Community members gathered in Angell Hall Sunday evening to eat, connect and listen to panelists at “Detroit Chinatown Visions,” an event featuring the Detroit Chinatown Vision Committee discussing new developments and a proposed revival of Detroit’s Pan-Asian neighborhood.

The Asian American & Pacific Islander Heritage Month event was presented by the Office of Multi-Ethnic Student Affairs and Trotter Multicultural Center. It featured food, discussion of the history of Detroit’s Chinatown and a screening of “Big Fight in Little Chinatown,” a documentary on the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on Chinese communities all over the country.

The DCVC is working to create a new center for Detroit’s Pan-Asian community after the original two were destroyed in the 1960s as part of Detroit’s urban renewal initiatives. DCVC member Roland Hwang, founder of American Citizens for Justice, began the panel by reviewing Detroit’s first and second Chinatown neighborhoods. Hwang said the original community was torn down when the Detroit Housing Commission labeled it as a slum in need of demolition. One prevalent restaurant in the neighborhood — Chung’s Chop Suey — relocated to Cass Ave in an attempt to create a second Chinatown. However, the neighborhood largely ended after the business closed in 2000.

Jacob Molewyk, DCVC co-chair of Asian outreach, said the committee began after the 2023 demolition of the Shanghai Cafe and the Chinese Merchants Association building at 3143 Cass Ave., a cornerstone of Detroit’s Asian community. 

DCVC member Leslie Tom said the committee hopes to commemorate the history lost due to the gentrification of Detroit neighborhoods.

“There is a lot of pressure to kind of gentrify these areas, or lose the memory of how these immigrant communities have created these enclaves in these cities,” Tom said. “And when you make these disappear, you sort of lose the identity and the memories of your origin story, and how your culture thrived and survived in this country.”

In July 2025, the committee hosted its first block party to celebrate the revival of Detroit’s Chinatown and Asian American heritage, featuring vendors, art and performances. Tom said she is excited for DCVC’s second block party planned for July 25, the anniversary of the day the merchant association building was knocked down. 

“I feel like it’s so beautiful,” Tom said. “I’ve not seen a community with so many multi-generational skills come together and really start to reclaim what the space is and reclaim that history. To start to rethink what the future of this space could be, expanding into a Pan-Asian identity, rather than just a Chinatown.”

Lisa Yee-Litzenberg, DCVC co-chair of Asian outreach, said the organization focuses on community development and neighborhood planning through its non-profit arm, the Chinatown Redevelopment Corporation.

“What we’re doing is doing a lot of work to do strategic planning,” Yee-Litzenberg said. “We’re really listening to the community. We’re building from the ground up. So we’ve been partnering a lot with the local community residents (and) the businesses. …We’ve been  hearing from a lot of other Chinatowns around the country and even in Canada and elsewhere, to kind of see how they built themselves up and the challenges that they’re facing.”

Hwang concluded by reemphasizing the organization’s mission to preserve Pan-Asian culture in Detroit before opening the panel to audience questions.

“Ethnic enclaves, particularly Japantowns, Koreatowns, Chinatowns, etc., are not easily movable or replaceable, and they should flourish in the name of cultural preservation,” Hwang said. “People should recognize that other cities do a better job of preservation and recognizing their historical significance. I think that that’s part of our mission: to make sure that people realize the importance of recognizing past neighborhoods and cultures.”

In an interview with the Michigan Daily, LSA senior Tyler Nguyen, AA&PI Heritage Month and event co-coordinator, said he encourages students to engage with local history and community efforts.

“If you’re an individual who is wondering about your place, there is actually history right at your fingertips, right at your doorstep and right on campus,” Nguyen said. “Acknowledging that is a really important step as we find more permanent and fulfilling answers to the questions we have about our community.”

Daily Staff Reporter Hayley Weiss can be reached at hayweiss@umich.edu.

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