Each year in May, the Taiwanese American Federation of Northern California hosts the San Francisco Taiwanese American Cultural Festival in Union Square Park. Participants can watch performances by cultural groups from Taiwan and local Taiwanese American musicians, eat Taiwanese snacks, watch masters at work in the arts & crafts area, sample traditional Taiwanese tea, and learn more about Taiwan.
Last year, 5000 participants came to the Taiwanese American Cultural Festival. Ten Drums from Taiwan as well as local Taiwanese Americans musicians performed on stage. Members of the North American Taiwanese Women's Association shared the traditions of Taiwanese tea. Popular Taiwanese snacks such as cotton candy and shaved ice were sold at the event.
Origin of Event
In 1992, President George Bush signed the Act HR5572, which named May as the Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. In 1999, Congress designated the second week in May as Taiwanese American Heritage Week to recognize the contributions of Taiwanese Americans. President Bill Clinton later issued a proclamation to congratulate the Taiwanese American community.
To answer Congress for its generous designation, Taiwanese American organizations throughout the US started a campaign to organize events to introduce Taiwan and Taiwanese Americans as well as the unique Taiwanese culture to the general public.
Taiwanese Americans
Taiwanese Americans are relative newcomers to the United States. Records indicate that Taiwanese arrived in small numbers in the early 1900's and steady immigration after the 1950's. Initially, most Taiwanese came to the United States for advanced studies. However, many decided to stay and made the United States their home. In 1979, Taiwanese immigrations surged when Congress allocated quota of 20,000 per year for Taiwan.
Data from the 2000 Census show there are more than 300,000 Taiwanese Americans in the United States, with the majority being immigrants with a sizable and growing American-born population. It is believed that the census data only reflects parts of the population as it does not carry an option of Taiwanese.