HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – Hawaii’s Chinese community is preparing to mark a historical milestone this fall: the 160th birthday of Dr. Sun Yat-sen, a global revolutionary leader who spent his formative years in Honolulu and is considered the “father of modern China.”
Cynthia Ning of the Chinese Language Education Association of Hawaii and Eddie Flores of the Hawaii Chinese Chamber of Commerce joined HNN Sunrise to discuss Sun’s deep ties to the islands and a series of upcoming tributes scheduled for Nov. 1.
Deep roots in Hawaii
Born in a small village in Guangdong Province, China, Sun arrived in Hawaii in 1878 at 13 years old to assist his brother, a successful local businessman.
“When he came, he couldn’t speak a word of English. He just had to sit and listen to other people for a while,” Ning said. “But then when he graduated from Iolani, King Kalakaua personally gave him a prize for his progress in English.”…