Boston

November 20, 2020 0

Food for Thought: Melodias

Melodias, translated into English, means “melodies.” It is a lovely Colombian restaurant and bar in the Orient Heights neighborhood of East Boston (just steps from the Orient Heights Blue Line T stop). Melodias now serves take out and some limited dine in seating, at the already cozy restaurant. There is a flat screen tv playing Latin music videos in the background. For our drinks, we got the Guanábana, also known as sour sop milk, custard apple, and a blackberry milk, […]

November 20, 2020 0

Chinese Restaurant Finances in the 1920s

by Richard Auffrey

How much did Chinese restaurants earn during the 1920s? How were they financed? And what did they pay their employees? We can get some insight into the answers through examining two restaurants, the Royal Restaurant in Chinatown and the Imperial Restaurant in Cambridge, both connected by one of the same partners, Chung Moi. Chung Moi was born in China and came to San Francisco in 1912, where he remained for about three years before moving to Boston. There, he first […]

November 20, 2020 0

City of Boston releases coastal resilience solutions for Downtown Boston and North End

by Anqi Zhang

The virtual panel of Climate Ready Boston on Thursday, October 29 released two reports offering coastal resilience solutions, with the most recent one targeting Downtown Boston and North End, and the other: Dorchester. The reports further developed and specified the City of Boston’s strategies to realize its vision of a resilient Boston harbor and confronting climate change. In the reports, the Climate Ready Boston team outlined a roadmap for near- and long-term solutions to defend coastal flooding, stressing the importance […]

November 20, 2020 0

How to Protect Yourself from Eviction during the COVID-19 Pandemic

by guest

By Yu Sin Mok, Greater Boston Legal Services The Massachusetts eviction ban protecting tenants from evictions ended on October 17, 2020, so landlords can now file eviction cases in courts again. The Asian Outreach Unit of Greater Boston Legal Services answers legal questions over the phone, and we often hear from low-income Asian clients who are struggling to pay rent. Many are concerned about losing their homes, after having lost their jobs and income during COVID-19. This situation is stressful, […]

November 20, 2020 0

Mayor’s Office addresses election results, COVID-19, housing stability and police reform

by Carey Lin

On November 12, Mayor Marty Walsh provided several updates on the changes and proposals made by his office at both a roundtable with the Office for Immigrant Advancement (MOIA) and a public Media Availability. In light of the historical election, Mayor Walsh said, “I’m looking forward to working with the administration.” Specifically, the mayor is hopeful that things will be different with the new administration for the immigrant community. “I do believe that Vice President Biden and Senator Harris, they […]

November 20, 2020 0

Scammers revamp old tricks using COVID-19 as a twist during pandemic

by Christine Mui

Fraudulent rental listings, a COVID-19 clinical study that pays upwards of $1,000, consultants offering services to those confused by COVID aid programs, a government agency asking for a refund of an “accidental” overpayment — these are some of the most popular schemes that fraudsters have taken advantage of during the pandemic to target people’s financial worries in 2020. Indeed, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) reported losses from scams have climbed to nearly $117 million during the first six months of […]

November 20, 2020 0

Immigrants view banks with skepticism and fear

by Shira Laucharoen

Particularly among those who have newly arrived in the United States, many immigrated individuals choose not to use banks and are wary of financial institutions for several reasons. Cultural barriers may deter them from employing these services, while past negative experiences in their home countries also cause immigrant residents to exercise caution. Financial literacy programs and efforts from banks to become more accessible have been encouraging for this population, but many are still hesitant to open an account. Language challenges […]

November 6, 2020 0

Beyond neighborhoods and generations: ‘Lantern Stories’ continues illuminating Chinatown’s past, present, and future

by Christine Mui

More than a month after its initial installation, crowds of Chinatown natives and tourists alike are still gathering in Chin Park on The Greenway to see “Lantern Stories.” The public art project by artist Yu-Wen Wu captures the culture, immigration history, and continued resilience of Boston’s Chinatown community in each of its 31 UV-printed colorful lanterns. The concepts for the lanterns’ featured images were conceived in a collaborative, dynamic process. Wu spoke to local residents, community organizers, and businesses about […]

November 6, 2020 0

The First Chinese Person To Live In Boston

by Richard Auffrey

In 1796, the first Chinese person documented to have lived in Boston was Chou, a teenager who worked for a local sea captain. Much of that story is known to many and the sea captain is often considered to be a kind and compassionate person. However, there is a dark twist to this story which is known to very few. John Boit, of Boston, was made the Captain of a ship, the Union, when he was only 19 years old. The […]

November 6, 2020 0

Clean-up Chinatown Committee continues the push for a cleaner Chinatown

by Carey Lin

The Asian American Civic Association (AACA) hosted the first Clean-up Chinatown Committee meeting since the COVID-19 pandemic struck. For many years, the committee has worked to clean up the streets of Chinatown. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, the meetings were suspended for about eight months before resuming on October 14. This meeting followed the efforts of the “We Love Boston Chinatown” campaign and the cleanup day hosted by Chinatown Mainstreet (CMS) and Boston Chinatown Neighborhood Center (BCNC) in August. On October […]

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