1880 Anti-Chinese Riot Denver Officially Apologizes... Chinese: It Means A Lot

The Denver City government officially apologized to the descendants of the victims of the 1880 Chinatown Riot and admitted its history of discrimination against Chinese and Asian Americans in a ceremony on Monday. Linda Lung, whose family's small business was destroyed in the riots, said the city's apology was an acknowledgment that meant a lot.

"For a long time, the atmosphere on this issue has been tight-lipped," said Linda, 69, who lives in a Denver suburb, according to NBC News.

When Denver lost Chinatown, the Dragons continued to thrive for generations. Linda describes it as the test of grit. "We were, and still are, great in Chinatown," she said. "That's the vision of hope, all the stories, and that's the history we don't want to lose, the history of Chinatown in Denver, Colorado."

Colorado Asian Pacific United, or CAPU, an AsiAn-American advocacy group, helped organize the ceremony in an effort to raise and continue awareness of the Asian community. The ceremony was hosted by the University of Colorado, and a representative of Mayor Michael Hancock apologized to the families of Chinese descendants.

In an apology letter, city officials stressed their desire to reconcile Denver's history of discrimination and violence against AsiAn-Americans. "While we cannot erase our past history of injustice against Chinese immigrants and Asian-Pacific Americans, the current administration's acknowledgment of its mistakes and failure to correct them is a first step toward recognizing and honoring their contributions to racial reconciliation."

"This will help educate those who are unaware of this shameful history in Colorado and comfort the descendants of those whose loved ones were subjected to racial violence and abuse," the letter said.

Asians now make up about 4% of Denver's population, according to the Census Bureau.

Joie Nikita Ha, the vice president of CAPU, said the city's admission of fault in the Chinatown riots was an important step toward accepting the pain of Denver's racial history. "Asians are often an invisible minority, and a lot of things happen within the Asian community that are not addressed," she said.

However, the Denver ceremony will be different after it, she said: "It's a start and it's encouraging, especially for some of the older families who have been here for generations, that their contributions to Denver and Colorado are taken seriously and that their suffering is recognized."

The anti-Chinese riots of 1880, which began with a spat at John Asmussen's Saloon and ended with white MOBS destroying Chinatown and smashing up shops, killed a Young man, Look Young.

A plaque on a local street corner reads "Hop Ally /Chinese Riot of 1880"; But activists say the text discriminates against Asians.

"White people used to call Chinatown Old Chinatown," Mr. Joy explained. "It was a derogatory term for being an opium stronghold, even though everyone was smoking opium."