Chinese Americans scattered along the East Coast rushed to fundraise and donate for the Sichuan Earthquake victims. Their response showed their united commitment to helping their native country. Chinese from all sectors and backgrounds have contributed to the relief efforts.

After the CW11 network’s negative report [in February 2007] of “Mouse and Broccoli” in her Manhattan Chinese restaurant, Fong Yang saw a decrease in her sale profits. Recently, she also was in a car accident. However, despite all the unfortunate circumstances in her life, she still went to Chinatown to donate $200, showing concern for her native country. Yang also mobilized her younger sister and brother to donate together. Her brother, who also owns a restaurant, drove from Indiana for 12 hours in order to make a special trip to donate almost $1,000.

The Fujianese community used weddings as venues for the donation efforts. One Fujianese family held a wedding at the East Restaurant in Chinatown where relatives raised almost $30,000. In another Fujianese wedding, almost $10,000 was raised by the guests. Many new immigrants, who work in restaurants in other states, came back to New York City to attend the weddings and to make their donations.

Other new immigrants, who came back to New York City to wire money back to their families in China, became involved in the relief efforts on the streets of Chinatown. They donated their hard-earned money even though many of them are still paying back the money owed to snakeheads who smuggled them into the United States and who need to support their families back in China, sending them money on a monthly basis. Nonetheless, many donated the half or their entire monthly income, sometimes using money earmarked for their families to contribute to general relief efforts.

Chinese business owners in New York also took the lead in the relief efforts, with many of their employees and clients also making donations. In major Chinese supermarkets, the employees donated $50,000, while the owners’ donations brought the total to $55,000. The business owners immediately sent the money to the Chinese Embassy.

Since the earthquake, the Chinese Embassy has received $2 million in donations from across the United States. During the accounting of the donations, the Embassy reported that it did not find one single counterfeit bill and that several contributions were made in yuan, the Chinese currency.