Pictures of Harvey Dong, early 1970s and recent
There will be a very brief annual meeting, featuring recognition of our volunteers, in the museum room at 3:15, followed by a talk by Harvey Dong, “From Third World Liberation Front to Eastwind Books.” Please come at 3:00 to claim a seat.
The term “Asian American,” so familiar now, was first coined in Berkeley in 1968 at an organizing meeting of the Asian American Political Alliance. Cal student Harvey Dong soon got involved in AAPA and especially in the demands for teaching ethnic studies at the university. He has taught in what is now called Asian American and Asian Diaspora Studies (AAADS). He and his wife Beatrice have owned and managed Eastwind Books on University Avenue since 1996.
Refreshments and exhibit viewing will complete the afternoon.
The exhibit will tell the stories of prominent Berkeley residents of Chinese descent, including activists, artists, accomplished professionals, distinguished scholars and professors, and even Madame Chiang Kai-shek. There will also be stories of regular family life and of workers and bosses in Chinese-owned laundries, restaurants, and other enterprises. Finally, the exhibit will document the remarkable increase in the numbers of Chinese and Chinese American students at Cal and the equally dramatic growth of Berkeley’s Chinese American population in the last three decades. For more than 150 years, people of Chinese descent have put down roots that have grown deep and spread in Berkeley’s rich social environment.
We invite you to become a member of the Berkeley Historical Society (or rejoin if you are a past member) to support our programs and receive our quarterly newsletter and other special mailings! Members also get a discount on books and walking tours. You can join online, in person, or by mail. See https://berkhistory.org/become-a-member/.
