Draft: March 20, 2000 “In Search of Roots” Program: Constructing Identity Through Family History Research and A Journey to Ancestral Land Albert Cheng and Him Mark Lai “The In Search of Roots program has brought me one step closer in the course of discovering who I am. In a process that began only four years ago, this has been a year lon g, life changing experien ce that has redefined who I am and forever changed my perspective on life as a Chinese in America,” wrote Ryan Kwok, an 1999 intern. Every summer since 1991, a group of young Chinese Americans like Ryan Kwok, embark on a journey to search for their ancestral villages in China after they have researched f amily and archival records in the U.S. The interns, ages 16 to 25 , are part of the “In Search of Roots” program spon sored by the Chinese Culture Foundation of San Francisco (CCF), Chinese Historical Society of America (CHSA), and Overseas Chinese Affairs Office in Guangdong Province of the People’s Republic of China. After nine years of experience, the program coordinators (the authors of this paper) discovered that the interns, during the course of searching for their family heritage, were inevitably constructing theiridentities as Americans of Chinese ancestry. Most interns have come away w ith an increased awareness of their legacies in America and in China. Many have reached a realization that their identity is indisputably Chines e American and different from Chinese in China. Additionally the program provid es the interns an opportunity to “deconstruct” America’s damaging portrayals of the Chinese and to construct their own cultural definers and identities. This paper focuses on five areas, namely: overview of the program, its evolution and history, the program structure and curriculum, the journey to China, and the impact on the interns and program coordinators findings. Program Overview The program involves a year-long commitment on researching one’s Chinese American family history and genealogy. After exploring their Chinese roots in America, participants explo re their roots in China through searching for and visiting their paternal and/or maternal ancestral villages in the Pearl River Delta region of Guangdong Province, home to the majority of Chinese who have migrated to the United States since the mi d-nineteenth century. The program culminates in a Ch inese New Yearexhibition of the interns’ research at the Chinese Culture Center in San Francisco, where the participants share what they have learned with family, friends, and community. The overarching intent of the program is to provide the participants with an awareness and appreciation of the totality of the Chinese American experience through research on family history and genealogy. Consequently th ey can gain a b etter understanding of their heritage which ultimately help define their identities as Chinese Americans. The program has five major outco mes. At the conclusion o f the project the interns will construct a family tree with related familial history (including an essay, photographs and artifacts) to be included as part of a group family history and genealogy exhibit; expand their knowledge of the historical development of China and the Guangdong Province with emphasis on the peoples of the Pearl RiverDelta region; deepen their understanding of the history of the Chinese in America; explore the resources of research facilities, such as the records of the National Archives; and ultimately visit their paternal and/or maternal ancestral villages in China. In October of each year, the CCF circulates recruitment brochures and applications to all the major high schools, colleges, universities, community organizations, and other public facilities. Applicants are interviewed and screened and approximately ten candidates are chosen at the beginning ofthe year. In the spring the select ed interns attend a series of n ine Saturday seminars. They also b egin
