Chinatown
campaign seeks
to remind
neighbors they
are cared for
BY DEAN MOSES
Executive Director of the
Chinatown BID Wellington
Z. Chen is working to
remind the people of Chinatown
they are cared for.
Chinatown has been in a
A trash can says “Show
some love” beside a host of
shuttered businesses.
unique situation for the past
20 years. The historically rich
neighborhood has suffered tremendously
as a result of the two
largest tragedies in recent history
of the United States. The 9/11
terror attacks and the COVID-19
pandemic, unfortunately serving
as macabre bookends for all that
this Lower Manhattan community
has survived. The Chinatown Info
Kiosk, located on Canal and Baxter
Streets, stands as a monument
to residents’ steadfast resilience
while likewise also serving as a
platform to the ideals they wish
to achieve.
“This was a major gift to help
Chinatown because people–
including visitors to the 9/11
memorial couldn’t fi nd their way
up. This is a welcome center,”
Chen told amNewYork Metro
as he pointed out access points
to the area on the kiosk’s large
map.
After the World Trade Center
fell in 2001, Chinatown was cut
off from various parts of the city
and inundated with security,
crippling traffi c movement in addition
Executive Director of the Chinatown BID Wellington Z. Chen
Chen gestures to the word “peace” on the Chinatown Kiosk.
to medical issues suffered
by those in the vicinity of the
disaster. Now, 19 years later, in
the wake of another crisis taking
the form of the novel coronavirus
pandemic, the kiosk has been
transformed into a symbol of
hope with words such as peace
and joy adorning its outer walls.
This gesture is a small part
of a bigger plan to reassure a
community suffering from vastly
reduced tourism and visitations
from the outer boroughs, leaving
adverse effects on restaurants
in the area and strips of metal
shutters after metal shutters as
businesses close. But according
to Chen, there is also another
issue at play here. Residents who
were raised and educated in Chinatown
are leaving their homes
in search of greener pastures
elsewhere, which prohibits an
already hard-hit neighborhood
from recovering.
“If you don’t remember where
you came from, you are lost. Forty
percent of all New Yorkers trace
their origins to here. This was
the original capital!” Chen said
after discussing the history of his
home.
In an effort to show Chinatown
citizens who left—along with
those who remain—that they
are not forgotten, the Chinatown
BID is collaborating with Schneps
Media, parent company of The
Villager and Chelsea Now, on a
new initiative called, “Have you
Eaten Yet?” This Chinese term is
a way in which people show each
other they care. With food being
in short supply since the pandemic,
Chen believes by asking if
a neighbor has eaten is the perfect
way to show residents that they
are still highly regarded, and to
inspire them to help one another.
“Have you eaten is a greeting,
PHOTOS BY DEAN MOSES
it means I care about you. If you
are out of work or are homeless,
you are struggling. Food insecurity
is a big problem. Have you
eaten also reminds people that the
greatest food is in Little Italy and
Chinatown,” Chen said.
During February, to coincide
with the Lunar New Year, banners
asking New Yorkers “Have
you eaten yet?” will be erected
around the area from lampposts
and local buildings. In addition
to this campaign, a contest will
be held by both Schneps Media
and the Chinatown BID, requesting
New Yorkers submit words
of inspiration and hope that they
can then paste onto shuttered
businesses until they return.
Chinatown has seen both racist
destruction of property and the
loss of fi nancial security since the
COVID-19 virus touched down in
the city. Chen hopes working together
on a communal art project,
after such a hard year, will uplift
all involved.
“This is the can-do district.
The contest is asking what would
you say to someone who has not
eaten? What would you say as a
holiday greeting to those who are
losing their jobs? It will be a message
to all those who have closed
to say hang in there. The message
is to be kind and caring, be kind
to one another,” Chen said.
As much as the campaign is
to remind Chinatown residents
that they are not forgotten, Chen
reiterated that it is also to call
on those who have left the once
bustling district by asking them
not to forget about Chinatown.
Schneps Media Dec. 31, 2020-Jan. 6, 2021 3