Under Fire Community Screening & Discussion

Join us for the screening of Under Fire: Inside a Chinese Roasted Meats Shop in Vancouver produced by Christy Fong and Denise Fong, followed by a panel discussion on historical and contemporary activism in Chinatown. Produced in 2016 for UBC FIPR 469a, Under Fire has screened at the Vancouver Asian Film Festival and was a nominee for the VAFF Best Canadian Short Award 2016.

Date: May 27, 2017, 1 – 3 pm
Location: Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Gardens (Carrall Street entrance)

Synopsis:

This documentary short brings you into the kitchen of an East Vancouver grocery with an unexpected menu item: roasted pig. Discover the secretive cooking methods and Chinatown’s historical struggles with this iconic dish against municipal, provincial, and federal legislation. Featuring rare soundbites from “Pender Guy,” the 1970s grassroots radio program.

Panel moderator: Joanna Yang
Panelists: Christy Fong, Denise Fong, Fred Ma, June Chow

Admission is free with registration. RSVP here: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/under-fire-community-screening-discussion-tickets-34641795543

This event will be taking place on traditional, ancestral and unceded territory and homelands of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm, Skxwú7mesh, and Tsleil-Waututh First Nations.

Bill Wong (1922-2017)

The faculty, staff, and students of the Asian Canadian and Asian Migration Studies Program are deeply saddened by the recent passing of Bill Wong on April 8, 2017. Bill was a beloved member of the local Chinese Canadian community. His father was a head tax payer who opened a tailor shop, Modernize Tailors, in Chinatown. Born in Vancouver, Bill obtained an engineering degree from UBC but was unable to practice due to the pervasive racism against Chinese in Canada at the time. In the 1950s, he inherited his father’s shop and became one of the most respected tailors in the Vancouver. Modernize Tailors celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2013. In 2014, his diaries from a year spent in China as a teenager were translated and published as A Year in China: Bill Wong’s Diaries in His Father’s Home Village 1936-37. Bill was widely known for his generosity and inspired many with his life story; he was an early supporter of ACAM and could be seen regularly at our events.

ACAM would like to extend our sincere condolences to Bill’s family and friends. He is deeply missed.

Photo source: Dan Toulgoet – Vancouver Courier (February 2005)

ACAM Dialogues Zine Deadline Extended

ACAM Dialogues Zine submission deadline has been extended to April 1st.

ACAM Dialogues is collecting submissions for a student-driven zine. We hope to gather testimonies (what did you learn / what surprised you / what “stuck” with you) about this year’s ACAM Dialogues events and any visual art, creative writing, photos, etc. in relation to violence in Asian communities. We want to create a space for students to connect with one another beyond the events through this zine.

Note: you do not need to have attended any/all of the Dialogues to submit!

Sample submissions can be found here

The Zine will be launched at the ACAM Dialogues Symposium event

Message from the UBC Asian Canadian and Asian Migration Studies Program

Dear ACAM students, faculty, friends, and supporters,

It is with regret that I am writing to announce that Denise Fong will be leaving her role as Program Manager of ACAM at the end of this month to concentrate on her doctoral studies. Denise has played a key role in all aspects of ACAM since the inception of the program in 2014. Among her many contributions, Denise worked with many of our community partners to create opportunities for students and she has served as a mentor for ACAM students on various projects. Like many of my colleagues, I have benefited enormously from her wisdom, experience, and dedication over the past three years and she will be greatly missed.

To express our gratitude to Denise and wish her well on her next steps, we will be hosting a reception in her honour on Tuesday March 7, at 3:30 at St John’s College. All members of the ACAM community are warmly invited to attend; to help us in planning this event, please RSVP below no later than March 1.

https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/denises-farewell-party-tickets-32197858662

I would also like to announce that starting March 1, Joanna Yang will be the new Program Manager of ACAM. Joanna brings tremendous administrative and community-engagement experience to her new role having worked at UBC’s Equity and Inclusion Office as well as the Faculty of Arts Dean’s Office. She has worked with ACAM on numerous occasions and I am pleased that she will be joining our team in an official capacity.

Please join me in welcoming Joanna and I hope to see many of you on March 7.

