Jim Wong-Chu

Jim Wong-Chu (朱藹信; January 28, 1949 – July 11, 2017) was a Canadian poet, author, editor, and historian.[1] He was a community organizer known for his work in establishing organizations that contributed to multicultural arts and culture in Canada.[2] He also co-edited several anthologies of Asian Canadian writers. He died on July 11, 2017.

Early life

Born in Hong Kong, Jim Wong-Chu came to Canada in 1953 to live with his aunt and uncle as a paper son.[3] Wong-Chu attended the Vancouver School of Art (which is now known as Emily Carr University of Art + Design) from 1975-1981, majoring in photography and design from 1975-1981.[4] He began working at Canada Post as a letter-carrier in 1975, a position which he would hold until his retirement in 2013.

During his time at the Vancouver School of Art, Wong-Chu was involved with the CFRO-FM radio program called "Pender Guy" on culture and assimilation.[5] From 1985-1987 he took creative writing at the University of British Columbia, of which his writing from his classes there eventually were compiled for his first book of poetry.

Asian Canadian literature

Wong-Chu was among the first authors of Asian descent with the likes of SKY Lee and Paul Yee who challenged the Canadian literary establishment and questioned why it was there were few Canadian writers of Asian descent despite their long presence in Canada. Without much guidance, these writers began to experiment with different forms of fiction and decided to form informal writing networks to encourage other Asian Canadians to hone their craft and eventually to sending their writings to publishers. Wong-Chu's book Chinatown Ghosts (Arsenal Pulp Press, 1986; now out of print) was one of the first poetry books by an Asian Canadian writer. One of Wong-Chu’s most successful projects took happened in the library stacks of the University of British Columbia, where he researched the entire inventory of books and journals, in search writings dating back ten to twenty years. With the goal of mapping all Asian Canadian writers and their materials, he helped compiled them into an anthology of Asian Canadian literature. Taking the twenty best works, Wong-Chu and co-editor Bennett Lee published an anthology called Many Mouthed Birds. One of the short stories included Wayson Choy's piece, who later expanded it into the award-winning Vancouver based book The Jade Peony.

In 1996, Wong-Chu co-founded the Asian Canadian Writers' Workshop Society. The organization fundraised for the establishment of the Emerging Writer Award, of which winners of the prize included Rita Wong, Madeleine Thien, Catherine Hernandez, and Philip Huynh. Wong-Chu shortly afterwards established a newsletter and became its first editor Ricepaper. It evolved into a literary journal that published a number of Asian Canadian writers and topics relating to culture and identity. In 2013, Wong-Chu founded LiterASIAN Festival which is the first Asian writers festival in North America.[6] In 2017, the award was changed to the Jim Wong-Chu Emerging Writer Award, in honour of Wong-Chu's legacy and contributions to Canadian writers of Asian descent. The winner in 2017 was Karla Comanda and in 2018, Jamie Liew.[7][8]

Books
  • Chinatown Ghosts (1986);[9] reissued by Arsenal Pulp Press in 2018.

Anthologies
  • Many-Mouthed Birds: Contemporary Writing by Chinese Canadians (1991)[10]
  • Swallowing Clouds: An Anthology of Chinese-Canadian Poetry (1999)[11]
  • Strike the Wok: A New Chinese-Canadian Anthology(2003)[12]
  • AlliterAsian: Twenty Years of Ricepaper Magazine (2015)[13]

List of awards
  • Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal (2013)
  • Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal, Department of Canadian Heritage
  • Canada Post Silver Postmark Award
  • Media Human Rights Award of the B'nai B'rith of Canada (1980)
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References
  1. Jim Wong-Chu Obituary. The Province, July 18, 2017.
  2. "Obituary: Jim Wong-Chu was a tireless promoter of Asian-Canadian writing". The Globe and Mail, July 30, 2017.
  3. "Remembering Jim Wong-Chu (1949-2017), founder of Ricepaper Magazine" Ricepaper, July 12, 2017.
  4. Jim Wong-Chu Photographs 1973-1981: People, Place, Politics Centre A
  5. Jim Wong-Chu: photographs of Chinatown through Chinese Canadian eyes. The Vancouver Sun, October 3, 2014.
  6. Vancouver's LiterASIAN festival put spotlight on a new generation of writers. Quill & Quire, October 8, 2014.]
  7. Filipino Poet wins literary award. Philippine Canadian News. September 26, 2017
  8. Jamie Chai Yun Liew the winner of the 2018 Jim Wong-Chu Emerging Writers Award for fiction. Asian Canadian Writers' Workshop. July 19, 2019
  9. Chinatown Ghosts. Arsenal Pulp Press
  10. Many Mouthed Birds. Douglas & McIntyre
  11. Swallowing Clouds: An Anthology of Chinese-Canadian Poetry. Arsenal Pulp Press
  12. Strike the Wok: A New Chinese-Canadian Anthology. Mawenzi House
  13. AlliterAsian: Twenty Years of Ricepaper Magazine. Arsenal Pulp Press, 2015.
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