Oakland Asian Cultural Center

The Oakland Asian Cultural Center (OACC) supports the Asian and Pacific Islander community by providing cultural programs such as films, tours, exhibits, oral history projects, lectures, and book talks. These events are multigenerational and cross-cultural. The OACC also provides programs that promote health and wellness. Founded in 1984 by a corps of volunteers who recognized the need to promote and create cultural programming for Oakland’s Asian community, the organization now strives to make cross-cultural connections, building bridges with other diverse communities through programs like their Open EARS for Change lecture series that promote multiracial, intergenerational anti-racism dialogues and action, featuring members of Oakland’s African American and API communities. Another popular project is the Oakland Chinatown Oral History Project, headed by community historian Roy Chan, to preserve community history.

Roy Chan grew up in Oakland’s Bella Vista neighborhood but was frequently in the Chinatown community. His father came to America as a stowaway on a ship bound for San Francisco. The elder Chan moved to Oakland in the 1950s and operated a butcher shop on 9th Street in Chinatown. Roy attended Oakland schools then enrolled at UC Berkeley where he majored in architecture. He began his professional life in New York City as an urban planner and became interested in mapping. When he returned to Oakland in 2007, he interned at the East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation (EBALDC), learning about the city’s built environment and how it impacted people. Working under the mentorship of Oakland journalist William Wong, Roy undertook his first oral history project to capture the stories of Chinatown residents and merchants.

With the passage of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 which removed quotas to enter the United States, a new influx of Asian immigrants arrived. Chinatown, according to Roy, continues to serve as an “initial settlement place,” an important gateway to life in California. He estimates that about one-third of Chinatown’s recent population have come from diverse Asian backgrounds.

Chinatown, like other communities in Oakland, was negatively impacted by the construction of Laney College, the Nimitz freeway and BART. Important cultural buildings were lost during this construction including the Ming Quong Home, an all-girls orphanage at 51 Ninth Street. According to Roy, about 70 homes were demolished to make way for the Lake Merritt BART station. In all, about 10,000 Chinatown residents were displaced by redevelopment projects. (link) Despite the disruption of infrastructure projects, Chinatown residents continued to claim the space at Madison Square Park, the plaza once BART administration once earmarked for their headquarters. The park is a lively communal space that attracts hundreds of seniors each week who come to exercise and socialize. Not only does the popularity of this public space foster social connection, but many who come to exercise also stay to shop and eat in Chinatown, strengthening the economic vitality of the neighborhood. In more recent years, Roy Chan, who started the Oakland Chinatown Oral History Project, conducted an ethnographic film study of the regulars of Madison Park. BART administration once earmarked for their headquarters. The park is a lively communal space that attracts hundreds of seniors each week who come to exercise and socialize. Not only does the popularity of this public space foster social connection, but many who come to exercise also stay to shop and eat in Chinatown, strengthening the economic vitality of the neighborhood. In more recent years, Roy Chan, who started the Oakland Chinatown Oral History Project, conducted an ethnographic film study of the regulars of Madison Park.

Today’s Chinatown, Oakland’s fifth Chinese settlement, is a community rich with stories of immigration, displacement, self-sufficiency, interdependence, and survival. Roy has recorded stories to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the Asian Branch Library, the country’s first to focus on Asian culture and languages. He has also preserved the oral histories of residents who related stories of the community before the development of the Lake Merritt BART station. One of the more creative projects Roy worked on was the interactive Memory Map which is displayed at the Oakland Asian Cultural Center. It is a large, aerial photo of Chinatown to which the public can add their written memories of each building. There is also an online version of the map. Through the collaborative work of the Oakland Chinatown Oral History Project, the vibrancy, resilience, and history of Chinatown, past and present, lives on.

Listen to an interview with community historian Roy Chan: