Stories of courage and resilience, Chinese fleeing from Shanghai as the communist army engulfs the country becomes the backdrop for vivid narratives of four exiles who represent “the voices, viewpoints and character of the Shanghai diaspora.” Join us for our February Talk Story event featuring the author and activist, Helen Zia, as she shares her newest book, Last Boat Out of Shanghai: The Epic Story of the Chinese Who Fled Mao’s Revolution.

Zia is author of Asian American Dreams: The Emergence of an American People and many articles and essays on issues ranging from human rights and peace to women’s rights, hate violence, and homophobia. Her work on the 1980s Asian American landmark civil rights case of anti-Asian violence is featured in the Academy Award nominated documentary, “Who Killed Vincent Chin?” and she is profiled in Bill Moyers’ PBS series, “Becoming American: The Chinese Experience.”

As always, these events are free and open to all. Talk Story Events are monthly Chinatown gatherings. The life of our community lies in the power of our stories remembered and shared.

IMPORTANT NOTE: on the weekends, we can only access the I Street Conferencing Center from the parking entrance. Enter from the rear of the building on I (Eye) Street through the glass doors to the parking entrance, and take the elevator to Level C. Doors open at 1:30pm.