July 01, 2021

Memorial honoring Chinese American veterans gains landmark status in NYC

By The American Legion
Honor
Memorial honoring Chinese American veterans gains landmark status in NYC
(NYC Parks photo)

Kimlau War Memorial, which was erected by American Legion Post 1291, is first memorial in city to honor Chinese American history. 

New York City now has an official landmark honoring the sacrifice and service of Chinese Americans who served in the U.S. military – a memorial first made possible by American Legion Lt. B.R. Kimlau Chinese Memorial Post 1291.

On June 22, the city’s Landmarks Preservation Committee (LPC) voted to designate the Kimlau War Memorial in Chinatown as an official landmark. It’s New York City’s first landmark related to Chinese American history and sits just a few blocks from the organization responsible for its existence.

In the early 1960s, Post 1291 wanted New York City to honor the Chinese Americans who’d served in the U.S. military. The post put up the money to hire architect Poy G. Lee to design such a memorial and cover the cost of construction. In 1962, the Kimlau War Memorial was dedicated in Chinatown’s Kimlau Square. The memorial, square and post all are named for Lt.  Benjamin Ralph Kimlau, a New York City Chinese American who served as a U.S. Army Air Force bomber pilot in World War II. On March 5, 1944, Kimlau's bomber was attacked by Japanese forces and crashed near Los Negros Island, killing the entire crew.

The post gave the memorial to New York City, which eventually turned it over to the NYC Department of Parks and Recreation. American Legion Past National Commander Fang Wong, a member of Post 1291, believes a rash of hate crimes against Asian Americans in both New York City and the nation led to both the idea of making the memorial a landmark and then designating it so.

“I think someone … probably thought that we should do something to point out that Asians are just as American as anybody else, and maybe we shouldn’t be looking at Asians differently,” Wong said. “That’s where I think this all started.”

Wong and other members of Post 1291’s American Legion Family were given the opportunity to provide testimony via Zoom in favor of designating the memorial a landmark to the LPC.

“When I testified I mentioned that I was in (New York) less than two years when the memorial was dedicated back in ’62,” Wong said. “I vaguely remember something, but I was a little kid. They talked about it in the Chinese newspapers. And as I grew up and went through my junior high school and high school days, and I lived much closer to Chinatown, then you begin to see that (memorial) pretty much every week. You always kind of wonder who is it, how’d it happen, what’s it all about?’

“Not until I joined the Legion … did I begin to read up the history. From there I had a better appreciation of (Benjamin Ralph Kimlau) and what he stands for. He inspired a lot of people like me to do what we need to do to be part of this country. To be American. The Kimlau War Memorial is more than Kimlau himself. It’s basically transcends to the Chinese Americans that are here.  It’s a landmark in a sense that when people come to Chinatown, regardless of nationality, they need to realize Chinese Americans are just Americans. We’re doing what we’re supposed to do to protect and help rebuild this country.”

The nearly 19-feet-tall Kimlau War Memorial honors Chinese Americans who died in U.S. military service during World War II. A granite arch, it features both traditional Chinese and modernist elements. It is inscribed in both Chinese and English with the words “In memory of Americans of Chinese Ancestry who lost their lives in the defense of freedom and democracy.” Benches sit on each side of the arch.

“It is with great pride that we celebrate the designation of the Kimlau War Memorial Arch as a landmark by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission in this, the 76th Anniversary of the founding of the Lt. B.R. Kimlau Chinese Memorial Post 1291 of The American Legion, which was instrumental in the creation of the monument in 1962,” Post 1291 Commander Randall T. Eng said via press release. “For nearly 60 years it has stood as a memorial to those in the Chinese American community who made the ultimate sacrifice in defense of their country, the United States of America. In light of the recent wave of anti-Asian violence and bigotry, the Arch serves as a reminder of the contributions of Asian-Americans to the defense of freedom and democracy in times of great national peril. We thank the commission for this fitting tribute.”

Also via press release, New York City Council member Margaret Chin thanked both Post 1291 and the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation “for maintaining this important symbol of Chinese-American history. The Kimlau War Memorial honors Chinese-American soldiers who, despite racism and discrimination, demonstrated unwavering commitment to defending their country. This arch is such a special part of Chinatown, and I’m so happy that the Landmarks Preservation Commission has voted to designate this monument as a city landmark.”

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