A Richmond author hopes his new book highlighting Chinese-Canadians' contributions to Canada, will inspire others from the Asian community to share their stories and perspective.
Kenny Zhang said the book, Canada’s Chinese Gene: A Sense of Belonging, Ownership and Contribution, which he co-authored with Guo Ding, showcases through historical facts how Chinese-Canadians have been national builders throughout Canada’s history.
The two authors are hosting a virtual event on Thursday to entice readers to dive into Chinese-Canadian history.
Zhang noted the book also aims to encourage fellow Chinese-Canadian community members to contribute back to local society by participating in more events or making more donations.
"Like our predecessors who once built the Canadian Pacific Railway and volunteered to fight in the Canadian Army in World War II, we aren't just guests of this country. Instead, we are also community builders and we should keep doing that."
The book was originally published in Chinese in 2017 to mark Canada’s 150th anniversary and was published in English this past summer.
Zhang added that he and his co-author Guo Ding received overwhelmingly positive feedback that they decided to translate the book into English and publish once more.
The author event will have a panelist of speakers including Tung Chan, a board member of the Canadian Foundation for Economic Education.
Chan told the Richmond News that he is glad to be able to see more Chinese-Canadian voices and perspectives written and shared in literature.
Authors are also encouraged to write more books on topics such as Chinese cuisine and the B.C. government’s recognition of traditional Chinese medicine, which also contain rich history in Canada, according to Chan.
"Canada is a unique place with so many cultures and thoughts. I think the government can talk about in which areas we can compete against others, but in some areas, we can find common ground to collaborate and develop,” he said.
Book author Zhang echoed Chan’s suggestion and said that the release of this book serves as a wake-up call to inspire more talented writers from the Asian community to write about their journeys.
"If you don't define or express yourself, your stories will be either forgotten or crunched by others," said Zhang.
The author event will take place online at 7 p.m. and the zoom meeting link is: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86047028343#success. No registration is required.
