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Urban Dreams: New York and Shanghai

New York - Shanghai Student Forum

Sister Cities What do New
York and Shanghai have in common?

My City What is life like in
New York and Shanghai?

Urban Legends What do
people say about your city?

Cities of the Future How can youth change the city?

What kinds of dreams or hopes for a better life brings people to the city?

Disposable Planet and Urban Planet
BBC News

Cities Without Slums
The City Alliance

Explore Your City and Others Google Earth

How do you think newcomers can incorporate parts of their homeland into their new life?

How do immigrant populations contribute to urban life?

WATCH hip hop artist Taiyo Na and NYC students talking about their heritage

Cities, fundamentally, are gatherings of people. Major metropolises depend on vast numbers of people willing to leave their homes and seek a new life. What draws people to cities? What do newcomers contribute to a city’s vibrant culture?

Watch video of New York students and hip hop artist Taiyo Na discussing their families' first arrival to the city, and how they maintain their heritage today.

If you live in a city, consider the reasons why your family came to the city. It may be that your family moved


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last year and you have personal experiences to share. Or,
you may talk to a parent or grandparent about when and how
they or their ancestors came to live in a city:

When and why did they come?
Where did they come from and what was their reason for leaving their former home?
What was happening in your city at the times the newcomers arrived?
How might their dreams or hopes have differed from the reality of life in the city?

New York City students sharing about their ancestors

Students in New York shared some of their urban dreams by placing profiles of their ancestors on a timeline at Asia Society. Read some of the stories they shared below.

What stories do your family, friends, and neighbors have about their urban dreams?

"My ancestor came to New York from Guangdong, China in 1937 when she was 20. She escaped daily bombings during the Japanese invasion of China by forging documents and running to America with her husband. They hoped to find a better life and a home to raise a family." - Heather

"My father left Belfast in Northern Ireland in 1970 by himself at the age of 18 to escape the 'troubles.' He left with nothing in his pockets. He was looking for a peaceful place he could start a family in, but a place that was still exciting--not boring, but not too dangerous." - Zach

"My brother left Malaysia in 1992, by himself, to further his education here in the US. He was looking for an opportunity to find success by starting a business in the US." - Ady

"My ancestors came from Cuba in 1966 at the age of 26 to escape Communism. They hoped to find freedom and fairness in New York City." - Jonathan

Taiyo Na, poet/rapper/actor and native New Yorker, is a founder of the feedback poets collective, the legendary (re)collection open mics (2000-2003), Mauritius (Time Machine: the band), a curator for the Sulu Series at Galapagos Arts Space, and is a host for the 2006 NAMIC Vision Award-winning Cinema AZN show (AZN TV). He's been featured in many recordings, publications and films including The Whole Heart Mixtape (2004/5), The Quotable Rebel Anthology edited by Teishan Latner (2005) and the lauded Purity Soundtrack by NaRhee Ahn (2006). Throughout the U.S., he has graced the stage with the best of them, including Maya Angelou, Helen Zia, The X-ecutioners and more.

A native New Yorker raised by an overworked single mother and the Struggle, Tai is a consummate City boy working on many projects including his next album Moonlight City. People always ask Tai, "What are you? Chinese? Korean? Japanese? Pinoy? Vietnamese? Nah, I got it- Tibetan? Mexican? Half-black half-Asian?" He's somewhere in between a few of those, but Tai finally replies to the controversy right here:

“I'm here. In the present moment, one with the Deathless. Leave fear, be here, everybody see clear.”