The New West with Will Hearst: Rose Pak Video Lecture | