Boston

December 24, 2022 0

Air Monitoring in Chinatown: Next Steps from MassDEP

Should you go for a run today? If you live in Chinatown, you may want to stick to the treadmill. The neighborhood is strangled by major highways and roads, and every day thousands of automobiles pump harmful pollutants into the air. Over the years, studies from Tufts University School of Medicine have measured high levels of ultrafine particles in Chinatown. In 2019 the area received the dubious distinction of having the worst air quality in the state. Low air quality […]

December 12, 2022 0

New Developments in Chinatown

by Sonia Cavazos

Chinatown and downtown Boston will be going through massive changes as the Boston Planning and Development Agency (BPDA) moves forward with preparing for construction in and around the area. Some plans are currently under review and others have been approved and are slated to be underway, with the overall project set to end in the summer of 2023. Assistant Director of Communications for BPDA Brittany Comak, along with the Interim Director of Planning Kennan Rhyne, met with this reporter to […]

December 10, 2022 0

Betting on an Alternative: How Boston is Helping to Alleviate the Problem of Gambling in the Asian-American Community

by Yiwei Zhao

Gambling has long been a problem in Asian American communities. A 2019 report by UMass Boston researchers, funded by the state and led by Institute for Asian American Studies researcher Dr. Carolyn Wong, featured interviews with approximately two dozen low-wage workers and retirees from Chinatown’s food and service industries. Recurring themes in their narratives revolved around “isolated lives in linguistically isolated neighborhoods,” a sameness to their jobs, and seemingly no healthier or more easily accessible alternatives for stress relief than […]

December 9, 2022 1

Sifu Mai Du Offers Free Self Defense Classes to Take the Weight of Fear off the Community’s Shoulders

by Sonia Cavazos

On the early morning of November 12th, a 64-year-old Asian woman was kidnapped outside of Wollaston station while she was headed to work. She was bound and shoved into the back of a car. After being repeatedly raped and assaulted, she was left in the parking lot of a Brockton mall later that evening. She was able to attract the attention of a passerby who contacted the police. After the initial reports and capture of the assailant, 26-year-old Christian Lynch, […]

November 24, 2022 0

Boston Accent is disappearing -“You’re breakin’ my haht!!”

by Aili Liu

Along with Boston’s history, sports, education, and baked beans, the “Bawston” accent has long been a unique and fun distinction for Boston. For example, a survey run by the travel company, Big 7, showed that the Boston accent was ranked as the second sexiest in the country. Americans around the country became familiar with the Boston accent through Hollywood movies and from listening to famous Boston figures like President John F Kennedy. The accent is distinguished by dropping the r’s, […]

November 20, 2022 0

A Preview of “The Chinese Lady”

by Kristen Si

From November 10th to December 11th, Central Square Theatre will be putting on showings of “The Chinese Lady”, a critically acclaimed play written by Lloyd Suh, and directed by Sarah Shin. The play takes place in 1834, on the eve of the Opium Wars between Great Britain and China, following a young Chinese woman named Afong Moy. As one of the first Chinese women in America, Afong Moy was brought into New York City as a marketing gimmick for importers, […]

November 5, 2022 0

Community Groups call for the State to honor its Commitment to Chinatown

by Sampan Staff

Chinatown and Leather District residents, volleyball players, skate boarders and park enthusiasts gathered in October at the Reggie Wong Memorial Park in Boston’s Chinatown to celebrate what they hope will be a turning point in a long struggle to protect and gain community control of this urban playground and encourage the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) to make good on its commitment to lease it to the community for $1 a year. At the event, Lydia Lowe, Chinatown Community Land Trust director, announced that […]

October 25, 2022 0

A Sneak Peek at the Boston Asian American Film Festival

by Sonia Cavazos

ArtsEmerson is leading the way as documentaries, narratives and short films abound in this year’s line-up for the Boston Asian American Film Festival. The director of the festival, Susan Chinsen, and the director and co-director of one of the films were able to give some insight into the stories present and the work behind it. The festival has two formats with different films. Susan Chinsen commented that, with the surprise of COVID, another way to interact and be a part […]

October 23, 2022 0

QArts Gallery is Quincy’s Loving Nod to Art and the Artist

by Sonia Cavazos

The QArts Gallery celebrates its first anniversary this month and this reporter had the pleasure of speaking with Linda Santoro, their Program and Outreach Coordinator. Linda described that their first exhibit was only one year ago this month. It was a members’ show featuring over 100 pieces of artwork in all mediums. “Today, our members continue to from all ethnic backgrounds, and they display their work based on those origins as well as trying new techniques as they grow,” […]

October 22, 2022 0

Harvard Square Celebrates Its First Filipino American Festival

by Sampan Staff

In celebration of Filipino American History Month, the Harvard Square Philippine Alliance (HSPA), collaborating with the Philippine Consulate General in New York, held the first Filipino American Festival on October 9, 2022 at Harvard Square in Cambridge, Massachusetts, coinciding with the 43rd Annual Oktoberfest and Honk Parade. Consul Ricarte Abejuela III headed Consulate delegation, which joined the HSPAA organizers in the nearly two hour long Honk parade starting from Davis Square to Harvard Square. Spectators were entertained by Filipino-American contingents from […]

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