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NORTHWEST CHINA COUNCIL NEWSLETTER #23,October - December, 1986 CHINESE~AMERICAN- HEROES AND HEROINES Lalu Nathoy was a pioneer woman, before the Northwest China Council, sold into slavery upon arrival McCunn spoke about the inspiration in San Francisco and eventually Lalu Nathoy and Poon Lim gave settling on an Idaho homestead her to write about their achieve- in the iate 1800's. Poon Lim ments in her two biographical was a steward aboard a British novels, Thousand Pieces of Gold merchant ship in World War II. and Sole Survivor. MCCunn's own When a German submarine sank his personal story added to that desire ship, he alone survived, drifting to write about the experiences the Atlantic in a raft for 133 of Chinese-Americans. days. She was raised in Hong Kong, an Lalu Nathoy and Poon Lim are both Amerasian floating outside both heroes in their own right.What the Chinese and English communi- makes them spe~ial in Americari ties, never identifying fully history is that they are both with either group. A studious Chinese. child, she idolized and dreamed of the heroes she read about in Few historians have chronicled Chinese and English novels. Upon the contributions of ethnic minori- her arrival in the U.S. McCunn ties in America. Even fewer words first came to Oregon to check have been written about their on the college she had enrolled co~rage and bravery. The deeds at, Willamette University. The of Chinese-Americans have been totally non-Asian environ intimi- all but overlooked. dated her and she immediately moved to San Francisco. It was Writer Ruthanne Lum McCunn has this emotional tie with immigrants changed that, creating a body in a new land, and her fascination of work which gives readers strong with the heroic that led her to Chinese and Chinese-American heroes write her heartfelt stories. and heroines, Chinese-American historical sensibilities and vivid THOUSAND PIECES OF GOLD re-creations of Chinese-American In researching and writing Thousand realities. Pieces of Gold, McCunn felt an obligation to present the memory On September 10, in a lecture of Lalu Nathoy (later known as 1. Polly Bemis) in the most factual One example, McCunn recalled, way possible. However, because was his insistence that he was of the unavailability of written never frightened during his time or oral histories by Nathoy/Bemis drifting in the Atlantic. In and her Idaho contemporaries, another interview months later, and the very sketchy information Lim spoke of breaking down and on her early life in China, McCunn crying during his first days aboard chose to tell her story in the the wooden raft. Additional inter- ~ style of a biographical novel, views with Lim's wife, his brother, allowing her the latitude to create and even the submarine captain scenes as they might have been who torpedoed the merchant ship, in an historically accurate con- helped give the truth and excite- text. ment to the story of a hero's survival against all odds. While McCunn knows she has not betrayed the memory of Polly Bemis RUTHANNE LUM MCCUNN or the trust of the people in In response to questions from Polly's community in Idaho who the overflow audience at the Chi- cooperated in her research, McCun nese community hall, McCunn re- herself indicated a feeling of counted some of her early experi- betrayal by the filmmakers to ences in America, such as her whom she sold the option for film attempt to barter with a salesclerk rights. The film treatment turns in a department store. Realizing Polly into a prostitute, a helple~s her mistake, McCunn backed off, Asian woman dependent upon white only to think that she was bilked men. In MCCunn's assessment, after all because the clerk charged it is an unforgiveable distortion her sales tax on her purchase! of the historical truth. The issue between McCunn and the film- Now a resident of San Francisco, makers lias yet to be resolved. McCunn has been writing and pub- 'lishing since 1979. Her other SOLE SURVIVOR works include An Illustrated His- Fortunately for McCunn in writing tory of the Chinese in America, Sole Survivor, Poon Lim, now 69- a pictoral history of the 200- years old, retired, and living plus years of the Chinese-American in New York, was available for experience, and Pie-Biter, a bilin- interviews. McCunn says, however, gual children's picture book about that it was not a simple task the Chinese-American answer to because the tale had become embel- Paul Bunyan. lished and romanticized in Lim's own mind over the years. Through Terri Naito repeated meetings over a period of many months, McCunn established a rapport with Lim that ultimately allowed him to remember details CHINESE CONVERSATION and relate his true feelings. CIRCLE Northwest China Council Newsletter A challenging yet enjoyable way to Published by the Northwest Regional China