Global News
Jul 1, 2023
‘It’s bittersweet’: “Humiliation Day” marked with lion dance in Calgary
More than 15,000 people came from China to Canada in the early 1880’s to build the most dangerous and difficult section of the Canadian Pacific Railway. Hundreds died. They were remembered at a wreath laying ceremony on Canada Day in Calgary’s Chinatown.
“The most important thing is that we don’t want to forget how we got to where we are,” said Ward 7 councillor Terry Wong who attended the event.
The Chinese Immigration Act, also known as the Exclusion Act was enacted on July 1, 1923 to stop Chinese immigration. It came after immigrants from China provided decades of service in Canada.
“Once I became aware of it, Canada Day, which was my favourite holiday of the year, became tainted, so for me personally one of the reasons for having the lion dancers come, here is to purge those bad juju, the evil spirits, of the Exclusion Act away,” said Calgary writer Dale Kwong.
Lion dancers with Jing Wo Cultural Association performed around CSpace in Eau Claire where Calgarians of Chinese descent have been telling their families’ stories of being separated by the Exclusion Act through a project called “Stories of Exclusion.”
“Hearing stories about how the 16 year-old girls had to be married off in this kind of bachelor society, and how vulnerable they were – that resonated with me because I can’t imagine myself in that position,” said Calgary visual artist Michelle Ku is involved in Stories of Exclusion.
For artists like Ku and Yan Zhu who have been recording the stories, the legacy of the Exclusion Act continues to this day.
“We still carry that trauma with us in our bodies,” Ku said.
“I carry these narratives, whether I have have relation to the railway workers or not. It affects how I am seen whether I like it or not. So being a part of this project and hearing all these interviews, they gave me an intimate view into this family history and it felt very familiar to be present and it was heavy, but there was also joy because life is not sad all the time,” Zhu said.
Ku said she loves Canada Day but this year, with the 100 year anniversary of the Exclusion Act, is complicated.
“It’s bittersweet,” Ku said.
“I’m hoping, but I don’t know for sure that this can be a reset for me,” Kwong said.
Ku said while previous generations were told to keep quiet she hopes her voice as an artist will help share the stories of Chinese immigrants for years to come.
“In order to survive the parents would say we are different so just keep your head down and don’t stand out. Don’t bring attention to yourself. I feel as artist we do stand out, and we do draw attention to ourselves. This is a privilege and I feel even more responsibility that I’m lucky enough to do that, and not feel the same kind of danger that they felt,” Ku said.
Brandon Mah with the Jing Wo Cultural Association said performing the Lion Dance was a great way to celebrate how multi-cultural Canada is.
“It’s a good way to help scare away all the evil spirits as we are cleansing and bringing a new beginning here but I think it’s very important to save the culture because lion dance is a dying art and we have to keep it and pass it on to generations to come,” Mah said.
“I didn’t know much about the Exclusion Act because it’s not well taught in the schools but it’s important that we know these things to pass on to know about the history so we can move forward together,” Mah said.
Chinese Canadian Museum set to open on 100th anniversary of Exclusion Act
'The Chinese Canadian Museum will serve as a testament to the endurance, the triumphs, and the immeasurable contributions of Chinese Canadians to our city and our country,' says Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim
By Graeme Wood, Glacier Media | June 30, 2023
The new Chinese Canadian Museum is located in the historic Wing Sang Building, Vancouver Chinatown's oldest building, and opens to the public on July 1. | Handout
The Chinese Canadian Museum is set to open its doors on July 1 in the historic Wing Sang Building in Vancouver’s Chinatown, after years of planning.
“It is truly groundbreaking and momentous for Canada to have a dedicated museum that honours the history, legacies, and contributions of Chinese Canadians throughout the generations,” said the museum’s board chair Grace Wong.
The museum, founded in March 2020 and brought to life with $48.5 million of government contributions, will provide for exhibitions, educational programming and special events, at 51 East Pender St.
The opening feature exhibition is The Paper Trail to the 1923 Chinese Exclusion Act, which focuses on the 100th anniversary of the Chinese Exclusion Act.
Exhibit curator Catherine Clement is said to take museum-goers on a journey that reveals the “haunting stories of loss, despair and fear, as well as powerful examples of courage and perseverance despite incredible odds,” in the face of racism during the exclusion years from 1923 to 1947.
It was on July 1, 1923, when Canada prohibited Chinese immigration and required Chinese people to register with the government or risk fines, detainment, or deportation — the “culmination of anti-Chinese racism and policies, including the head taxes which it replaced,” notes Parks Canada, which will unveil a bronze commemorative plaque at the museum.
The museum also features a recreated 1930s living room in the Wing Sang Building, where Yip Sang and his family lived. And, there’s a recreation of one of Vancouver’s oldest school rooms, from 1914.
A wall mural depicting Chinese-Canadian journeys pieces together past and present, as does the Odysseys and Migration exhibit that “explores the Chinese diaspora from the early waves to present day,” according to the museum’s statement on June 30.
There is also an “interactive immigration map on which visitors can draw and share the origins and immigration journeys of their families.”
The museum’s opening was welcomed by delegates, including Premier David Eby and Mayor Ken Sim, the city’s first mayor of Chinese ethnicity.
“The Chinese Canadian Museum will serve as a testament to the endurance, the triumphs, and the immeasurable contributions of Chinese Canadians to our city and our country,” said Sim.
“I truly hope that people from all walks of life — residents and visitors alike, will take the time to visit this museum and learn of the history of the Chinese Canadian community.”
The museum’s construction was not without some controversy, as a former museum director, Bill Yee, received criticism from Chinese-Canadian groups when he dismissed allegations of a Uyghur genocide in Xinjiang, prompting concerns about how the museum could be politicized by individuals sympathetic or under the influence of the Chinese Communist Party.
Ivy Li, a pro-democracy activist with Canadian Friends for Hong Kong, for example, hopes the museum will recognize and acknowledge the roots of Chinese immigration, including modern-day immigrants from China, and especially Hong Kong, who have chosen to flee the authoritarian communist regime.
Wong said the museum has addressed such concerns with a diverse board of directors and the museum will explore issues from past to present, with the overarching goal of bridging cultures and generations.
Remembering Chinese Exclusion Act should serve education, not ideology: activist
More recently, controversy stirred around the anniversary of the Chinese Exclusion Act, after Canadian senators Victor Oh and Yuen Pau Woo likened a proposed foreign agents registry (to combat foreign influence and political interference) as a modern form of Chinese exclusion. The senators, often seen in the company of China's consular officials, staged a rally in Ottawa on June 24 to amplify that message.
Bill Chu, founder of Canadians For Reconciliation and someone who spearheaded government redress on the Chinese head tax, said attempts to do so are misplaced and exploitative.
Chu, also a member of the Chinese Canadian Concern Group on the Chinese Communist Party’s Human Rights Violations, said pro-Beijing groups or individuals can amplify anti-Chinese racism for ideological and political reasons; however, “it’s better to be informed by history, not ideology.”
“To the extent we are informed and enlightened by our history, Canada will be a stronger society,” said Chu.
“The political mindset was to get rid of the Chinese,” said Chu of the Exclusion Act. “It was that bad. In that sense we should find no excuse in not remembering it.”
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