Peering into Chinatown’s past
Vancouver’s Chinatown was the epicentre of the early Chinese Canadian experience. Once a place of refuge for many out-of-work Chinese railroad workers in the late 1800s, it later became the site where a quiet civil rights movement, for the right to vote, was fought and won right after the Second World War.
By 2017, Vancouver’s Chinatown was an inner-city community that was starting to recover from a long period of decline. With renewal, however, it now faced threats of gentrification and the loss of its Chinese history and character.
Many historic storefronts lay vacant: papered-over for months and even years. Graffiti was an on-going problem. Commercial spaces that were operating, were concerned about drugs and petty crime. To enhance security, many of these shops installed bars on their windows or kept their blinds continually closed. It led to an unfriendly-looking streetscape. And for tourists who visited the historic neighbourhood, there were few clues available to help them appreciate the community’s vibrant past.
The team from the Chinatown History Windows project saw these empty or shuttered windows as an opportunity. These surfaces were blank canvases on which we could share the incredible stories that took place in these few city blocks, and within these historic buildings.
The Chinatown History Windows Project proposed the installation of historical images that would fill storefront windows at street level. Each image would be accompanied by a short story about Chinatown’s past. Topics would range from pivotal moments in Chinatown’s history, to trends, to fascinating people. We also would share some of the lesser-known stories that took place in this unique neighbourhood. Lastly, we would showcase some never-before-seen photographs from Chinatown’s past that were housed in private, family collections.
The City of Vancouver, through a grant from its “Great Beginnings Program,” supported the research, writing, translation, design, printing and installation of 22 history windows. The Chinese Canadian Military Museum also contributed support and oversaw the project.
The windows were installed in the Spring of 2017. That year not only represented Canada’s 150 birthday, it also commemorated 70 years since Chinese Canadians won the right to full citizenship and the right to vote. The battle for those rights was led by the Chinese who lived and worked in Vancouver’s Chinatown.