, 2005, 2017 DOG 1922, 1934, 1946, 1958, 1970, 1982, 1994, 2006, 2018 PIG 1923, 1935, 1947, 1959, 1971, 1983, 1995, 2007, 2019

*The year ends on the first new moon of the following year. For those born in January and February, please take care when determining your sign.

CHIN from 3 Chinese from the city. The second group— called the “Law and Order” group—favored a more orderly process of removal through legislative action. The first group was led by labor unions and laborers. The second group was comprised of business leaders and other civic leaders. Both groups agreed that the Chinese should be removed—they simply disagreed about how to do it.

On Oct. 24, 1885, about 2,500 of the City’s residents participated in an anti-Chinese demonstration.

On Nov. 3, in Tacoma, a mob of hundreds, armed with guns and clubs, marched to the Chinese shanties that dotted the city’s business district and along the waterfront.

Smashing doors and breaking windows, they told the Chinese to pack and to grab their belongings while kicking and dragging them out of their quarters. A group of club-carrying whites escorted them to the railroad tracks and put them on box cars. All of the Chinese were directly removed from Tacoma by the anti-Chinese mob. But to make sure that the Chinese would not return, some of the mob went back to burn down the Chinese quarters along the waterfront. Some 700 Chinese were brutally removed from Tacoma that day.

Back in Seattle, some 150 Chinese, justifiably frightened, decided they couldn’t leave fast enough. They left by ship during the next three days following the Tacoma riot.

Over the next several months, the citizens of Seattle waited for legislative action to remove the Chinese and awaited the outcome of conspiracy trials of leaders of the anti-Chinese direct action group. Seventeen people were charged with conspiring to deny Chinese their legal rights. Following 14 days of testimony, the jury deliberated for 10 minutes and handed down a “not guilty” verdict.

The Seattle City Council, meanwhile, passed three ordinances to make it harder for Chinese to stay in the town, but these did little to diminish the cry to get rid of the Chinese. On Feb. 7, an appointed committee and their followers, a mob of some 1,500, invaded the Chinese quarters and notified the Chinese that they were going to be sent away that afternoon on the steamer Queen of the Pacific.

Most of the 350 Chinese were forced on wagons and hauled to the dock. From that point, according to one account, “most of the Chinese were eager to get abroad and away

from Seattle, but had no funds. The majority of them were in Seattle because they could not find employment in the mines or mills, had no money to move on, or were in debt to the local bosses for their passage from China.”

Their departure was delayed a day because a writ of habeas corpus was sworn out by a Chinese merchant who charged that his countrymen were being unlawfully detained aboard the steamer. Undaunted, the direct action group raised sufficient funds to pay the fare of 188 Chinese at $7 per head. Eight Chinese managed to pay their own fare. Thus, 196 Chinese—the legal limit of passengers permitted on the ship—waited for their departure the next day.

Meanwhile, the remaining Chinese marched back from the dock to the Chinese quarters. During this time, shots were exchanged between the Seattle Guards or the militia and the crowd. One man was killed and four injured. No Chinese were killed or injured.

The incident provoked Governor Squire to proclaim a state of insurrection, declare martial law, suspend the writ of habeas corpus, and request federal troops. President Cleveland sent eight companies of troops.

When the next steamer arrived on Feb. 14, 1886, another 110 Chinese boarded. The remaining Chinese were scheduled to leave on the next steamer. One week later, civil law was restored, but it was not until July that the federal troops left. By that time, only a handful of Chinese merchants and domestic servants remained in the city.

The persecution and attacks against the Chinese continued in the state well into the next decade.

• One year after the Seattle riots, 25 Chinese working near China Camp in Kittitas County were attacked. One person died.

• In 1892, the Columbia County Farmers’ Alliance and Knights of Labor contemplated forming a mutual aid society. Calls were made on Chinese homes and occupants were ordered to leave.

• A month after the Columbia County incident, at a meeting in the Trades Council hall at Spokane, a “secret” anti-Chinese League came into existence, formed by businessmen and labor groups. The farmers of Moran Prairie, near Spokane, wanted to forcibly remove the 18 Chinese market gardeners who were seen as unwelcome competition.

