NAMCC President

I am Zhang Xi, the president of North American Maple Culture Center.

I have majored in journalism, film, and sociology. Journalism has given me keenness in observation and promptness in action. Film has given me a unique perspective on understanding humanity. Sociology has given me rigid research methods. Experience in these three disciplines has helped me gain insight, and made my life interesting.

Professional knowledge and skills are tools that help many people to make a living or achieve greater success, but for a simple person like me, a roof, a bed, and three meals a day are good enough, as this state of comfort and freedom allows me to selectively do what I believe is meaningful. From 2005 to the present, at my own expense, I have made more than 10,000 minutes of oral recordings of World War II by interviewing veterans, and I have donated these records to various museums. Only natural and man-made disasters can destroy mankind. Wars are man-made disasters that harm humanity the most. When I  ponder on why World War I and World War II happened, I wonder why do the weapons, such as atomic bombs and nuclear weapons, that are invented by the smartest people, provide the greatest opportunity to destroy mankind? 

As a lifelong writer, I often reflect on how I can use my skills to alert the world to cherish peace and stay away from war. So, over the years, I have done what I think is right. First, I wrote and directed the story "Flying Tigers Flying Away,”  a story of the first batch of American pilots helping the Chinese people to fight against Japan during World War II. This play was performed in Beijing, Silicon Valley, Boston, and New York. In September 2018, in the performance at the York Theater, Off-Broadway in New York City, I recruited actors from multiple ethnic groups to perform together.  At the end of each show, the audience stands and claps for a long time.  The friendship and mutual assistance between Chinese and American people during World War II, and the reflection on the war embodied in the performance resonated with the audience.

In addition, I created a series of projects with the goal of helping the next generation to grow up. As a result of the COVID-19 outbreak, people, ethnic groups, and nations are once again caught in the chaos and turmoil of mutual distrust. When I heard that over a dozen teenagers from the same county committed suicide within the span of half a year due to the effects of the pandemic, I made up my mind to help more Chinese teenagers through these tough times, so that they could have confidence and hope for the future. I have successively completed 16 charity projects for youth. Among them, the projects "Chinese-American Children Painting Chinese Laborer Ancestors" and "Chinese-American Children Painting World War II" are very popular due to their deep meanings. They allowed nearly a hundred children to understand Chinese immigrant history through painting. They learned the great contribution of the first generation of Chinese immigrants to the construction of American railroads. They also learned that after the outbreak of World War II, there were 13,000 Chinese immigrants who were actively participating in World War II, 20% of whom died; 40% had no nationality. Although the Chinese love their hometown deeply, they love the new homeland of the United States even more and are willing to contribute to it. Because the ancestors worked hard at the cost of their lives, the US Congress revoked the 71-year Chinese Exclusion Act, and the Chinese finally won the right to live in the United States with dignity.

From 2015 to the beginning of 2020, our North American Maple Culture Center has established 22 stage drama clubs across the U.S., with more than 1,500 drama fans joining in. In 53 cities across the U.S., we have performed 96 shows of my seven original dramas for audiences of more than 60,000, including “Where am I,”  “Ivy Ambitions,” “Flying Tigers Flying Away,” “Ding Long’s Dream,” “Qin Bo Jian’s Rose,” “Golden Teens,” and  “Monkey King’s Adventures in the United States.” They have evoked wild enthusiasm and received rave reviews, and have been referred to by the media as a major cultural event in the history of Chinese Americans. What gratifies me the most is that our bilingual performances have attracted audiences from different ethnic groups, including local senators and congress members.

Currently, I’m creating a 60-episode TV series: "Tang Men". This drama takes place in the historical backgrounds of the gold rush, railroad construction, the Civil War, Arctic exploration, the fight for the right to equal education, the Chinese Exclusion Act, World War I, and World War II.  It tells the story of three generations of Chinese immigrants living in the United States, silently struggling, taking root, and contributing to American society. It parallels romantic love with patriotism by exploring the eternal love between the male and female lead, and depicting the four heroes of this family who followed their passion and went to the battlefield when the Second World War broke out. It’s a magnificent, soul-stirring show.

Since the gold rush, the journey Chinese immigrants have gone through has been painful, yet proud. However, American society still has negative feelings towards Chinese immigrants. I hope that Chinese and American audiences get to know a complete history of Chinese immigration through the TV series "Tang Men". I hope it can become a link and bridge for friendly communication between Chinese-Americans and all Americans. Of course, if the film scenes can be preserved, it is also good for all kinds of people to visit after the pandemic and make it a sustainable cultural tourist attraction showcasing ethnic minorities.