Early seamen from China and later immigrants from Hong Kong and Macao started as laundries and restaurants in Britain, but now a new generation of immigrants are engaged in professional fields, which shows the resilience of China people in coping with environmental changes.
Unwilling to take responsibility for the recent foot-and-mouth disease incident, Chinese people living in Britain took to the streets to express their dissatisfaction and demanded that the government face up to and correct the false reports of the British media; Make a voice belonging to the local minority. Looking back, China immigrants from the initial drift to root-seeking, and even opened up their own world; From the rise and fall and development patterns of several key Chinatowns, we can see the similarities and differences in the faces and lifestyles of new and old immigrants, showing the tenacious vitality of Chinese people in constantly adapting to the changes of the times.
Early British immigrants came from China and four cities in Guangdong. /kloc-In the mid-9th century, China seamen were sold to Britain, and at that time, Liverpool was one of the most prosperous seaports in the world, so they all landed there, and China seamen with a little savings set up laundries. By 1920, there were nearly 100 local Chinese laundries. As a result, Liverpool has the oldest Chinatown in Europe, which has experienced a hundred years of vicissitudes.
At that time, the immigration law did not allow these overseas Chinese to apply for spouses to go to Britain. In order to obtain permanent residency, they can only marry local prostitutes or Irish women. Zheng Junyao, former president of the Siyi Association in Lishi City, said that Siyi people have a long history in Lishi City and are the mainstream of immigrants. On the contrary, Hong Kong has fewer people from the New Territories, which is different from other parts of Britain. After World War II, more and more China sailors settled in Liverpool. However, since 1970s, Lishi's status as a seaport has declined, and Chinatown has lost its former glory.
Huang, vice president of the Chinese General Chamber of Commerce in Liverpool, is a typical overseas Chinese in Liverpool. At present, he comes down in the family. His father Huang Guangrui is an early immigrant from China, and his mother Zhang is over 5 1 year old. She lived in Kaiping when she was young, and later moved to Hong Kong. /kloc-When she was 0/2 years old, she went to Liverpool to study alone. In the 1970s, when she went to university to study business, her family was reunited in England. His wife Xenia Huang is also from Hongkong, and his father is a sailor. The family came to Liverpool in their early years.
After graduating from Huangda University, he was engaged in the catering industry, which was similar to the industry invested by his peers. In 1980s, Hongtu Supermarket was established to provide groceries in China. However, unlike ordinary Hong Kong immigrants, Huang has a master's degree and tries to get out of the catering industry. After entering middle age, Huang started a diversified career, such as setting up a wealthy investment company. In the 1990s, he helped Liverpool to establish the Chinatown Chamber of Commerce and served as the liaison for the Chinese community in Lishi. He also helps the younger generation to enter new technology industries. Huang Yu 1994 was awarded the title of Justice of the Peace and is still an amateur magistrate.
As a liaison between the Liverpool municipal government and the Chinese community, he devoted himself to revitalizing the declining Chinatown and sought funds from the European Union for the construction of the arch. After some efforts, he finally achieved his goal successfully last year, and the archway of China City has now stood in Chinatown.
Huang Rongfu has two daughters and one son. His eldest daughter, Rui Yao, works as a medical physiotherapist in London public hospital, his second daughter, Yan Rui, studies in Imperial University, and his son, Ren Jun, studies in middle school. They are all the third generation who grew up in England. They only know Cantonese and can't write Chinese. They are typical British native Chinese.
In fact, the older generation of immigrants have low knowledge level, poor English and indifference to society; Taking Hong Kong as home and China as the object of loyalty, it is difficult to integrate into the local area. Their activities are often supported by the Chinese Embassy in Britain. However, the new generation born in Britain has long regarded themselves as British, and Hongkong and China are only vague concepts. They strive to get rid of the stereotype of the catering industry and join the professional field.
Overseas Chinese in Liverpool belong to the older generation. They are content with the status quo and rich in the hearts of local people. The development of Liverpool has reached sunset, and new immigrants have little interest in this poor city.