• When the Northern Pacific Railroad

dismissed a white section crew late in 1895 and replaced it with Chinese workers, attacks were made on the Chinese quarters in Walla Walla and Pasco.

Humiliating, berating, harassing, assaulting, and murdering of Chinese were so commonplace that newspapers rarely bothered to print stories about such horrific events.

The anti-Chinese movement of the 1800s led to oppressed Chinese communities in America for many decades. In 1890, there were 3,260 Chinese in Washington state. In 1930, there were 2,195, and in 1950, there were 3,408.

It was not until WWII that things changed for the better. The alliance between the U.S. and China in the war against Japan led to a marked change in the public image of the Chinese and a reconsideration of the Chinese Exclusion Acts. Politicians suddenly came to understand that the provisions of the Chinese Exclusion Acts were harsh and that such treatment towards the Chinese in America— when China was an ally—was contradictory and could be used by the enemy in their propaganda campaigns.

Two years after the U.S. declared war against Japan, U.S. Representative Warren G. Magnuson sponsored a bill to repeal the Chinese Exclusion Acts. The Magnuson Act was passed by Congress and signed into law

by President Roosevelt in December 1943.

The Act permitted the naturalization of Chinese and established a quota of 105 Chinese immigrants to the U.S. The law allowed those who became naturalized citizens to have their wives come over from China and Hong Kong.

Four years after the repeal of the Exclusion Acts, the War Brides Act was amended to allow wives of U.S. servicemen to enter the U.S. on a non-quota basis.

The repeal of the Exclusion Acts and the amendment to the War Brides Act resulted in the arrival of 2,000 Chinese immigrants by 1960, which helped bring the total population of Chinese in the state to some 5,500.

While the repeal of the Exclusion Act was helpful, it still allowed for only an extremely small number (105) to enter the U.S. on a yearly basis.

It was not until the 1960s that the biggest, most impactful change occurred affecting the lives of Chinese in America. In 1965, President Johnson signed the Immigration Act of that year, which allowed for 20,000 per country, doing away with small quotas allocated

to China and other Asian countries. The Act opened the doors to mass Chinese immigration to America resulting in a doubling of the Chinese population in Washington state every passing decade. In 1970, the Chinese population in this state numbered some 9,200. It now numbers well above 100,000.

The Immigration Act of 1965 was passed in the midst of the Civil Rights Movement.

The passage of the 1964 Civil Rights Act benefited all racial groups, including the Chinese. And the passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act paved the way for limited English-speaking citizens to vote more easily.

The conditions of Chinese in America greatly improved, which brings us to the current situation of Asian hate.

Anti-Asian attacks have been on the rise since the onset of COVID-19 and anti-Asian hate crimes took a turn for the worst in the second year of the pandemic.

Hate crimes targeting Asian Americans increased by 342% across eight major cities in 2021 compared to the prior year—New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Denver, Columbus, Cincinnati, and Washington, D.C. New York City saw the greatest jump—30 in 2020 to 133 in 2021, San Francisco and Los Angeles had the second and third highest numbers of anti-Asian crimes—60 and 41, respectively. Washington, D.C. had the highest percentage increase.

More than 9,000 anti-Asian incidents have been reported since March 2020.

Locally, according to Seattle Police Department (SPD)’s reports and the King County Prosecutor’s Office, there were 14 anti-Asian hate incidents in Seattle and 59 in King County in 2020. SPD notes that the CID was previously targeted by white nationalists in April 2020, who left “jingoistic stickers” on businesses throughout the neighborhood.

The causes of anti-Asian hate is due to the complex interaction of international relations and social-economic conditions, including race relations and the portrayal of Asian Americans as the “model minority.” Greater media attention and programs on anti-Asian hate are needed to reduce such incidents. At the same time, we all need to take more steps to make America a more tolerant and inclusive society.

Finally, as for the CID, we need to ensure greater public safety, especially to protect the many elderly there, by providing a greater police presence in the area. 

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asianweekly northwest

MAY 28 – JUNE 3, 2022

40 YEARS

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DIVERSITY IS A GIFT

Had I not come to America, I would probably be racist. My family instilled in me lots of good values, but also instilled were prejudices toward Blacks and other Asian ethnic groups because of what my family had gone through during the Sino-Japanese War. In their minds, all Japanese people are the same.

