View 1980s Garment Factory Footage

Teach about community action through a 1980s video of a Chinatown garment factory.

Students do the work of historians with 1980’s footage from Chinatown garment shops.  They are introduced to the Wong family who immigrated from China to the US in 1965 and study how Mrs. Wong used the union to advocate for her rights in the factory.  To deepen their knowledge about how the Wongs worked together as a family and with their community, students can read the Wong family article.

Important Information

What will students understand through this lesson?

• There are many common myths about immigrants and immigration. Among them are: that immigrants are taking jobs from American citizens, that certain immigrant groups have negative characteristics based on their cultural or religious identity.
• Im/migrants bring everyday objects and traditions with them when they come to a new place to continue their cultural practices and find connection and comfort.
• Im/migrants adapt to new living conditions and types of communities, often with creativity and resourcefulness. Communities help people meet their needs in a new place.
• Neighborhoods with many immigrants and their children develop because they provide work, support, access to culture, less racism and discrimination, and friendship. While adult immigrants often spend time with people who speak their home language, children often make friends across difference.
• Cities like New York, and neighborhoods like the Lower East Side, have many jobs for newcomers and immigrants. Many of these jobs are difficult, but work can be a place where people find community to continue their cultural or religious practices, and also where they influence and impact American society, culture(s), and economy.

Primary Source

Related Family Story