Chinatown: Immigrants In America

Chinatown: Immigrants In America Synopsis

Each year some 20,000 Chinese immigrants arrive in New York from Taiwan and Hong Kong. Though few speak English, all know one word--"Chinatown"--the most crowded neighborhood in New York City. Tourism is the major industry, but beneath a veneer of firework-filled celebrations are a people desperately struggling against language and cultural barriers. Poverty dominates. Chinatown's dilapidated housing is the oldest in the city. Tuberculosis and diabetes rates are three times the national average. Chinatown: Immigrants in America also examines the plight of illegal aliens; the elderly who are fearful of what America is doing to their traditions and to their children; the family associations; the hand laundries; the herb doctors; and the changing attitudes toward Mainland China. The exploitation and the dreams of the Chinese immigrant are similar to those of other immigrant groups who have come to America. But the road out of the ghetto is narrowing and becoming increasingly treacherous. Budget cutbacks are decimating the social services that have helped previous generations and ethnic groups. This documentary portrays a dignified people struggling for survival in their new homeland.