Tang, Bessie
Over 130 interviews with Chinese Canadian women were conducted for the book Jin Guo: Voices of Chinese Canadian Women. Produced in 1992 by the Women’s Book Committee of the Chinese Canadian National Council, Jin Guo was intended to fill the gap in historical accounts of Chinese Canadian women’s history. Researchers traveled across Canada to interview Chinese Canadian women of various ages and backgrounds. The book’s authors, Amy Go, Winnie Ng, Dora Nipp, Julia Tao, Terry Woo and May Yee, organized the book around themes and patterns that emerged across multiple interviews – feelings of isolation and culture shock upon arrival in Canada, memories of parent-child relationships, the importance of education, the working lives of women, discrimination, cultural identity, marriage and dating, family life, perspectives on aging and retirement, and examples community activism. The interviews conducted for this project are stored at the Multicultural History Society of Ontario’s archives. This collections database includes a large cross-section of interviews conducted for Jin Guo – in English, Cantonese and Mandarin.
In this interview, Bessie Tang describes her childhood and teenage years growing up in Victoria, British Columbia in the 1920s, her experiences of discrimination, and her extensive community involvement.
Bessie is one of nine children of a tailor and his wife, who were early immigrants to Canada. Bessie explains how she and her 8 brothers split their time between English school and her father’s tailor shop, and how the family celebrated both Western and Chinese traditions. Bessie describes how her family, particularly her mother, coped with financial instability during the 1930s. She expresses her belief that the Chinese people are adept at adjusting to new situations.
Bessie recalls her involvement in extracurricular activities in high school, and how they influenced her community work later in life. She reflects on her cultural pride, noting how organizations like the Lion’s Club promote Chinese history and culture. Bessie remembers instances of discrimination growing up, recounting how the local pool would not admit individuals of “Oriental” background. Bessie also describes her role in founding a Chinese drama and theatre group called the Chinese Canadian Youth Forum, which put on concert fundraisers for over 30 years. Having taken formal dance and vocal lessons, Bessie was a pivotal member of the group, and she also entertained troops along the British Columbia coastline during the Second World War. Shortly before the time of the interview, the mayor of Victoria honoured Bessie for her 50 years of community service in the Chinese community.
Bessie concludes the interview by encouraging women everywhere to be independent. She says that she knows that her future will take care of itself, so long as she abides by her personal motto to live each day as best as she knows how, each day at a time.
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