Chinese-Americans use modern ways to support Trump
Jianyu Hou Freelancer based in Cleveland, OH, USA
In the past, Chinese-Americans were not very active in expressing our own political stance. One reason was that the population of Chinese-Americans was much less than other communities, and most of them had to go to school or work during the week days. As a result, we cannot gather as many demonstrators as other races to the street. But as more Chinese-Americans getting financially stable after years of hard work, we can use high-technology to let our be voice heard by more people, especially during this 2016 Presidential Election of America.
Behind the Chinese-Americans political EVENTS is an online Chinese community called "CAFT". Its official website says, "CAFT, the Chinese Americans for Trump Movement, is an informal group made up mainly of Chinese-Americans from across the United States of America. We come from all walks of life. We belong to different age groups and have different religious believes. We are all unpaid volunteers." The organizer of Florida, Lily C said that each state has a coordinator responsible for collecting donations, developing members and contacting media.
Aerial campaigns in 20 cities for Trump
In more than twenty cities across America, CAFT have rented planes to display giant banners above the sky with the donations from the Chinese community in America to endorse the Republican candidate Donald Trump. The campaigns have lasted since October 22 during the lunch hours above the crowded regions. Big cities like Miami, Philadelphia, Dallas, Houston, Ann Arbor, Detroit, San Francisco, Charlotte, Cleveland, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, New York and Madison are on the list. All the states follow the same format for the banners: "State name"+"Chinese-Americans for Trump".
Attenders shared pictures on social media and Chinese-Americans online forums, where they got positive feedbacks:
"You guys did a great job. I've been in America for decades of years, but I'd never seen Chinese-Americans' active involvement during the previous Elections. This time we speak out our own voice. Thumbs up!"
"I hope Virginia can join this campaign. Where can I donate?" Another Chinese-American commented.
On October 29, CAFT launched aerial campaigns in twelve cities. At the same time, CAFT held a rally in front of Trump Tower in New York City, joined by Trump supporters from other communities.
On October 31, people in Philadelphia will see five planes flying above the sky during rush hour, with five big banners behind: "Bring Jobs Back Home", "Put Americans First", "Asian Americans for Trump", "Black Americans for Trump", and "Women for Trump". The organizer said, "We want to endorse Trump and give a shock to Hillary with these five planes."
Trump Ads along busy highways and crowded places
In some States, Chinese-Americans bought billboard ads beside a couple of busy highway entrances and cross-roads. The electronic ads are displayed 24 hours a day, 1200 times daily, saying, "'State' CHINESE-AMERICANS FOR TRUMP!"
The ads cover some popular visiting spots such as the route to the local airport and some big companies like Wells Fargo.
In New York, with the donations from Chinese-Americans across the country, CAFT plans to put ads on the NASDAQ building located in Time Square, probably the most crowded place in the US. The fundraising is still going on.
Modern ways to organize EVENTS efficiently
Although many Chinese-Americans cannot attend meetings and demonstrations in person, they do most of the jobs through internet.
Some states collect donations by PayPal. Within 24 hours, Chinese-Americans collected about $7500 for the aerial campaigns.
CAFT gather people through WeChat groups. Each existing member in the group can invite several Trump supporters, so the number of the members has grown exponentially.
Participants are mostly well-educated Chinese-Americans with competitive skills for organizing EVENTS, such as leadership, financial management, website building, news reporting, and networking.
CAFT has got support from most Chinese language news websites both in China and in America. There are special WeChat groups sharing the latest EVENTS information and pictures for the media reporters. Journalists write articles voluntarily without any influence from certain political power, because they share the common interests with all the decent and hardworking people living in this country and try to protect traditional American values.
It's a good start for Chinese-Americans to express our political opinion. In the near future, Chinese-Americans will become more influential in American politics.
Contact author Jianyu Hou:
houJianyu Hou84@gmail.com