As community leader Jerry Lee said, “That’s 60 years ago, and those Japanese are dead.”

America has transformed me to be receptive toward new ideas and cultures. I am grateful that I have shared some beautiful friendships with Japanese Americans and other people of color. They have opened my mind and my heart.

To show my commitment toward diversity, I have started diversity machines through

REDISTRICTING from 4 Overall, the maps produced by the court’s outside expert, Jonathan Cervas, are more favorable to Republicans and more competitive than previous maps drawn by the state Legislature, including a New York City district centered on Staten Island that would be more favorable to Republicans.

The speedy schedule, with a public comment period on the draft maps ending on May 18, is an attempt to give candidates enough time to campaign in the new districts for an alreadypostponed primary election in August.

Cervas, a postdoctoral fellow at Carnegie Mellon University’s Institute for Politics and Strategy, declined to be interviewed or respond to some of the criticisms, but he did send an email saying he pledged to review the emailed commentary being sent to the court and to his own email address, which some New Yorkers had tracked down.

“My team and I will review every single one of them and give them each full consideration and consult with Justice McAllister,” he said.

The correspondence cited multiple sins in drawing the district lines. Some Manhattanites blasted a proposal to merge the Upper East Side and Upper West Side neighborhoods, which are divided by Central Park The neighborhoods have long been

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the Northwest Asian Weekly Foundation.

We give out scholarships to whites, Blacks, Hispanics, Native Americans, Asians, and other students based on their work on diversity.

The other diversity project is the Women of Color Empowered lunch series. We bring the most diverse group of women together to learn, share, and support each other. It’s only in America that I could initiate programs like these.

Don’t forget, diversity is a gift.

than they need to because they believe that they’re completely at fault. If you commit a crime, you would never get a second chance in Asia.

But America believes in redemption.

Millions of dollars have been spent to help teenage parents go back to school to get their GED. Former drug addicts and gang members are given a second chance to make a difference in society. They go out and speak to youth, helping them keep their lives on track.

FAILURE MOVES US FORWARD

GIVING BACK

Failure is hard to accept in Asian cultures.

Failure makes individuals feel guilty and shameful.

I have seen divorced women treated as outcasts in China even though their husbands were at fault. Making little money is also considered a failure in Asian cultures, and unhappy young people suffer more

in separate congressional districts and are currently represented by Democratic Reps. Jerry Nadler and Carolyn Maloney, who have each served in the House for nearly three decades and now may run against each other if the lines are not changed.

The Upper East Side is largely residential and one of the most affluent areas in the city, while the Upper West Side, though also largely residential with extremely affluent areas, is known for cultural and intellectual institutions like Columbia University, the American Museum of Natural History and the Lincoln Center.

“If ever there were two distinct communities of interest, it is the Upper West Side and Upper East Side of Manhattan,” Monica Atiya wrote in a letter to the court requesting the areas be kept separated. “Divided by more than a massive man made park, we are two unique communities with our own story, character and local interests in common.”

A Staten Island man said his borough—the only one now represented in Congress by a Republican—should not be connected in a district that spans the East River and links it with Brooklyn’s Red Hook and Sunset Park, which is home to many Chinese and Latin American immigrants.

“Those communities have very little in common with ours,” Al Carbonella wrote.

My biggest disagreement with Asian cultural values is the belief that family should be the only ones we take care of. Each of us has a responsibility toward our community, our city, our state, and our country.

We should extend our generosity to people who don’t have the same last name.

That is what I admire about Americans

Closer to Brooklyn’s Prospect Park, resident Anand Modi said one proposed district line would bisect the main commercial street in his neighborhood, making it confusing for residents.

“I would walk across the street to talk to a neighbor about upcoming elections and find that there was no point— despite living close enough to be able to have that conversation without stepping off our respective porches, we would have different representatives in Congress,” Modi wrote.

On the other side of the park, a woman invited the court and experts to see for themselves why one local thoroughfare makes sense as a dividing line.

“Come take a short walk on St. Marks Place or Flatbush Avenue and you will see and feel what I am describing here,” Julia McEvoy wrote.

