Chapter 13 Husband comes to the rescue

Who can be considered?Then we must first look at why the Chinese want to go to the United States?Let's take a look at the story of another famous person more than a hundred years ago, Mr. Huang Qingfu, who was also a classmate of Mr. Rong Ai, and was called Chinese Martin Luther King Jr. by overseas Chinese—— On the night of July 30, 1884, at 32 Bell Street in New York City, an event that had never happened before in the United States took place: a group of Chinese gathered together, plausibly shouting for freedom and democracy, we Also Americans, we also want slogans like dignity and rights.

This was the first political participation demonstration initiated by the Chinese on American soil, and at this rally, the Chinese, who had always been discriminated against and oppressed, had their own group to demand their rights from the government for the first time.Its initiator is Wong Chin Fo, whose Chinese name is Huang Qingfu. According to historical records, Huang Qingfu was one of the first four Chinese students who came to the United States to study in the first batch of young children.Compared with Rong Gui, Huang Qingfu is more Americanized. He has basically lived in the United States for decades after studying in the United States.Because of his dedication to promoting oriental culture and doing things for the Chinese in the United States, Americans even called him a Chinese missionary, but Huang Qingfu himself opposed this evaluation.He replied in a letter to a reader of the New York Times: Since I started to promote in this country about religion, social life, and political affairs of my motherland—China, I have never slandered, made nonsense, or lied anywhere.I want to show Christians the manner and mental state of a proper Chinese.When you missionaries came to China, we listened carefully to the missionaries' speeches.Is it not fair now that we ask you to also hear what we have to say? 7 Those missionaries say that we heretics shall be cast into eternal hell, however honest and earnest we may be.We believe that if Christians behave like those uncivilized people: they will also be beaten to hell... Huang Qingfu's words have always been so philosophical and passionate. He awakened the enslaved Chinese and protected them. The legitimate rights and interests of countless Chinese.

However, Huang Qingfu's lifelong struggle failed to withstand the rampant attack of the anti-China forces in the United States.This man who was famous more than half a century earlier than the black leader Martin Luther King, in his limited life, never stopped his efforts for the Chinese to obtain the right to participate in politics.It's a pity that Huang Qingfu could use his hoarse throat to wake up the sleeping oriental lion, so that many Chinese people who have set foot on American soil for many years have almost forgotten even the word "right". Che Wanruo strives to revive the will of her ancestor Huang Qingfu, but she is really at a loss in the face of insensitive compatriots.Elections are cruel. You spend your money, but in the end it depends on the number of votes to decide whether you will enter the political arena.

When Li Wanruo, who was dragging her tired legs, came home that day, when she was about to vomit bitterness to her husband, her eyes suddenly lit up: Husband, you are so great!You are really Huang Qingfu today!With you, even if there are thousands of difficulties and dangers in front of me, I will definitely be able to overcome them resolutely! The wife was pleasantly surprised when she saw her husband Chen Baohe invented a brilliant solution to her problems: a special "Votor Notice" was prepared for those Chinese who didn't know how to vote. This invention of the husband Later, it was slightly revised by Li Wanruo, and it was regarded as the "Information to Voters" distributed by the city to Chinese and even the residents of the city, and it played a special role in the subsequent political participation, especially by the Chinese. The "Information to Voters" is still an important tool for Chinese people to participate in politics today, and Chen Baohe deserves a lot of credit.

It is said that Li Wanruo, who was in a desperate situation at the time, really burst into tears when she saw her husband immersed himself in making the "Information to Voters" for her, especially after listening to his explanation of its use. awesome!husband.Really, I want to apply for a patent for you in the name of all Chinese... Li Wanruo couldn't help holding up the "Instructions to Voters" that her husband had just drawn up, and cheered loudly. Seeing his wife so excited, Chen Baohe, the always quiet husband, revealed another decision: Starting tomorrow, I will set up a stall in the vegetable market and supermarket...

you?Chen Baohe went to set up a stall? Well, I——Chen Baohe, why not set up a stall? Ah ha ha ha... my wife really laughed this time and bent over.You Chen Bao and the person who blushes at the sight of strangers are actually going to the vegetable market and the entrance of the supermarket to set up a stall for your wife?Hahaha...with you Chen Baohe... The next day happened to be a weekend.The residents of Montenegro, especially those Chinese, suddenly found that in front of the bustling vegetable market, supermarket, school and church, someone was distributing copies of beautifully made "Instructions to Voters" to them.

interesting.Can you explain to me why we are running? ...This is a matter for the Americans, what does it matter for us Chinese?A couple who seemed to be new immigrants from the mainland stood in front of Chen Baohe and asked. Chen Baohe immediately smiled and explained in Chinese: The election has a lot to do with us Chinese!For example, if we are represented in the government and parliament.Then some bills that are unfavorable to our immigrants, especially those that are unfavorable to our Chinese, will not be passed... Can the election really work? certainly.And more than that... OK, let's hear you, we really have to think about voting and elections.The young and recent immigrants began to be interested, and they happily accepted the "Information to Voters" sent to them by Chen Baohe.

too troublesome.To participate in the election, you must register as a voter...some people say. No, it's not a hassle, you can register to vote in five minutes.Please read this manual, please read this... Chen Baohe hurriedly explained. This is how Chen Baohe started his stall.How fearful and helpless Li Wanruo was when she stepped into the American political arena, she had to do everything by herself.Just for Chinese compatriots to become voters, and just to make a copy of the "Votor Notice", Mr. Chen Baohe spent more than a dozen sleepless nights designing and producing it, over and over again, and every item must be done so that compatriots can understand it at a glance. will be.And all this is just the basic work. When some volunteers from Chen Baohe Dun visit the vegetable market and supermarket door to door, he needs to explain to each resident and patiently answer their various questions, which is meticulous and arduous. Work, no one knows the ups and downs in the middle.