Sincerely,

Chris Lee
Director, Asian Canadian and Asian Migration Studies Program, UBC

ACAM Journal Call for Editors / Coordinators!

Call for Editors / Coordinators!

The ACAM Journal is currently seeking Editors and other Coordinators from the UBC ACAM program for our 2017/18 issue.

Who are we?
The ACAM Journal is a new student-run journal of academic and creative work. Submissions that connect to broader topics and issues around Asian and Asian(-)Canadian identity, experiences, and local and global communities, are welcome from UBC students in any and all disciplines, faculties, departments, or cultural backgrounds. All genres and forms may be accepted. The first issue, “Tributaries,” was launched in print and web form in January 2017.

Who are we looking for?
Editors
– Review and select incoming submissions based on content and quality (any genre/form)
– Attend 1-2 editor’s meetings to discuss selections
– Proofread and edit submissions selected for publication
– Review edits with artists/authors via email

Submissions Manager
– Check email for incoming submissions
– Organize submissions for editors to review
– Manage email account (respond to questions/comments and coordinate messages between editors and artists/authors)

Web/Social Media Coordinator
– Upload accepted submissions onto our website
– Twitter: post updates, deadlines, and launch dates

Positions are on a volunteer basis. Previous or formal experience is not required, although knowledge of the topics at hand and a commitment to ethical community engagement are helpful.

How can I get involved?
Send a short email telling us:
– which position(s) you are interested in,
– general availability (production timeline is Fall 2017 – Spring/Summer 2018)
– anything else you want us to know (why you are interested, who you are, previous experiences, questions/comments…)!

Deadline: Wednesday, February 1st @ 11:59pm

email: acamstudentjournal@gmail.com
website:https://acam.arts.ubc.ca/students/acam-student-journal/

We look forward to hearing from you!

Yours,
Amanda Wan
Editor (on behalf of ACAM Journal team)

Joe Wai (1940-2017)

The Asian Canadian Community Engagement Initiative (ACCE) and the Asian Canadian and Asian Migration Studies Program (ACAM) at the University of British Columbia are deeply saddened by the passing of alumnus and former member of the Board of Governors Joe Wai on January 11, 2017. Joe was beloved and respected by the many whose lives he touched with his beautiful designs, his commitment to social justice, and his visionary commitment to building a diverse and vibrant Vancouver.

Between 1999-2002, Joe served on the UBC Board of Governors, where he helped bring awareness to the need for the University to engage more students and faculty in the study of Asian Canadian history, culture, and local communities. The Asian Canadian and Asian Migration Studies Program (ACAM), which was established in 2014, is a direct legacy of his commitment to enhancing teaching and community engagement at UBC. Joe was also a strong supporter of the UBC Learning Exchange. He mentored generations of activists and community leaders and was beloved for his humility, humour, and generosity.

Born in Hong Kong to a trans-Pacific Chinese Canadian family, he moved to Vancouver in 1952 and first settled in Strathcona, a neighbourhood to which he would devote much of his life. After obtaining a degree in architecture from UBC in 1965, he worked in London before returning to Vancouver. He worked closely with the Strathcona Property Owners and Tenants Association (SPOTA) to fight attempts to build a freeway through the neighbourhood. He would go on to design important landmarks such as the Dr. Sun Yat-sen Classical Chinese Garden, the Chinese Cultural Centre Museum, and the Millennium Gate. These and other projects reflected his deep respect for the cultural heritage of the Chinatown area. He was also committed to providing accessible and affordable housing for area residents, and one of his last (uncompleted) projects was the renovation and expansion of the Villa Cathay Care Home to accommodate more Chinese-speaking seniors.

ACAM and the members of ACCE would like to extend our sincere condolences to Joe’s family, friends, and colleagues. He is deeply missed.

For further information about Joe Wai’s remarkable career, see the following blog post by Professor Henry Yu:

http://henryyu.blogspot.ca/2017/01/joe-wais-passing-losing-community-giant.html

Photo credit: Brian Howell

Bing Thom (1940-2016)

The Asian Canadian Community Engagement Initiative (ACCE) at the University of British Columbia is saddened by the sudden passing of Bing Thom on October 4, 2016. A renowned architect and urban designer, visionary activist, and dedicated educator, Bing was a prominent alumni of UBC, which is home to one of his most magnificent buildings, the Chan Centre for the Performing Arts. He was a pioneer in establishing ties with China and some of his most transformative projects are located in Shanghai, Tianjin, and his own birthplace of Hong Kong. His life and career exemplified Vancouver’s historic role as the Gateway to the Pacific.