In the Bronx, some residents complained the new boundaries could potentially reduce the voting clout of Black communities.

“It seems very deliberate because the new map will strengthen the voting power among wealthy, White suburbanites,” resident Rodney Callahan wrote.

New Yorkers also objected generally to the entire process, roiled by the limited window to submit feedback to the remote court.

One person summed it up with a simple email: “NO!!!!!!!”

who always offer help to strangers. After the Haiti earthquake, thousands of Americans went to the island to help rebuild. I have known many white Americans, including Bill Gates through his foundation, who have gone to Africa to develop clean water, work to eradicate polio, malaria, and other diseases, and to improve agricultural systems using their own time, money, and talents.

American culture preaches philanthropy and generosity. Asian Americans are slow to grasp the importance of giving back and embracing charitable causes.

Being both Asian and American has given me a little bit of liberty. It has shown me the freedom I have to be who I am, to choose what I believe, and to live the life I want.

Without fear, I celebrate my ability to reject and keep the better of the two worlds.  Assunta can be reached at assunta@nwasianweekly.com.

The redistricting process was once expected to be conducted by a bipartisan commission, which couldn’t ultimately agree on maps. It later moved to the Democratic-controlled Legislature, which came up with maps that were struck down by a court in April, ruling that they were unconstitutional.

Before the maps were released, initial public feedback was limited to written comments submitted to the court and a one-day hearing in May at which people had to travel to Bath, which is about 280 miles away, to comment.

Jeffries noted there’s no airport in the county, Amtrak doesn’t run train service there, and the lone bus route would require someone to leave New York City around 1 a.m. in order to arrive by late morning. 

SOLUTION from SUDOKU on page 6.

YOUR VOICE

MAY 28 – JUNE 3, 2022

asianweekly northwest

15

LITTLE SAIGON from 1

A fire started by an unauthorized camper scorched the southeast portion of the NVC Memorial Hall building. | Credit: NVC Memorial Hall

Lam’s Seafood and NVC Memorial Hall are across the street from each other.

A group of people loitering at 10th Avenue South and South King Street on May 24.

People loitering near 10th Avenue South and South King Street

Credit: Staff

an increase in vandalism, garbage, human waste, and people hanging out or camping in the parking lot area.

Yaguchi said, “It’s the large crowd gathering on the sidewalks to sell ‘product’ and other less desirable activities that makes access to the NVC complex uninviting and dangerous. It’s the blatant and unrelenting disposal of trash on our private property, but everywhere else too.

“That’s just good PR,” said Teizi Mersai of the city’s recent efforts to clean up Little Saigon— particularly the intersection of 12th Avenue South and South Jackson Street.

Mersai, the manager of Lam’s Seafood Market—which is across the street from NVC Memorial Hall—said the problem has merely moved one block over—to King Street.

“Should I get a fence to build around Lam’s Seafood?” wondered Mersai. He’s resistant to that idea as it “makes the whole area uninviting.

It looks like a prison.”

Already, two big strip malls on South Jackson are fenced, on both sides, he said.

When asked if he has contacted the Seattle Police Department (SPD, he said he has and added, “It’s useless. They came to look around and didn’t see anything, they left. But the problem is still there.”

A phone call to SPD Chief Adrian Diaz yielded no response. However, Northwest Asian Weekly staff noted an SPD cruiser on May 24 outside Lam’s—and officers dispersing 12 people sitting outside.

The mayor’s office also told the Northwest Asian Weekly in a statement, “SPD is aware of ongoing criminal activity in the vicinity of King Street and is engaged in addressing the area.”

Little Saigon used to be a vibrant business district.

Now, at least two businesses are in the process of leaving the area or relocating, and three businesses have closed, according to Quynh Pham, the executive director of the Friends of Little Saigon.

Pham also told the Northwest Asian Weekly, “Other businesses are considering hiring private security, but it is very costly and they don’t think they can afford it.”

Mersai echoed that sentiment.

“It‘s over $100 an hour. It’s very expensive.

The best rate is still $75 an hour. So I am leaning towards the fence.”

