Chan Chung Wing, also known as C.C. Wing, was the first

Chinese American Chinese Americans are Americans of Han Chinese ancestry. Chinese Americans constitute a subgroup of East Asian Americans which also constitute a subgroup of Asian Americans. Many Chinese Americans along with their ancestors trace lineage from ...

lawyer in California (State Bar Number 2326). Wing was born in 1890 as the son of Chinese merchants in a Canton village. He graduated from the University of St. Ignatius College of Law (now known as the

University of San Francisco School of Law The University of San Francisco School of Law (USF Law) is the law school of the private University of San Francisco. Established in 1912, it received American Bar Association accreditation in 1935 and joined the Association of American Law Sc ...

) in 1918 and started working as a lawyer in the San Francisco community. Wing specialized in immigration law, working with hundreds of Chinese immigrants who sought to make a new life in the United States. Chinese immigrants who came to San Francisco were detained at

Angel Island Angel Island may refer to: *Angel Island (California), historic site of the United States Immigration Station, Angel Island, and part of Angel Island State Park, in San Francisco Bay, California * Angel Island, Papua New Guinea * ''Angel Island'' (n ...

for as much as two years, while immigration officials determined their eligibility for entry. Wing also brought more than 30 lawsuits against the San Francisco Police Department for the harassment of the Chinese. Because the

Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 The Chinese Exclusion Act was a United States federal law signed by President Chester A. Arthur on May 6, 1882, prohibiting all immigration of Chinese laborers for 10 years. The law excluded merchants, teachers, students, travelers, and diplom ...

was in effect,

anti-Chinese racism Anti-Chinese sentiment, also known as Sinophobia, is a fear or dislike of China, Chinese people or Chinese culture. It often targets Chinese minorities living outside of China and involves immigration, development of national identity in ...

was widespread. During the 1930s, Wing served as the first Chinese American head counsel for the Chinese branch of the foreign exchange department of the

Bank of Italy The Bank of Italy (Italian: ''Banca d'Italia'', informally referred to as ''Bankitalia''), (), is the central bank of Italy and part of the European System of Central Banks. It is located in Palazzo Koch, via Nazionale, Rome. The bank's curre ...

. In the 1940s, Wing opened one of the first life insurance agencies in Chinatown. Throughout his professional life, Wing was an active member of the University of San Francisco Alumni Association, and he inaugurated the C.C. Wing Classic Golf Tournament. Wing died in 1983, but not before he saw one of his five children, Linda Chan, graduate from the University of San Francisco School of Law. Although other sources cite

You Chung Hong You Chung Hong (Chinese: 洪耀宗 pinyin: Hóng Yàozōng) (May 4, 1898 – November 1977) was an American attorney and community leader who was the second Chinese American lawyer admitted to practice law in the state of California, having ...

as the first Chinese American lawyer in California, he did not pass the bar until 1923 (State Bar Number 4788).

References

1890 births 1983 deaths Lawyers from San Francisco 20th century in San Francisco American people of Chinese descent {{US-law-bio-stub

See also

References