What does Chinatown mean to you?
On Monday, November 16, 2020, CCHSBC launched the short films “an invitation” and “#105Keefer.” These two short films feature insights from artists and organizers who reflect on their connection to Vancouver’s Chinatown, three years after a public hearing held in the council chambers of the City of Vancouver to discuss a development proposal at the 105 Keefer site in Chinatown. This virtual premiere featured insights from artists and organizers who share thoughts around the significance of this hearing - amidst ongoing concerns about gentrification, racism, classism, lack of affordable housing and safe spaces, and stigma for low-income residents in Vancouver’s Chinatown.
This project was commissioned by the Chinese Canadian Historical Society of BC (CCHSBC) and funded by the Province of British Columbia.
This project was commissioned by the Chinese Canadian Historical Society of BC (CCHSBC) and funded by the Province of British Columbia.
Speakers
Jane Shi is a queer Chinese settler living on the unceded, traditional, and ancestral territories of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh First Nations. Her writing has appeared in Briarpatch Magazine, Canthius, The Malahat Review, PRISM, and Room, among others. She wants to live in a world where love is not a limited resource, land is not mined, hearts are not filched, and bodies are not violated. Find her online at @pipagaopoetry.
Kimberley Wong (黄壯慈) is a queer Chinese Canadian femme whose work mirrors the intersections of her identity. She has been recognized by the city and the province for her accomplishments in climate justice and multiculturalism, and her work continues to evolve beyond this. Kimberley currently sits as the Chair of the City of Vancouver's Chinatown Legacy Stewardship Group, where she is putting her passion for crafting culturally appropriate and progressive policy to use. In addition to this, Kimberley finds thrill and inspiration in the challenges that campaign organizing brings, having built and executed campaigns since the age of 16. She sees through the lenses and experiential knowledge of living as a renter, being an independent contractor in a precarious work landscape, and of being a descendant whose ancestors have long histories organizing and changemaking for marginalized populations on this land.
Rachel Lau is a multidisciplinary artist, writer, and radio producer based in what’s colonially known as “Vancouver.” Through sound art, photography, and zine-making, they contemplate what it means to experience longing in a world that is transient. They are interested in the process of death and decay, along with our mortal resistance to it. Lau is a recent graduate of the media studies program, with a minor in Asian Canadian and Asian migration studies, at the University of British Columbia.
Tyler Tadao Taiming Mark is a Chinese/Japanese-Canadian settler born and raised in Vancouver. He completed his Master of Arts in Urban Planning (MAP) at UBC SCARP with a research focus on culturally appropriate community engagement in Vancouver’s Chinatown. Tyler has worked in varying capacities for Chinatown Today, UBC’s Asian Canadian and Asian Migration Studies program (ACAM), and INSTRCC. Bridging his interests in urban planning and diasporic culture, Tyler hopes to use his privilege to explore alternative processes of holistic community building and engagement.
Kimberley Wong (黄壯慈) is a queer Chinese Canadian femme whose work mirrors the intersections of her identity. She has been recognized by the city and the province for her accomplishments in climate justice and multiculturalism, and her work continues to evolve beyond this. Kimberley currently sits as the Chair of the City of Vancouver's Chinatown Legacy Stewardship Group, where she is putting her passion for crafting culturally appropriate and progressive policy to use. In addition to this, Kimberley finds thrill and inspiration in the challenges that campaign organizing brings, having built and executed campaigns since the age of 16. She sees through the lenses and experiential knowledge of living as a renter, being an independent contractor in a precarious work landscape, and of being a descendant whose ancestors have long histories organizing and changemaking for marginalized populations on this land.
Rachel Lau is a multidisciplinary artist, writer, and radio producer based in what’s colonially known as “Vancouver.” Through sound art, photography, and zine-making, they contemplate what it means to experience longing in a world that is transient. They are interested in the process of death and decay, along with our mortal resistance to it. Lau is a recent graduate of the media studies program, with a minor in Asian Canadian and Asian migration studies, at the University of British Columbia.
Tyler Tadao Taiming Mark is a Chinese/Japanese-Canadian settler born and raised in Vancouver. He completed his Master of Arts in Urban Planning (MAP) at UBC SCARP with a research focus on culturally appropriate community engagement in Vancouver’s Chinatown. Tyler has worked in varying capacities for Chinatown Today, UBC’s Asian Canadian and Asian Migration Studies program (ACAM), and INSTRCC. Bridging his interests in urban planning and diasporic culture, Tyler hopes to use his privilege to explore alternative processes of holistic community building and engagement.
Producer
amanda wan (she/they) is a Han Chinese student and settler raised by immigrant-settler parents on the unceded, ancestral territories of the Musqueam, Tsleil-Waututh, and Squamish peoples. They are currently completing an MA in English, with research and organizing interests in queer Asian diasporic literatures and visualities. She is currently focused on the aesthetics of racial melancholia, intergenerational trauma, and affect in the psychic landscapes continually haunted by colonial violence; contexts include postcolonial, psychoanalytic, and critical race, gender, and sexuality theories, alongside visuality and techno-Orientalism.