Chinatown Today

Chinatown Today is a non-profit organization whose goal is to share stories from Chinatown’s past and present so they continue to be part of its future. Many of the Chinatown stories we yearn to listen to are carried by elders and knowledge holders who face linguistic, financial, and other barriers, compounded by prejudice. Moreover, due to decades of systemic oppression, these knowledge holders often view their stories, accumulated from rich and diverse experiences, as unwanted, disposable, and unnecessary. Chinatown Today’s mission is to create spaces where Chinatown’s knowledge holders feel comfortable and empowered to share their stories with a wider audience. Stories remind us of history, wisdom, and pieces of who we are as diasporic communities. Chinatown Today values these stories and those who share them as vital parts of Chinatown’s intangible heritage, which we aim to preserve and protect. Chinatown Today values fostering relationships with Indigenous peoples and other marginalized communities: the former, because Chinatown is built on unceded Indigenous lands, and the latter because Chinatown has never been a space just for those with Chinese heritage, but a refuge for marginalized folks from all walks of life. Chinatown Today’s vision is to foster a space for an abundance of productive intergenerational and intercultural conversations, where anyone who has a Chinatown story has a chance to be heard.