Council, sponsored by the World practice Chinese is being offered Affairs Council of Oregon and The by the China Council through its Asia Society China Council. Chinese Conversation Circles, 1912 S. W. Sixth, #252 where native Chinese speakers talk Portland, Oregon 97201 on many topics with Chinese lan- (503) 229-30419 guage learners. The first two Editor: Judy Kliks circles, in August and September, Published quarterly. have been quite successful, par- ticularly with intermediate and 2 advanced learners who have enovqh of The Asia Society in New York, vocabulary and grammar to communi- founded the Society's China Council cate. (with which the Northwest Regional China Council is af f i Liat.e.t j • The third and last circle of the The Society is an educational year meets three times in October, organization putting on a wide on the 9th, 16th, and 22nd, at array of programs, including fine an offiGe, home, and restaurant. arts exhibitions, performances Tina Chang, Chinese instructor by Asian artists, film and lecture at Lewis & Clark College, organizes series, curriculum guides, and the Circle. She selects Chinese publications. speakers from among the Chinese student/scholar population in At The Asia Society, Oxnam moder- Portland, and divides cicle parti- ated a 30-part CBS-TV series, pants into small conversation "Asia: Half the Human Race," groups according to their speaking and has frequently been interview- ability. The cost is $15 per ed on Asian affairs. His publica- Circle. or $5 per session. You tions include Ruling From Horseback may register by calling 229-3049. (a study of the Manchu conquest of China); Dragon and Eagle (on Sino-American relations); and SPECIAL EVENTS China Briefing, 1980 and 1981. His Ph.D. in Chinese History is from Yale University and he taught "THE NEW CHINA: at Trinity College from 1969 to 1975. EMERGING LEADERSHIP Dr. Oxnam will also give the key- IN THE PA CIFIC REGION" note address ("What Business Lead- ers Need to Know about Asia") Thursday, October 23 at the Lewis & Clark conference 6 PM, dinner and lecture October 23 and 24. Other noted speakers include Frank Ching, Lewis & Clark College author of Hong Kong and China: Templeton Center For Better or For Worse and a number of local trade experts. Admission: $15; reservations: China Council members will receive 293-2758 notice. This dinner talk, in conjunction with a major business conference, "American Business and the Future CHINA RESOURCES of East and Southeast Asia," fea- tures one of the nation's most articulate and knowledgeable China Opportunities for learning Chinese experts, Robert B. Oxnam. in the Portland area have increased in recent years and a variety Oxnam's talk will examine China's of learning situations exist, role in Asia in terms of trade from the university classroom patterns, political leadership to the business-oriented conversa- and power balance, and moderniza tion class. tion. Among the issues he will address will be China's impact A brief summary of the fall offer- on Asian trade, Sino-Soviet ties, ings is given below. and its leadership in such politi- cal issues as Korean unification and the future of Kampuchea. CCBA Chinese Language School Run by the Chinese Consolidated In 1975, Oxnam, now President Benevolent Association, this school 3 has classes in both Cantonese nese culture. and Mandarin, from beginning to advanced levels. The school meets Finally, two classes in classical on Saturdays, 10 AM to 1 PM, at Chinese to be taught by John Emer- the CCBA Hall, 315 NW Davis. son, are being offered by DCE The term begins September 6 and in the evening, one using the ~ ends June 6, with enrollment pos- works of Lao Tzu, and designed sible throughout the year. While for students with no previous the focus is on the needs of Chi- knowledge of Chinese. nese American children, anyone is welcome to take part. Teachers Portland Chinese School are native Chinese speakers. Another school designed for Chi- The cost is $60 a year, and only nese-American children (as young $30 for students under 18, plus as kindergarten age), the Portland $5 for books and supplies. Call Chinese School also welcomes adults Mr. Torn Jun Sing at 236-8175 or and non-Chinese who wish to take 223-9070 (Saturdays only). classes in Mandarin. The school meets at Cramer Hall, Portland Early Morning Chinese Classes State University, every Sunday, James R. Newcomer & Associates, 2 - 4 PM, beginning in mid-Septem- 519 SW Park, Suite 610, a China ber and ending in mid-June. The trade firm, has initiated a unique cost is only $50. Both writing program especially for business and conversation are taught, with and professional people. The the advanced class taught by Tina classes are held at 7:30 - 8:30 Chang, an experienced university AM, with the Beginning I section instructor.

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