Chinese immigrants presented Kung Fu and Lion Dancing performances in a flag-raising ceremony in front of Oakland’s City Hall to mark China’s National Day on October 1.  Click on the photo to play the slideshow.

By Guo Shipeng
Li Zhijian was a millionaire in local currency terms before he emigrated to Oakland from the southern Chinese province of Guangdong in June.
Like many fresh immigrants in  Chinatown who come to America for a better life but are overwhelmed by cultural and social differences, the 45-year-old former construction contractor is struggling with elementary English classes in an adult school in the hope that he could find a paying job soon.

By Guo Shipeng
Ho Ming’s first experience with the Oakland police was far from pleasant.
He still remembers the frustration he felt, trying to explain to an officer in broken English, how someone broke into this car and stole $2,000 worth of equipment he used for his business. That was in 1985, when Ho was an immigrant fresh from Hong Kong.

By Guo Shipeng
A steady stream of Chinese residents cast their votes in several polling stations in Oakland’s Chinatown throughout Tuesday, many supporting Obama in line with the community’s long-time leaning toward the Democrats.
But a considerable amount of Chinatown voters cited traditional Chinese family values and voted for Prop 8 that would ban same-sex marriages, disappointing a group of campaigners against the proposition who stayed outside a polling place for a whole day to try to win over people.

By Guo Shipeng
Oakland’s Chinatown held its latest monthly crime-prevention meeting on Wednesday evening (Oct 15), in which police briefed some 80 residents present about a recent burglary and once again urged them to shake off the habit of not reporting crime cases.

By Guo Shipeng
Four of the Oakland Chinatown’s best Cantonese Opera performers will make their debut in November on the prestigious stages of Canton, the art’s birthplace in south China, in recognition of their artistic achievements.

 
By Guo Shipeng
 
Oakland’s Chinatown has retained a low crime rate in the past three months, but a city official said some residents’ habit of not informing the police about crimes made the community more vulnerable.