Connie Young Yu (born June 19, 1941) is a

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 ...

writer, activist, historian, and lecturer. She has written and contributed to many articles and books, notably including ''Profiles in Excellence: Peninsula Chinese Americans'', ''Chinatown San Jose, U.S.A.,'' and ''Voices from the Railroad: Stories by Descendents of Chinese Railroad Workers''. Through her work, she uncovers forgotten or hidden facets of Chinese and Asian American history. Yu played a central role in getting the

Angel Island Immigration Station Angel Island Immigration Station was an immigration station in San Francisco Bay which operated from January 21, 1910 to November 5, 1940, where immigrants entering the United States were detained and interrogated. Angel Island is an island in S ...

designated a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

, therefore preserving the detention barracks that had Chinese poems carved on the walls.

Early life

Yu was born in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, California on June 19, 1941. She spent the first six years of her life in Whittier, California. Her father was

John C. Young John Chew Young (; June 16, 1912 – October 27, 1987), Chinese American, was born in San Jose, California. A key figure in the development of Chinatown, San Francisco, he was one of the original board members of the Chinese Historical Socie ...

, a

Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

in the

United States Army Reserve The United States Army Reserve (USAR) is a Military reserve force, reserve force of the United States Army. Together, the Army Reserve and the Army National Guard constitute the Army element of the reserve components of the United States Armed F ...

and a businessman. He left to fight in World War II when she was six months old, and returned when she was four. In 1947, Yu and her family moved to

Chinatown A Chinatown () is an ethnic enclave of Chinese people located outside Greater China, most often in an urban setting. Areas known as "Chinatown" exist throughout the world, including Europe, North America, South America, Asia, Africa and Austra ...

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

, California where she grew up with her older sister, Janey Young Cheu, and younger brother, Alfred John Young. Her mother was Mary Lee Young, an artist and art collector, and a descendant of a Chinese railroad worker involved in the dangerous task of building the

Transcontinental Railroad A transcontinental railroad or transcontinental railway is contiguous railroad trackage, that crosses a continental land mass and has terminals at different oceans or continental borders. Such networks can be via the tracks of either a single ...

. Yu's grandparents lived with the family in San Francisco as well. Growing up, Yu was surrounded by the robust Chinese American community in San Francisco and was influenced by the many generations of Chinese Americans who were family friends and would regularly visit her family and home. Yu graduated from

George Washington High School (San Francisco) George Washington High School is a public high school in Richmond District, San Francisco, California. In 2011, Washington High was ranked by '' Newsweek's'' Jay Mathews Challenge Index as the 497th best high school in the United States. History ...

. She studied literature and journalism at

Mills College Mills College at Northeastern University is a private college in Oakland, California and part of Northeastern University's global university system. Mills College was founded as the Young Ladies Seminary in 1852 in Benicia, California; it was ...

. She graduated in 1963 with a degree in English, and she was the

valedictorian Valedictorian is an academic title for the highest-performing student of a graduating class of an academic institution. The valedictorian is commonly determined by a numerical formula, generally an academic institution's grade point average (GPA ...

of her class. While in her senior year, she wrote a final paper on the interactions between

Mark Twain Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, entrepreneur, publisher, and lecturer. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has p ...

and the Chinese, an early example of Yu's work to seek out untold stories around the Chinese American experience. Yu returned to the

Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Gov ...

in 1967 where she began to write articles for local Asian American publications.

Career

Yu's article on Chinese railroad workers, "The Unsung Heroes of the Golden Spikes," gained her local recognition for her writing when it was published in the ''

San Francisco Examiner The ''San Francisco Examiner'' is a newspaper distributed in and around San Francisco, California, and published since 1863. Once self-dubbed the "Monarch of the Dailies" by then-owner William Randolph Hearst, and flagship of the Hearst Corporat ...

'' on May 10, 1969. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, Yu was involved in many activist movements including the

anti-war movement An anti-war movement (also ''antiwar'') is a social movement, usually in opposition to a particular nation's decision to start or carry on an armed conflict, unconditional of a maybe-existing just cause. The term anti-war can also refer to ...

and the ethnic studies movement. She assisted in founding Asian Americans for Community Involvement (AACI) in 1973, for AACI's twentieth anniversary in 1993, she was awarded the group's Freedom Award. Her initial work with the AACI was critical to Asian American and minority representation in school textbooks. Yu served on the Board of Trustees for Mills College from 1970 to 1972. In 1970, after California State Park Ranger Alexander Weiss discovered Chinese poems carved on the walls of Angel Island Immigration Station, Yu worked to designate the site as a National Historic Landmark. She helped found the Angel Island Immigration Station Historical Advisory Committee in 1974. Angel Island became a National Historic Landmark in 1997. The National Historic Landmark designation prevented the Station from being demolished by the California State Parks Administration. Yu is a member and former chairperson of the Board of Trustees of the

Hakone Gardens Hakone Gardens is an traditional Japanese garden in Saratoga, California, United States. A recipient of the Save America's Treasures Award by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, it is recognized as one of the oldest Japanese-style re ...

Foundation in

Saratoga, California Saratoga is a city in Santa Clara County, California. Located in Silicon Valley, in the southern Bay Area, its population was 31,051 at the 2020 census. Saratoga is an affluent residential community, known for its wineries, restaurants, and attra ...

. She is also a Trustee Emeritus Board member of the

Chinese Historical Society of America The Chinese Historical Society of America (; abbreviated CHSA) is the oldest and largest archive and history center documenting the Chinese American experience in the United States. It is based in the Chinatown neighborhood of San Francisco, Cali ...

