Heroes Remember — Chinese-Canadian Veterans
Uncommon valour. Reluctant heroes. Unsung soldiers.
These are the phrases that describe the Chinese-Canadian men and women who took part in the Second World War. It is a little known story and reminds us of racist times when the government simply didn't want Chinese-Canadians in the war effort. Regrettably, it is also a story that is fast-disappearing as our war Veterans reach their late eighties and their remembrances pass with them.
Most Canadians cannot even fathom there was a time in this country when Chinese-Canadians were denied the right to vote and banned from entering the professions. But this was the reality for the young men and women of Chinese-Canadian descent, the majority born on Canadian soil, at the outbreak of the Second World War. Why then, did they volunteer and risk their lives for a country that denied them the fundamental rights we now take for granted?
You are invited to share the recollections of these courageous men and women. Heroes Remember presents twenty-one war Veterans who speak candidly of their wartime efforts. Some of their stories have seldom been told because they evoke dark, buried memories, while others brim with a youthful “can-do” spirit. There are also stories from the politically astute; those determined to win the vote for Chinese-Canadians by proving their loyalty and serving. Together, these remarkable recollections lay testimony to the Chinese-Canadians who knowingly or not, created fundamental political and social change in Canada.
Table of Contents
- John Ko Bong member of Operation Oblivion
- Mary Ko Bong an instrument mechanic
- Neill Chan deciphered communications
- Paul Chan served in the Second World War
- Roy Chan served in the Second World War
- Bill Chong served as Agent 50...
- George Chow trained as a gunner
- Marshall Chow a wireless operator
- Douglas Jung represented CA at UN
- Daniel Lee an aircraft mechanic
- Peggy Lee served in the home front
- Alex Louie trained in India to parachute
- Albert Mah flew 420 return trips from...
- Cedric Mah a pioneering bush pilot
- Roy Mah a pillar of the community
- Gordie Quan full military career
- Andrew Wong in US Merchant Marines
- Frank Wong in Holland for the liberation
- Henry Albert (Hank) Wong
- Larry Wong in Newfoundland Regiment
- Mary Laura Wong (Mah) a teletype operator
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