Portrait of John-1

I met John as he stood between two stone dragons giving Taiwanese tourists directions to an historical Chinatown location. John was one of the luckiest people I ever met: he was able to secure a ticket on a commercial aircraft to leave Vietnam three days before the end of the Vietnam War. He flew to Taiwan, lived there for 7 years and then immigrated to the United States in 1982.

John, being retired, worked part-time at the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association of Los Angeles on Broadway in Chinatown, Los Angeles, California, USA. John explained that  Chinatown had 27 different different groups that united to maintain security and elevate the status of the community.

Walking around Chinatown, before I bumped into John, I had noticed security guards just about on each block, and after speaking to John, I understood how this came to be.

Image Credits: Bat-Ami Gordin © 2017 all rights reserved. Credit if you use it, please.