Feb. 10 marked the beginning of Chinese New Year festivities around the world.
To celebrate the “Year of the Snake,” on Thursday, Feb. 21, the Seal Beach International Friendship Association )will have Dr. John Jung speak on “The Changing Face of Chinese in America,” exploring the questions, “Why is ‘Chinese American’ now an outdated category?” and “What are some problems and solutions for the future?”
Dr. John Jung was born in 1937 in Macon, Georgia, where his Chinese immigrant parents operated a laundry for more than 20 years.
As their family members were the only Chinese in Macon, he did not share similar experiences that Chinese Americans who lived in Chinese communities such as San Francisco did. However, his family moved to San Francisco when he started high school and then college at U.C. Berkeley before attending Northwestern University to earn a Ph.D. in psychology.
After a career of 40 years as a professor, Dr. Jung retired to embark on an “accidental” new career on the history of the Chinese American experience.
His first book, “Southern Fried Rice: Life in a Chinese Laundry in the Deep South,” published in 2005, is a memoir that details the unique and challenging life his family faced while living in cultural isolation in the segregated South and describes their adjustment to new lives after moving to San Francisco.
During his more than 50 book talks across the country, he has met many other Chinese Americans with unique, yet similar personal stories.
These encounters and further research led him to eventually write three other books on Chinese Americans who worked in laundries, grocery stores, and restaurants. His other books include, “Chinese Laundries: Tickets to survival on Gold Mountain,” “Chopsticks in the Land of Cotton: Lives of Mississippi Delta Chinese Grocers,” and “Sweet and Sour: Life in Chinese Family Restaurants.”
These books explore how Chinese immigrants from the late 1800s through the middle of the 20th century overcame the hostile societal prejudices against them and succeeded in running businesses such as laundries, grocery stores and restaurants. Their labors provided opportunities for their children to obtain education and enter careers in major professions. The goal of Dr. Jung’s books is to inspire, educate, and preserve the history of the many contributions of the Chinese to American society. For those interested we have asked Dr. Jung to bring some of his books to autograph and sell.
The meeting will take place on Thursday evening, Feb. 21, at the Mary Wilson Library Senior Center, 707 Electric Ave., in Seal Beach. A delicious Chinese dinner will be served at 6:30 p.m. and reservations are required and accepted on a first-come, first-served basis.
The cost for members is $12 each or $22 for couples; non-members $15.00 or $27 for couples; $10 for students. Pay by check at the door. Membership dues can be paid for at the same time. RSVP by Feb. 17 with Claire at (562) 431-5414 (email: kalea16@gmail.com) or Katie at (714) 675-3563.
The public is welcome. Seats are limited.