One day, Chen Baohe was busy from morning to night, yelling loudly and tanning his face, but he got nothing. What he got was the surprised and somewhat sarcastic eyes that passed by him.In fact, Li Wanruo and the others really understood at this time that, judging from previous elections, although the proportion of Chinese in the city of Montenegro and even the entire California area is close to 30% of the total population, less than 10% of them are really eligible to participate in the election. %, because most people are not citizens yet, and there are many people who have already been naturalized in the United States, but have never been registered to vote, and those who have not registered to vote are not entitled to vote.Many new immigrants or citizens do not vote. Once Li Wanruo visited another city with a large number of Chinese residents, a non-Asian person who was elected to the local parliament in the Chinese district proudly told Li Wanruo: I was elected because of Credit to you Chinese - because they wouldn't even vote, so I won so easily.

This kind of situation must not happen in Meng City. When Li Wanruo left that city, she felt pain in her heart.Today, when she officially enters the political arena, she herself faces the same problem. Voter awareness in Chinese districts starts with basic voter education. The work of her husband Chen Baohe looks very primitive, but this is an American social house, and you can only adopt such primitive methods.You must follow the mass line to gain a lot. Li Guiruo watched from afar as her husband and his assistants were busy distributing and explaining the knowledge and procedures of participating in elections to passing citizens, feeling grateful and sad at the same time.

How difficult it is for Chinese Americans to participate in politics!However, these basic tasks still have to be done, because they are not only basic votes but also pave the way for Chinese Americans to run for election.Li Wanruo let out a long sigh. Once, she said at a gathering of Chinese Americans: You ask me why I want to participate in the election?Well, I can tell you this: In our United States, the rights of citizens are the most valued, and the rights of citizens are often most directly reflected in participating in elections.Because elections are a direct way to participate in government policy, make laws, and choose your favorite officials.Your sacred vote can affect national policies as much as you can directly participate in changing the management of cities and communities and whether the environment you live in meets your personal wishes.You must care about your child's study and the environment of your home, and this is directly related to whether you participate in the election... Among the seven candidates, only Li Wanruo wants to be the orator of the policy speech , but also to be a commentator for Chinese new immigrants to popularize knowledge in the United States election. Lily, from what you said, it seems that we should participate in election activities, but are the election procedures in the United States complicated? Hahaha, is it easy? Some newcomer immigrants are demanding access to America's electoral bylaws. Well, your question is somewhat representative.Li Wanruo held up the "Instructions to Voters" high and said to everyone: My husband who designed the aircraft designed an easy-to-understand document for you, which can provide you with the most shortcut knowledge in this area.Take it, and provide it to everyone for free, with a copy for everyone. You must be a US citizen. You must be a Montreal resident. On the next election day, you must be at least 18 years old to vote in the municipal election. You must not be serving a sentence in prison or on parole for a crime. To vote in any election, you must be registered as a voter twenty-nine days before that election.If your registration form is completed, the Registrar of Voters will be effective immediately after receiving your registration card; however, you will not be registered until you receive your voter notification card.If you do not receive a voter notification card, call the county clerk or the registrar of voters. You can use this card to participate in elections anywhere in California and become a permanent voter, expressing your opinions and voices at all levels of government... All of a sudden, the electoral popularization and education activities, which had never been seen in the Chinese district of Meng City, became lively with the election of Li Wanruo.Some people later commented that although Li Wanruo's election was a local election, it was of extraordinary significance to Chinese people across the United States.The role it played later affected the entire California, and even affected the Chinese political suffrage movement in the United States.And through active and legal participation in elections, he has won high marks for safeguarding his own rights countless times. Li Wanruo and his wife contributed a lot to this.During the interview, I heard that this loving couple has a very touching and unforgettable photo of the hero who kissed, so I repeatedly asked to see it.In the end, Chen Bao and the old man, who were not very responsive, showed it to me.Really, I think that photo is the best among Li Wanruo's many photos recording her political career.In the photo, Li Wanruo, dressed in a red mayor's uniform, stood on tiptoe, followed by her husband Chen Baohe's shoulders, and kissed her husband's cheek warmly and affectionately... That day was after I attended the mayor's inauguration, and I gave my husband a long kiss at the scene.I am expressing my gratitude for his support of my campaign and his special contribution to my campaign.So my daughter named this photo A Kiss Hero.Hahaha, interesting, right?Li Wanruo, who loves to laugh out loud, couldn't help laughing again. There should be such a return! During those unforgettable days, Chen Baohe couldn't tell how much basic work he did for his wife's campaign for Yonglu.several thousand?Thousands?Gnaw, I really can't remember.Today's mayor's husband, Chen Baohe, faced his wife and me, the interviewer, while happily recalling the tense and fierce election campaign back then, shaking his head with a smile.In fact, I know that this hero knows a lot in his heart, and this happy number can only belong to him and his wife.It can only be kept in his broad chest forever... Li Wanruo told me that her husband usually does not like to move or socialize, but for her campaign, he actually learned to deal with all kinds of people.Chinese voters take part in voting, in many people's eyes, it is a feeling of doing voluntary labor for the candidates, so if there is any problem, you are asked to help solve it.What Chen Baohe does is these tedious and small tasks.It was often he who came home from outside to pick up the rice bowl, and another voter called to say that his wife had become a U.S. citizen and could participate in the voter registration.Chen Baohe didn't say anything, only one sentence: OK, you wait, I'll go over and do it for you right away. A single line, I don't know how much Chen Baohe's legs were spent.But what he got back was another vote for the Chinese to participate in politics, and another dignity and rights for the Chinese in the United States.