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Chinatown has a special place in Chloe Chan’s heart. Born and raised in New Jersey, Chan and her family would make regular visits to Manhattan’s Chinatown, picking up goods from local marts and eating at local restaurants—Chan even took piano lessons from a teacher in the area. After graduating from New York University with a degree in public health, she sought ways to stay involved in her community. So she signed up to be a volunteer tour guide at the Museum of Chinese in America (MOCA). Around the same time she started, Anna Huang also began, having previously worked as a tour guide in Boston’s Chinatown. The two became friends while working as docents at the museum, giving tours to corporate clients and participating in special events. Eight months in, they began training to give tours outside of the museum and to host historical walking tours around Chinatown. But just as they got certified, the COVID-19 pandemic shut down the city, effectively turning the area into a ghost town.
“Everything is always open, especially Chinatown,” said Chan as she recalled the early days of the pandemic, mentioning that whispers of the virus had reached the area in January. “It was such a hub for nightlife, and people always go after a night of drinking. It was really jarring to see.”
Overnight, restaurants, bars and small businesses closed in the area, many for good. Alongside concerns for public health, the Asian-American community faced a rise in AAPI-hate due to racial stereotyping and misinformation. In light of this, Chan and Huang decided they could use their shared historical knowledge to combat racism and bring about a positive change in their community.
“We thought this was a teaching moment where we could draw parallels against history because this is not the first time we've gone through something like this,” said Chan, citing the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 that restricted immigration into the United States, which particularly impacted Chinese immigrants. “That's what the museum really prepared us for—this moment where we could be of use to the community.”
And so at the height of the pandemic, the two formed the Mott Street Girls (MSG). The name holds a double meaning—one that alludes to one of the most popular streets in Chinatown, while the acronym of the business, MSG, nods to the umami flavor compound commonly used in Asian cuisine. Their mission? To make Chinese American history and culture more accessible through public tours, education via social media and working with local community organizations. Differentiating themselves from other tour guides, particularly those led by outsiders with questionable sourcing, Chan and Huang leveraged their shared heritages and skill sets to create tours for the community, by the community.
“Being second-generation Chinese Americans, we've experienced what it's like to be a marginalized group in the community, faced certain barriers and we lived through COVID," said Chan. "We [are] the best candidates to tell the stories of our community.”
Currently, the volunteer-based tour company hosts two types of tours with slots available every other week. Putting what they learned from the museum into practice is the Relive Life Under the Chinese Exclusion Act tour. Their most popular option, the tour guides attendees through what life was like for Chinese Americans when they first arrived in the United States, from the barriers they endured to the eventual creation of Chinatowns across the country.
Meanwhile, Flavors of Old Chinatown Food Tour tells the story of the community through its food. While other tours focus on what’s buzzing, be it famous restaurants or where to get the best bubble tea, MSG’s food tour focuses on small, mom-and-pop stores. Stops include the area’s oldest tofu shop and businesses that opened up post-pandemic. Yet, both Chan and Huang are careful to center the people behind the food.
“During COVID, a lot of people heard statistics about Chinatown—the revenue that people lost and how many businesses closed. But you don't develop that deeper relationship with the community until you hear their stories, right?" said Chan. "Actually, step inside their stories, engage with the owners and taste a bite of their most famous dish. That's what we wanted to do with our tours: tell authentic stories of the people that have lived, worked and made a life for themselves in Chinatown.”
Five years later, MSG's mission has expanded to fortifying Chinatown for years to come. Incorporating social justice into their business, each tour highlights current issues affecting the community, from lingering effects of COVID-19 to the construction of the world’s tallest mega jail in the area. MSG's website acts as a resource with interactive guides that map shops, bakeries and tea shops in both Manhattan’s Chinatown and Flushing, plus a backlog of over 60 articles that tell the stories of businesses in the area. The company has collaborated with other nonprofits and community boards, including Send Chinatown Love and Run for Chinatown. They also began working with local institutions, including Poster House, with a coming tour with The Met on the horizon.
On their social media, Chan and Huang highlight Chinatowns found around the world, showcasing communities in Calgary, Canada, and Incheon, South Korea. And while Chan is regularly asked if MSG plans on hosting tours outside of Manhattan’s Chinatown (New York has nine Chinatowns in total), Chan knows that her mission is here.
“I feel like Chinatown will always be in our hearts,” said Chan. “It's always going to be a home away from home—it's always going to a place that I seek out.”