When I walked into Jeb's vegetable market, I couldn't find the familiar seafood shop I had been to. A closer look reveals that the seafood shop is closed, and people go to the shop empty and unrecognizable. The economic downturn, the decrease of tourists, the difficulty in doing business and the increase in store rents have led to the closure of many shops and restaurants in Chinatown, and even some century-old shops can't escape this fate, which makes people sad. If you pay attention, it is not difficult to find the changes in Chinatown everywhere. Two high-end luxury apartment buildings have sprung up in Xishida Street, which indicates that the aristocratic tide in Chinatown is surging and unstoppable.
? For more than a century, new york's Chinatown has been the first stop for new Chinese immigrants to enter the New World of the United States, and it is also their cozy nest in a foreign country. Especially the new immigrants with low education or poor English can easily find jobs in garment factories and restaurants in Chinatown, where "men cook and women dress" and start a new life in a foreign country quite smoothly.
? The "9. 1 1" terrorist attack dealt a heavy blow to New York's Chinatown adjacent to the WTO. As the pillar of the traditional economy, the garment industry bears the brunt, and garment factories have closed down, resulting in a large number of workers losing their jobs. When the clothing industry collapsed, other industries complementary to the clothing industry, such as catering industry, were also implicated, and collapsed like dominoes.
? Losing the job of earning a living, the aristocratization brought by "rebuilding Chinatown" has accelerated the soaring rent in Chinatown, and Chinatown is no longer a comfortable place for new immigrants. Even the old overseas Chinese who have lived in Chinatown for many years have to move out of Chinatown because they can't afford the rising rent or because of the malicious forced relocation of the landlord.
? New immigrants stopped and old overseas Chinese moved out, which made the number of students in a junior high school in the center of Chinatown drop from more than 2,000 to less than 1000 in just a few years. With the decrease of students, some teachers have to leave the school where they have worked for many years and find another way out.
? Not long ago, I met a fellow villager who went to work on the subway. She used to work in a clothing factory, but it's gratifying that people in their fifties can still earn their own living. After the closure of the garment factory, she had no choice but to follow the crowd and join the ranks of home care like other garment workers. How difficult is it for the elderly without English background to learn English in nursing training classes? The villagers are telling the hardships, and their eyes are full of tears. She showed me the notes of the nursing training class, laughing at herself that "an old cow goes up a tree" and she couldn't remember anything she learned.
? However, she took the time to ask me about the correct pronunciation of some English words and sentences, and then read them carefully word by word. I was moved by her attentive expression. An old and frail woman spent time reviewing notes and memorizing new English words in the subway in the morning. Isn't this the spiritual portrayal of China immigrants' survival and perseverance in adversity? With this spirit, what difficulties can't be overcome? What difficulties can't be overcome? When the subway leaves the underground tunnel and jumps on the ground, the morning sun shines into the carriage, and the carriage suddenly becomes clear. I suddenly felt very warm and saw hope.
? The environment will not change automatically to meet people's wishes, but people can change themselves to adapt to the changes in the environment. In the face of difficulties, people are sometimes forced to exert their infinite potential so as not to wait for death.
? The reduced number of junior high schools used the extra space to set up new senior high schools, which not only kept the number of students, but also provided new employment opportunities for teachers, killing two birds with one stone. The white-haired old headmaster, who has served in the school for more than 30 years, recited Jeff Moss's poem "On the other side of the door" at the faculty meeting of the whole school to encourage everyone.
On the other side of the door
I can be a different me,
Smart, brave, interesting or strong
Just like one wants.
There is nothing difficult for me to do,
There is nothing I can't explore.
Because anything can happen.
On the other side of the door.
On the other side of the door
I don't have to go alone.
If you come, we can sail the big ship.
Fly to where the wind blows.
Wherever we go, it's almost certain.
We will find what we are looking for.
Because anything can happen.
On the other side of the door.
On the other side of the door, I can be a different me.
Smart, brave, funny or strong,
You can have as many as you want.
There's nothing difficult for me to do,
I can't explore without fields,
Because anything can happen,
On the other side of the door.
On the other side of the door,
I don't have to go alone.
If you come, we can sail a big ship.
Sail before the wind.
Wherever we arrive, we are almost certain.
We will find what we are looking for.
Because anything can happen.
On the other side of the door. )
With the economic recession and the forced transformation of the community, it is undeniable that Chinatown in Manhattan is facing a great crisis. In the face of crisis and predicament, people inevitably appear desperate and think that they have reached a dead end. However, if you push open the closed door at the end of the alley, there may be a way to continue on the other side of the door, full of infinite possibilities and beautiful scenery. So we need not be too pessimistic. Difficulties sometimes hide new opportunities and bring new ways out. The decline of clothing industry and catering industry in China may give birth to new industries; The aristocratization of Chinatown can attract more young people and other ethnic groups to integrate, thus changing the bad image of Chinatown that has always been gloomy and complacent; Manhattan Chinatown was forced to transform, and the Chinese chose the land of life, which will certainly promote the further development and prosperity of several other Chinese communities, such as Flushing in Queens and the Eighth Avenue in Brooklyn ... This is not a bad thing.
? Looking back a century ago, under the pressure of the Chinese Exclusion Act, our Chinese ancestors migrated from west to east in the American continent, established Chinatown in new york with bare hands, and began to take root. Over the past 100 years, it has stood up despite the wind and rain. Today, as long as we China people uphold the spirit of perseverance and creativity, and unite and help each other, we will certainly be able to tide over the difficulties and continue to create a bright future.