As it’s Chinese New Year, this newsletter is centered on the American Chinatown segment we plan to include in a larger episode about how cities are affected by immigration. Being the Year of the Rabbit, we hop around North America for a look at how some of these historic ethnic enclaves are faring.
Despite Chinatowns being part of the fabric of San Francisco, Vancouver, Toronto, New York and elsewhere, most of these American Chinatown communities are in relative decline as many new immigrants go directly to the suburbs (Houston, Seattle, Atlanta), their proximity to city centers makes them development magnets and old guard leadership often prefers the status quo to needed change to keep them relevant. Among traditional Chinatowns, only Chicago’s continues expanding.
One fascinating story we ran into is how ⅔ of LA’s Chinatown was moved a few blocks to North Broadway in the mid-1930s to make way for the now landmark Union Station train terminal. It is one of several examples of neighborhood demolition that predated the post-War redevelopment era. The remaining ⅓ of the original site was then flattened in the early 1950s for the Hollywood Freeway downtown extension.
And how many know there are remnants of small Chinatowns still barely visible in the downtowns of Pittsburgh, St Louis and Baltimore?
Hear from Manuel Pastor, Distinguished Professor of Sociology and Director, Center for the Study of Immigrant Integration at the University of Southern California. Watch more videos.
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