焦點人物: Rose Cheung 方光梅

(The following text is an excerpt from the book Chinese Americans in Irvine 1971-2021.)

2019 was the sesquicentennial of the completion of the transcontinental railroad that connected the east and west coasts of the United States. Not one of the Chinese laborers who worked on it under extreme conditions appears in any of the official photographs. In 1882, the US enacted the Chinese Exclusion Act to prohibit all immigration of Chinese laborers.

These historical facts portraying discrimination, deprecation and willful amnesia hit Rose Cheung like a ton of bricks when she immigrated to the U.S. in late 1970. There was no denying that Los Angeles in the 1980s was booming and held high the multiculturalism banner. It was in that atmosphere that Rose Cheung, in the interest of promoting ethnic harmony, decided to join the ranks of volunteers devoted to cultural and community service organizations in Orange County.

In 1984 Rose and her husband, Maxwell Cheung, together with a number of Chinese American friends sympathetic to the cause, joined hands to spotlight the contributions made by the over 10,000 Chinese railroad laborers. To acknowledge these hard-working predecessors with gratitude, they held the first such large-scale fundraiser in Orange County: “Iron Spike”. More than a thousand guests, dressed to the nines, attended. Everyone was deeply moved by the historians’ slide shows and topical lectures. Even today, many still enjoy recounting the event. The backgrounds of the attendees exemplified how Chinese Americans have penetrated diverse fields including science, technology, engineering, education, law, medicine, economics, politics, etc., since the 20th century.

To strengthen her ability to express herself in English and better equip herself for soliciting corporate sponsorships or briefing collaborative organizations, Rose joined Toastmasters International, which provides training in various forms of public speaking.

Rose has volunteered at the Irvine Chinese School and the Bowers Museum. She worked with Linda Lau, then a board member at the Bowers Museum, serving as co-chair of the Historical and Cultural Foundation of Orange County. She also served as chair of the Multicultural Arts Council of Orange County. Both were multicultural, non-profit organizations aimed at promoting understanding and harmony among ethnic groups through cultural, historical and artistic exchange.

Over the past year or so, due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, Chinese Americans have not only had to be cautious to avoid contracting the virus but have also had to be on guard against callous hate speech or bodily attacks. Rose stresses that as Chinese Americans, we need to more actively participate in American society and forcefully make our voices heard, so that we can achieve equality and prosperity for all.

In 1989 the Historical & Cultural Foundation of Orange County sponsored a Kaleidoscope Festival on the grounds of Fluor Corporation in Irvine, for which Rose served as Co-Chair. Huge stages were erected and different ethnic groups were invited to provide performances. Indoors, there were halls to showcase cultural exhibits, foods, clothing, toys, etc. The turnout was unprecedented. Kaleidoscope was repeated in 1991 and 1993, with a change of venue to UCI campus. In 1998 it was jointly held with Huntington Beach City at the newly constructed pier plaza, again with Rose as Chair. The two-day weekend event attracted over 100,000 people. It was to be the model for the Irvine Global Village Festival in the years to come. When the City of Irvine in 1991 founded its Multicultural Commission to promote cultural exchange and communication, Rose was the Chinese American representative and served as an advisor on the Commission.

Following its opening in 1990, the Irvine Barclay Theater needed to bring forth high-quality drama and arts to enrich audiences in the greater Irvine area. In 1991 Rose and a number of like-minded close friends established Bravi 9, Inc., which was a non-profit organization that sponsored local and overseas performances staged at the Irvine Barclay Theater or in more intimate salon settings for music, arts and culture.

A reading enthusiast, Rose joined the Irvine Book Club (IBC) to indulge her pleasure of reading. The book club has a 25-year history and over 100 members wellversed in various fields. She was IBC president for three years, from 2018 to 2021. It is the largest-scale book club in Irvine and continues to grow and prosper.

With over forty years of volunteer experience, Rose feels her zeal for public service was motivated by the example of her late father, Fang Zhi. An elder in the Kuomintang, he studied in Japan in his early years. Gifted with superior political wisdom, he was recruited by the Chen brothers (Li-fu and Guo-fu) into the CC Clique of the KMT. At the conclusion of the Korean War he was appointed by Republic of China President Chiang Kaishek to go to the North Korean P.O.W camp. Fully aware of the possibility that his target audience could take a treacherous turn, by sheer eloquence, perseverance, and a keen sense of humanity, he managed to persuade and welcome 14,000 prisoners of war to start a new life in Taiwan. Over the years of promoting multicultural exchange while participating in the dominant culture, Rose often takes solace in recalling her father’s courage and empathy in pursuit of the common good. (Written by Rose Cheung)

(以下文字摘錄自《爾灣華裔紀實1971-2021》一書)

