This I recommend very, very, highly, particularly as I live in Oakland. We also have a walking tour of Oakland's Chinatown coming up on Friday, January 25th, 2025. This will be led by Oakland resident and architect, Roy Chan. Roy is a close friend of William Wong, the author of the book. He (Roy) is also mentioned in the book's Acknowledgements as being a source of stories and memories for Mr. Wong about Oakland's Chinatown.

Register Here for the Walking Tour of Oakland's Chinatown.

Walking Tour of Oakland's Chinatown

William Gee Wong was born in Oakland, California’s Chinatown in 1941, the only son of his father, known as Pop. Pop was born in Guangdong Province, China and emigrated to Oakland as a teenager during the Chinese Exclusion era in 1912. He entered the U.S. legally as the “son of a native,” despite having partially false papers. Sons of Chinatown is Wong’s evocative dual memoir of his and his father’s parallel experiences in America.

As Pop grappled with the systemic racism towards Asians during the exclusion era, Wong wistfully depicts Pop’s efforts to establish a family business and build a life for his family in segregated Oakland. As the exclusion law ended in 1943, young William was assimilating into American life and developing his path as a journalist. Writing for the Wall Street Journal, Oakland Tribune, and Asian American periodicals, Wong chronicled Asian American experiences while honoring Chinese American history and identity, but he too faced discrimination.

Sons of Chinatown poignantly weaves these father and son stories together with admiration and righteous anger. Through the mirrored lens of his father, Wong reflects on the hardships Asian Americans endured—and continue to face—with American exceptionalism. Wong’s inspiring memoir provides a personal history that also raises the question of whether America welcomes or repels immigrants.

William Wong is also the author of Oakland's Chinatown (CA) (Images of America), 2004

Greg