Chinatown War Memorial

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I was walking in Chinatown with Tim the other day when I noticed an interesting arch across the street.

Closer inspection allowed me to see the inscription at the top of the arch:

It looks as though I stumbled upon another kind of war memorial! This one is the Lt. Benjamin Ralph Kimlau Memorial archway. It is particularly interesting to me because the concept is more abstract both in memorial content and in aesthetic. Rather than any sort of realistic depiction of a soldier or soldiers, instead we see an arch meant to represent “Americans of Chinese Ancestry” who have fought and died in American conflict. Further investigation online narrowed that idea down to Chinese-Americans killed during World War II. The timing works out, since the arch was erected in 1962.

On the same tiny block of street is another kind of war memorial. This one commemorates Lin Ze Xu, a man who lived in the 18th Century and, according to the statue, at least, is considered a “Pioneer in the war against drugs”.