Yaguchi shared with the Northwest Asian Weekly photos showing the after effects of a fire—started by an unauthorized camper who was caught on surveillance footage. The flames scorched the southeast portion of the NVC Memorial Hall building.

“This isn’t the Emerald City anymore,” Yaguchi said. “We’ve had to divert funds from educating the public about the legacy of the Nisei soldier during World War II to expensive security perimeter fencing to help ensure our members, volunteers, and guests feel safe and secure and to deny access to areas that are not in full view from the streets because those areas are exploited.”

He added, “It’s the repugnant stench associated with human waste eliminated in the areas of the property ‘hidden’ from street view is at times overwhelming—summer time is the worst.”

Yaguchi said it’s exhausting to deal with these issues on a daily basis.

The mayor’s office said Harrell is “working to implement a comprehensive approach to public safety—integrating social services, community engagement, economic development, and more.

In practice, this has included close collaboration with small businesses and community-based organizations, including hundreds of thousands of dollars in support; millions to support antidisplacement and affordable housing efforts; and regular investments to clean the neighborhood, pick up litter, and beautify the area.”

It added, “The City’s Unified Care Team has also worked to close multiple encampments in the CID and Little Saigon, including making at least 85 referrals to shelter from those neighborhoods.” 

16

asianweekly northwest

MAY 28 – JUNE 3, 2022

LOUISA from 8 during a time when most of the city was not,” said Woo. “These jazz clubs were a diverse place that welcomed white, black, and Asian communities.

“This jazz scene broke through many color and social barriers and united communities.

[But] newspapers in the early 20th century often overlooked black musicians. They would only cover crime and violence. This is why not much is known about these jazz clubs, except when they appeared in the paper for raid reports.”

A second speakeasy, Blue Heaven, held the opposite side of the basement. That space later became the Wah Mee Club. But as Woo emphasized, the Louisa served many functions over the decades.

“The building operated as an SRO (single room occupancy) Hotel. Men would stay here as they waited for their work assignments. Sailors would visit on shore leave.

“We found secret passageways, dead-bolted doorways, hidden doors, stairs inside pillars. If one club or gambling den was getting raided, people could travel to the hotel and stay the night.

Not all businesses in the building were illicit!

Many were immigrant businesses. The ground floor, at several times, housed restaurants, a tailor, a grocery store, and a pool hall.”

The murals’ origin remains a frustrating mystery.

“The painters are unknown,” said Woo, “but historian Paul de Barros believes the mural staircase may have been painted by Ted or Louella Tagholm, both commercial artists, and children of one of the building’s original owners.

We were able to visit the family and see many of Tagholm’s works.”

The diverse figures seem racially ambiguous, with a few same-sex couples thrown in—a rare case of artwork giving off a sense of openness and acceptance from that era.

Those staircase paintings get the most attention, and they’re visible through glass on the street side of the hotel. But additional

images, possibly from different artists, adorn walls in the parking garage and the building’s former machinery room.

“During demolition, we found murals of a tropical sunset, with lush leaves and lanterns, behind peeling wallpaper,” explained Woo. “We discovered an old permit set submitted to the City of Seattle that included the layout of the jazz club. According to that old permit set, [the tropical scene] was where the bar was located.

The murals were waist-high which makes sense, that a bar would be in front of them.”

A campaign to refurbish the hotel succeeded, despite a devastating fire in 2013. The building now houses seven commercial spaces, plus 84 apartment units.

Still, said Woo, the murals need preservation and restoration.

“While we were able to secure grants from 4Culture, Seattle Department of Neighborhoods, and Historic South Downtown, the work is not done yet. The basement murals’ plaster is crumbling and we need about $4,000 more to save them.”

Woo maintains her own work, business and creative, away from the building. But she remains passionate about the hotel’s history, and the work left to be done.

“I believe more than anything the murals have influenced my activist life,” she concluded. “It helped me find my voice. It was quite a fight to save them, there were lots of heated discussions, and some days when I thought the project was over.

“I remember feeling so depressed, after being first told that there was no way we could save them. Someone pulled me over and whispered, ‘It can be done. You have to fight for it.’”  For more information about the Louisa Hotel murals, and to contribute to the restoration fund, visit louisahotelseattle.com/history.

Andrew can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.

40 YEARS