Boston, MA

A cross-disciplinary coalition of institutions that have created an exciting series of educational programs to empower community residents.

The Asian Community Development Corporation (ACDC), a community-based organization, is committed to high standards of performance and integrity in serving the Asian American community of Greater Boston, with an emphasis on preserving and revitalizing Boston's Chinatown.  The Corporation develops physical community assets, including affordable housing for rental and ownership; promotes economic development; fosters leadership development; and builds capacity within the community and advocates on behalf of the community.

Ideas had been traded back and forth for years, but the impetus for the Chinatown Heritage Project was A Chinatown Banquet, a series of short videos narrated by the stories of Chinatown residents, created by Chinatown youth in collaboration with artist Mike Blockstein. As A Chinatown Banquet moved toward completion, it became clear too much history had been left untold. In response, The Chinatown Heritage Project was created by the Asian American Bank, the Asian Community Development Corporation, the Chinese Historical Society of New England, and the Peabody Essex Museum.  Together, this cross-disciplinary coalition of institutions worked to implement an exciting suite of programs which are not only educational, but also help build community and empower Chinatown’s residents.

The project includes the following aspects:

• The Chinatown Heritage Trail takes visitors on a journey through the history and contemporary culture of Chinatown, highlighting points of interest through storytelling and public art.
• The Chinatown Walking Tour Collective organizes existing community-led guided educational walks into one entity, to share resources and more effectively promote their work.  The Collective encourages neighborhood youth to become more involved with Chinatown by not only giving tours, but also in developing their content.
• The Community Radio Station is a campaign to create Chinatown’s first radio programming in Cantonese specifically geared towards the Boston Chinatown community.  The Station brings together all of Chinatown’s stakeholders to discuss relevant issues of the day.
• The Chinatown Storytelling Café is an effort to share the history and issues of our community through telling stories and reliving memories. The Chinatown Heritage Project is currently working to create an actual space in Chinatown where this passing of oral histories can be centered.

Two staff and assistance from 4-5 additional staff members work on the heritage project and although most of the people in Chinatown speak Chinese, bilingual skills are not required.  Various local, ethnic, and national media have written articles about these efforts and community organizations have also been informed.

The success of the program is measured by the number of people and aspects of culture that are touched upon.  Using history, education, storytelling, technology, and public art to engage, the Chinatown Heritage Project brings greater cultural enrichment to visitors and Chinatown residents.