The Chinese population in London is large, but the settlements are scattered, many of them are overseas employees and students, and the mobility is quite large. Before World War II, there was a Chinatown in the East London docklands, where overseas Chinese, like those in Liverpool, were all China sailors. They married foreign women and started a laundry or restaurant to make a living, but after the invention of the washing machine in 1930s, the laundry was gradually eliminated.
After World War II, the ancient Chinatown in East London was destroyed by the war, and the local Chinese turned to the West District for development. In 1960s, West End of London's Chinatown was developed. According to the old overseas Chinese, the current Chinatown is part of the Soho red light district. There used to be street warblers everywhere, and at first there were only a few small restaurants in China.
Chinatown in the west is a prosperous golden zone, and Chinatown in London is located in a strategic location in the tourist shopping area, with a constant stream of tourists all year round. In the 1960s, the New Territories of Hong Kong was still a poor rural area, and it was not easy for villagers to make a living. At that time, Hong Kong indigenous residents were automatically granted the right of abode in the United Kingdom and were free to enter and leave the country without applying for any visa. Farmers went to London with their savings and became a new force in China's food industry.
MiltonKeynes, a central city different from the antique capital, has also become a favorite place for new immigrants in Hong Kong in recent years. It takes about 45 minutes by train from central London. The town is modern in design, and the new houses and villages are independent buildings.
This new town, known as "Little Hong Kong", attracted many civil servants who retired early around 1997, especially the staff of the police political department dissolved by the British Hong Kong government. Some new development zones are called "spy villages" because there are spies from the former political department. It is estimated that there are more than 8,000 Hong Kong immigrants in Milton, with a population of 200,000, accounting for about 5% of the population. Most of the new immigrants here belong to the rich class and own luxury cars, which makes the local people jealous. Civil servants settled in Little Hong Kong, Midun Jian.
Milton Kennedy was able to attract a large number of civil servants, mainly because some retired police officers persuaded their colleagues to take Milton Kennedy as their foothold after becoming real estate agents, thus spreading the good name of "Little Hong Kong". However, Milton's strong employment opportunities are another attraction.
People familiar with the local Chinese community say that these former civil servants and policemen just attached their feelings to mahjong, and their lives were monotonous and narrow, failing to integrate into the local society. Some newcomers even fell into a gloomy situation. Some people can't stand going back to Hong Kong, but most of them still settle down and take their children's education as an important consideration. These new immigrants came to Britain with a large pension, and after buying the property, they still had money to do some small businesses in restaurants and takeout shops.
Macao, which is adjacent to Hong Kong, did not seem to have any immigration tide after it returned to China at the end of 1999. But in fact, many Macao-born Chinese and Portuguese-born people hold EU passports and can freely enter and leave the EU 15 countries, and their immigration conditions are superior to those of Hong Kong people. As a result, Macao immigrants kept flowing out.
If Macao people intend to emigrate and aim at Europe, the first choice is not Portugal, but Britain. This may be related to the fact that most of them know English and have higher job opportunities in Britain. As long as they don't care about their positions, they can always find jobs. Northampton, located in the middle of England, attracts a large number of Chinese in Macau because of its low housing prices. Northampton is a small town with a population of about 200,000. Macau's gambling industry is booming. After these new immigrants come to Britain, it is easy for them to make a living in local casinos, especially the "Dutch officials" at the gambling table.
In recent years, a large number of illegal immigrants from Fujian have arrived in Britain, bringing a new look to the Chinese community. In recent years, a large group of unkempt China people often gather in Chinatown in London, attracting the attention of the police. In order to survive, they don't mind being kitchen workers and receiving too little salary.
Some people think that in the foreseeable future, Fujian immigrants will replace the New Territories people in Hong Kong and become the mainstream of Chinese society in Britain. When the new generation of immigrants make great efforts in various fields, I believe that the British Chinese community in the 2 1 century will have a brand-new look.