. In 2012, the

recognized Yu in addition to U.S. Congresswoman

Judy Chu Judy May Chu (born July 7, 1953) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for since 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, she has held a seat in Congress since 2009, representing until redistricting. Chu is the first Chines ...

and

China Daily ''China Daily'' () is an English-language daily newspaper owned by the Central Propaganda Department of the Chinese Communist Party. Overview ''China Daily'' has the widest print circulation of any English-language newspaper in China. T ...

founding member Manli Ho (daughter of

Ho Feng-Shan Ho Feng-Shan ( 10 September 1901 – 28 September 1997) was a Chinese diplomat and writer for the Republic of China. When he was consul-general in Vienna during World War II, he risked his life and career to save "perhaps tens of thousands" of J ...

) at their annual Voice and Vision Gala. Yu spoke on behalf of all the descendants of Chinese Transcontinental Railroad workers at the

United States Department of Labor The United States Department of Labor (DOL) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government. It is responsible for the administration of federal laws governing occupational safety and health, wage and hour standards, unemploym ...

induction of the

Chinese Railroad Workers The history of Chinese Americans or the history of Overseas Chinese, ethnic Chinese in the United States includes three major waves of Chinese emigration, Chinese immigration to the United States, beginning in the 19th century. Chinese immigrant ...

into the

Labor Hall of Honor The United States Department of Labor Hall of Honor is in the Frances Perkins Building, 200 Constitution Ave., NW, Washington, DC. It is a monument to honor Americans who have made a positive contribution to how people in the United States work an ...

on May 9, 2014. On April 24, 2016, she was presented the State of

California's 13th Senate District California's 13th State Senatorial district is one of 40 California State Senate districts. It is currently represented by Democrat Josh Becker of Menlo Park. District profile The district encompasses the southern Bay Area, taking in mos ...

"Woman of the Year" award by Senator Jerry Hill at Folger Stables Speakers Series in Woodside, California. At the 150th Anniversary of the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad on May 10, 2019, Connie Young Yu gave the opening Commencement speech at Promontory Point, Utah's "Golden Spike" Ceremony. Most recently in 2021, she publicly co-accepted an apology to Chinese Americans by the City of

San Jose, California San Jose, officially San José (; ; ), is a major city in the U.S. state of California that is the cultural, financial, and political center of Silicon Valley and largest city in Northern California by both population and area. With a 2020 popul ...

for its violence, terrorism, and systemic racism towards Chinese in that city during the latter part of the 19th and beginning of the 20th Centuries. In addition to her activism and writing, Yu has taught

fencing Fencing is a group of three related combat sports. The three disciplines in modern fencing are the foil, the épée, and the sabre (also ''saber''); winning points are made through the weapon's contact with an opponent. A fourth discipline, s ...

for over 25 years at the Fencing Center of

and serves on the board of directors of this non-profit club. Connie was chosen Western Region Coach of the Year, 1999, by the U.S. Fencing Coaches Association, and presented the "Award of Merit," by the USFCA in 2010.

Personal life

Yu is married to Dr. John Kou Ping Yu, an

oncologist Oncology is a branch of medicine that deals with the study, treatment, diagnosis and prevention of cancer. A medical professional who practices oncology is an ''oncologist''. The name's etymological origin is the Greek word ὄγκος (''ó ...

, and together they have 3 children: Jennifer Yu,

Jessica Yu Jessica Lingmin Yu (born February 14, 1966) is an American film director, writer, producer, and editor. She has directed documentary films, dramatic films, and television shows. Yu won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Short Subject in ...

, Marty Yu, and 3 grandchildren.

Selected works

* ''Profiles in Excellence: Peninsula Chinese Americans'' (1986) * ''Making Waves: An Anthology of Writings by and About Asian American Women'' (1989) * ''Chinatown San Jose, U.S.A.'' (1991) * ''Patchwork History the People's Bicentennial Quilt'' (2010) * "Lee Wong Sang, Laying Tracks to Follow''"'' in ''Voices from the Railroad: Stories by Descendants of Chinese Railroad Workers'' (2019) * ''Hakone Estate and Gardens'' (2021)

References

Sources

*"Gen Guracar and Connie Young You: Democracy Engaged" Rindfleisch, Jan. (2017) with articles by Maribel Alvarez and Raj Jayadev, edited by Nancy Hom and Ann Sherman. ''Roots and Offshoots: Silicon Valley’s Arts Community''. pp. 87–95. Santa Clara, CA: Ginger Press.

External links

*https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/14/us/golden-spike-utah-railroad-150th-anniversary.html *https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-goldenspike/chinese-american-pride-celebrated-in-150th-anniversary-of-transcontinental-railroad-idUSKCN1SF2HI?feedType=RSS&feedName=topNews *https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/alanchin/chinese-americans-denied-for-years-celebrated-the-150th *https://www.deseretnews.com/article/900070153/spike-150-thousands-travel-from-around-the-country-and-world-each-with-a-different-connection-to-the-railroad.html *https://www.mercurynews.com/2021/05/11/new-photo-book-traces-history-of-hakone-gardens-in-saratoga/ *https://www.cnn.com/2021/10/10/us/san-jose-chinatown-apology/index.html {{DEFAULTSORT:Yu, Connie Young Living people 1941 births American people of Chinese descent 21st-century American historians People from Los Altos Hills, California American women historians Historians from California 21st-century American women writers American women activists 20th-century American women writers