Bing’s devotion to social justice has left a lasting impact on Asian Canadian communities. As a third-generation Chinese Canadian from a trans-Pacific family, his life was directly impacted by legacies of racism and exclusion. As a young activist in Vancouver, he played a key role in movements such the democratization of the Chinese Benevolent Association and the founding of the Chinese Cultural Centre. For decades, he was one of the most respected voices and role models in the community.

His dedication to raising consciousness about Asian Canadian issues continues to inspire educators here and elsewhere to integrate academic studies with community-engaged learning. While an architecture student at the University of California, Berkeley, he played an important role in the establishment of Ethnic Studies there. The flourishing field of Asian Canadian Studies is a direct result of his lifelong efforts, and when UBC’s Asian Canadian and Asian Migration Studies Program was established in 2014, he was an early supporter. Bing also contributed to, and occasionally stayed at, St. John’s College, an international residential graduate College with deep ties to Hong Kong, China, and other places in the Asia Pacific region.

The members of ACCE would like to extend our sincere condolences to Bing’s family and colleagues. He is deeply missed.

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Shaina Somers (BA, Canadian Studies)

After many years as a UBC undergraduate, Shaina will be graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Canadian Studies and a double minor in Sociology and Asian Canadian and Asian Migration Studies. Her studies and interests have taken her around Canada, Europe, Asia and East Africa to work, travel, study and live. As a woman of mixed European and Asian heritage, Shaina became more interested in how her own migration story fit into larger narratives of histories of migration to Canada. (Hopeful) plans after graduation include more travelling, continued involvement with ACAM and learning how to swim!

ACAM 10: Our Alumni in 2025

What have you been up to since graduation?

2016: graduation from UBC with ACAM minor
2016-2018: Assistant Language Teacher with JET Programme in Okinawa, Japan
2018-2019: Masters at Toronto Metropolitan University, Immigration and Settlement Studies
2019-present: public servant with federal government, Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada. I have been a board member/decision maker of the Refugee Protection Division adjudicating in-land refugee claims for asylum seekers requesting Canada’s protection.

What have you learned from your ACAM experience that you still carry today?

My time in ACAM has been responsible for many other opportunities I was able to pursue after graduation, an ACAM professor wrote my letter for JET, and I carried those lessons of learning and interrogating migration history during my time in Okinawa, Japan which has a very interesting migration history with the USA and South America. An ACAM professor wrote my recommendation letter for graduate school, and I used experiences from JET and ACAM when applying to start an entry level job with the federal government in immigration and refugee matters. Now that I am back living in Vancouver, it feels grounding to feel connected to ACAM’s community initiatives even though I am no longer officially a UBC student.

How has your ACAM experience equipped you for the challenges and opportunities you’ve encountered in exploring and developing your career?

Through my Canadian Studies major, I began taking courses related to Asian Canadian immigration in Canada, this was an incredible experience and so different from my other courses in Canadian studies, it felt relevant and it showed me that my family’s story was also part of Canadian history. Since ACAM, I have expanded my interests in migration stories of many different groups, and now I work in the federal public service deciding refugee claims in Canada. I feel ACAM helped me see that interest in learning people’s migration stories is relevant, important, and something that you can make a career out of.

Michael Nguyen (BA, History)

Michael, graduating with a Major in History, has utilized ACAM as a way to encourage Asian Diasporic youth to understand, collect, and preserve their family history in order to forge relationships and identities between two or more home countries.

Angela He (BA, International Relations)

Angela is a 5th year International Relations major and ACAM minor. She was first introduced to the ACAM program when she took Dr. Henry Yu’s History 492 class in her 3rd year, and since then, her academic career followed a new path. She then joined Dr. Yu for his Go Global course in Hong Kong, Singapore, and Malaysia, and studied abroad for one semester at the National University of Singapore. She is currently working for SWAN, a non-profit that supports Asian im/migrant women who work as indoor sex workers. She is also an avid cat lover and food enthusiast.