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INTRODUCTION
Founded in 1868, Gum Moon's history mirrors
the ever changing needs and developments of the
Asian Immigrant Community in the San Francisco
Bay Area.
Arising to address the specific problems and
struggles of the early Chinese railroad laborers,
the Methodist Mission has, throughout the century
served wherever needed. Gum Moon, as an outgrowth
of the original mission, continues to be a project
of the United Methodist Church. The ideology, staff,
and programs offered by this Mission, therefore,
are a reflection not only of the community of a
specific time, but also of American society as a
whole. How the country has seen and treated immigrants
plays a large role in determining what needs their
community has.
Although the days of anti-Chinese societies and
bloody riots at Portsmouth Square in the 1800s are
over, the call for mission in the Asian immigrant
community continues. The first port of call for many
Chinese immigrants, San Francisco today boasts the
largest Chinese community outside of Asia. They come
to San Francisco's Chinatown because of its
multi-lingual and familiar environment. Here, they
can attend school, shop, work, and live using their
native language without having to leave its
boundaries. A community then characterized by
poverty, overcrowding, and insularity, Chinatown is
often "a prison without walls."
This enclave can become oppressive and suffocating.
With limited English and vocational skills, one
cannot readily leave the area and build a new life
elsewhere. This "prison without walls" then becomes
a real prison, especially with the rising costs of
real estate in San Francisco and the recent
recession. Families usually live in a single room or
share apartments of no more than 8x12 feet.
Oftentimes, several families share roach-infested
apartments, communal kitchens, and bathrooms.
With limited space and few public recreational
places, growing children have few places to run,
jump, play or interact with other children. Those
with working parents spend time unsupervised,
vulnerable to pressures and influences of the
street. Mothers who stay at home are often isolated,
lonely and uneducated, wanting to help their
families but not knowing how or where to look first.
Working long hours and days, sometimes up to seven
days a week, immigrant parents are too tired and too
poor to provide moral and physical support for their
families. Frustration from work and a foreign
environment occasionally erupts in violent behavior
at home. The seeming invisibility of battered wives
and abused children is not indicative of the lack of
these problems but of the limited resources and
support available for these individuals as well as
the tendency for Chinese Americans to deal with
crises alone.
Gum Moon through the AWRC and Residence Hall
attempts to address the issues women and children
face. Located in the heart of Chinatown, Gum Moon
has serviced mainly the Chinatown community, but is
open to all regardless of race, ethnicity, and
creed. This year marks the 80th anniversary of the
dedication of this building, rebuilt after its
destruction in the 1906 Earthquake and Fire.
Throughout the many years that Gum Moon and the
Methodist mission here have served Chinese
Americans, there have been numerous women whose time
and energy made it all possible. As we reflect on
the achievements of the past and hope for the
future, it only seems fitting that we express our
gratitude to the women who put in invaluable service
and love to Gum Moon. Many names are forgotten or
unrecorded and will forever be lost to us. But their
legacy of courage and determination remain with us,
and we wish to highlight a few pioneers of the
countless committed women who have worked here.
Furthermore, we recognize the achievements of other
outstanding women in the larger Asian American
community. As no agency can survive as an island by
itself, we pay tribute to awardees of our past
benefit dinners whose talents and commitment work
with us in making this world a better place for
Asian immigrants.
It is our desire to continue with the tradition set
forth in 1868 to address the needs of the people,
not to find self-glorification. In the following
pages, you will discover the history of the mission
and the people as well as meet the programs
presently offered here for the community. And maybe,
if we have kept true, Carrie Davis' prayer that we
succeed where they have failed and not failed where
they have succeeded continues to guide us.
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