2019 年是美國東西橫貫鐵路落成 150 週年紀念， 然而當年艱辛參與建築美西太平洋鐵道的主力， 12,000 名華工，在 1869 年 5 月 10 日峻工當日歷史性的大合照上卻見不到任何影子；更甚者，13 年後的 1882 年，美國竟針對華人通過了具有懲戒形式的「排華法案」！

上述這些歷史充分顯示對在美華人的歧視、貶低與遺忘，這是 70 年代末期自台灣初來乍到美國的方光梅所受到的震撼教育！然而，她也親自見證到 80 年代美國洛杉磯高舉著「多元文化主義」極盛時期。也就是在那樣複雜又矛盾的氛圍裡，為了不斷促進種族的和諧，方光梅開始投身在橙縣文化及公益組織義工的行列。

1984 年方光梅和夫婿張文昌（Maxwell Cheung） 在橙縣與眾多志同道合的華裔友人，為彰顯以及感念上萬名 19 世紀修築鐵路華工與胼手胝足的移民先輩們對美國的貢獻，乃共同積極投入心力，以「鐵漢金釘」 為名，與橙縣華人們首度舉辦了大型籌款晚會。當日上千位與會者個個盛裝出席，無論是學者們的幻燈影片介紹史實，或是專題演講，全場來賓無不深深動容，多年後的今天仍為與會者們所津津樂道。從當時全場來賓們的背景，可以反映出二十世紀以來的華裔已深入科技、教育、法律、醫學、經濟、政治等等不同領域，而且開花結果。

為了加強英語表達及演說的能力，方光梅曾參加國際建言社（Toastmasters International）的訓練，定期演練不同場合的公開演講，以加強其個人向主流社會企業爭取贊助，或是對合作組織進行英語簡報。

方光梅曾在爾灣中文學校以及寶爾博物館擔任義工，與當時寶爾博物館董事劉梁一詩合作，先後出任橙縣文史基金會理事，以及橙縣多元文化藝術協會 （Multicultural Arts Council of Orange County） 主席， 二者皆為跨族裔非營利組織，期盼透過文化、歷史、 藝術的交流，增進多元族裔間的認識與和諧。

自 2020 年開始因為新冠肺炎的全球爆發，美國亞裔受到無妄的歸責之災，因此除了需擔心防疫以外， 還得防範種族仇恨的人身攻擊。方光梅深深感受到亞裔必須更積極融入美國社會，主動發聲，才能達到與各族裔平起平坐，共存共榮的目標。

1989 年橙縣文史基金會在爾灣市 Fluor 公司舉辦提倡多元文化的萬花筒節慶（Kaleidoscope Festival）， 方光梅出任共同主席，在 Fluor 戶外場地搭建巨型舞台，邀請各族裔團體提供表演節目，以及宣揚世界不同文化的室內展示廳。1991 及 1993 年萬花筒節慶場地換到 UCI 爾灣加大，1998 年與杭廷頓市政府聯合舉辦於該市新建的碼頭廣場活動，方光梅再度擔任主席，週末兩天的活動吸引超過十萬人潮參與，成為日後「爾灣地球村」節慶的範本。爾灣市政府在 1991 年成立跨文化諮詢委員會時，方光梅代表華人出任了諮詢委員。

1990 年，爾灣市巴克萊劇院落成，為了引進高品質戲劇藝文活動，以豐富大爾灣社區人們的精神生活與人文素養，在 1991 年，方光梅與好友們各展所長， 共同創辦了一非營利組織「三三藝苑」（Bravi 9 Inc.）。多年來，「三三藝苑」舉辦過本地的以及海外引進的演藝團體，以及各式大小不一的音樂藝術文化活動，聲名遠播。

喜愛文學的方光梅，為求更進一步的享受到閱讀的樂趣，參加了有 25年歷史的爾灣讀書會，並於 2018-2021 期間出任會長。爾灣讀書會人才濟濟，擁有一百多位會員，是南加州最具規模且參與率最高的一個讀書團體。

超過 40 年的義工資歷，方光梅認為，自己熱心公益的動力來自父親方治的身教。國民黨元老方治先生早年留學日本，以其傑出的政治智慧與過人的行事能力，深為陳果夫、陳立夫兩位先生所倚重，分別擔任過重慶及上海市黨部主委。政府遷台後，1954 年受蔣中正總統委派，於韓戰結束時，以國府代表名義，不計個人安危，親赴危機四伏的戰俘營中，策動了一萬名反共義士來到台灣定居。在方光梅印象中的父親方治先生，是一位公而忘私，凡遇上困難棘手的事，會更加精神奕奕，赴湯蹈火，迎難而上的人。事實上， 她在美國投入主流社會，推動多元文化與藝術交流的過程中，就是以父親為公益鍥而不捨的精神榜樣而自勉。（方光梅撰文）