Martin Li

martin.mouse@163.com

HUANG JINBO, a 71-year-old Chinese-American, looks young for his age.

His arms are still muscular and he is still energetic.

Huang spends most of the year in China, giving inspirational speeches and singing inspirational songs.

Why is he considered an inspirational figure? Because he is the first Chinese-American to become a mayor in the United States; he is a doctor who has visited disaster-hit areas in China to offer help; and he is a media personality who has enthusiastically promoted Chinese culture on his private TV station in the United States.

His influence is also recognized both in China and elsewhere in the world.

“As a Chinese-American, Huang Jinbo has never forgotten his roots. He is constantly striving to improve cultural communication between China and the United States,” said CCTV International about Huang in a previous report.

In a special report by Italy-based Third World News Agency (TWNA) in June, Huang was described as a “role model.”

Mayor of Cerritos

Huang was born in Hong Kong in 1941 and granted American citizenship because his father had it at the time.

In 1961, he headed for the United States with only US$200 to his name. He studied medicine while working in a restaurant to support himself.

Two years later, he was enrolled by a pharmacy institute in Salt Lake City, Utah. An exemplary student, he later became qualified to practice medicine.

A specialist in obstetrics and pediatrics, Huang became a partner in a clinic, helping deliver more than 1,000 babies.

Huang started to think about how he could build on his successful medical career and what he could do for others. His inspiration was his mother.

“When you become successful, you should think about what you can give back to society,” Huang quoted his mother as saying.

Huang then decided to enter politics in order to try to change society for the better.

He became a senator in Cerritos, California, in 1978 and five years later, he won a mayoral election in the city, becoming the first Chinese-American mayor in the United States.

Being a mayor was tough, not to mention being a Chinese-American mayor.

When Huang proposed the opening of a Walmart supermarket in Cerritos, many people resisted because they feared its impact on local small retailers.

However, Huang thought Walmart would bring more jobs and tax revenue to Cerritos, a small city with a large Chinese community.

Huang invited different interest groups to negotiate with representatives of Walmart. Employees of the company would espouse the benefits of having a big supermarket in the city.

When Walmart opened a supermarket in Cerritos, local residents could buy cheaper and better quality groceries. The city’s tax revenue also increased by more than US$1 million.

Under the leadership of Huang, Cerritos gradually achieved fast economic growth and its annual per capita income stood in the second place among the U.S. cities of its size in the 1990s, according to previous media reports.

A song that changed his life

In 1985, Huang was invited by China’s consul general in San Francisco, Tang Shubei, to sing the song, “Descendants of the Dragon,” at CCTV’s annual Spring Festival gala.

The gala, which was broadcast nationally in China, made Huang a household name overnight. Many Chinese cities started inviting him to sing. This would show the affection that overseas Chinese had for their motherland.

In the same year, Huang met Deng Yingchao, widow of China’s former premier, Zhou Enlai.

“You are a highly accomplished overseas Chinese and used to be a mayor. I hope you can come home often and be a model for other overseas Chinese,” Deng’s words touched and motivated Huang.

Either indirectly or directly inspired by Huang’s experience in China, many overseas Chinese started visiting or doing business in China.

Back in the United States, Huang started promoting Chinese culture and sought opportunities to contribute to the Chinese community.

Chinese-American TV

In 1988, Huang opened Chinese-American TV, a private TV station, in Cerritos.

There were no advertisements. An English-language channel, it sought to educate the viewers about China.

Huang taught himself how to shoot and edit the programs and even played the role of anchorman himself.

Huang’s show was also broadcast in China and was popular with both Chinese and foreigners.

“China’s Beijing TV Station also provided me with programs with English subtitles each week, which updated overseas Chinese on the latest developments in the motherland,” recalled Huang.

“I would talk about a wide range of subjects,” Huang laughed.

Huang recently closed his TV station so he could spend more time in China.

Visits to disaster-hit areas

Between 1991 and 1998, Huang paid eight visits to four disaster-hit areas in China, providing medical help and sending donations, including money and medicine, which he raised from overseas Chinese.

“My most memorable visit was to Hubei in 1991,” recalled Huang.

In 1991, a severe flood affected five provinces in the lower and middle reaches of the Yangtze River, including Hubei Province.

“I sat in a wok, which was put on a big rubber tire, to move through the flooded village, giving medical care to local residents,” said Huang.

On a dam in Jianli County, Huang sang two songs to inspire several hundred Chinese soldiers who were part of a disaster relief operation. The two songs were “Descendants of the Dragon” and “My Chinese Heart.”

Besides personal visits to disaster-hit areas, Huang frequently sang at galas devoted to disaster relief, offering support and encouragement to victims.

Never stop

Despite his age, Huang is not slowing down. He now spends most of his time in China, where he gives speeches in schools inspiring the young to make their lives as abundant as his.

His inspiring words include “If you listen to your fear, you will die never knowing what a great person you might have been.” “The more you do, the more opportunities you will get.” And “Everyone needs a purpose in life … to be true to themselves … and a principle they can live by.”

Huang still performs “Descendants of the Dragon” when he gets the opportunity. As for his singing skills, he is living proof that the old cliché “practice makes perfect” is true.

“I have had the idea of shooting a movie about my life. I would like to name it ‘008,’ a code name for ‘super Huang,’” laughed Huang. To him it would be another challenge worth facing.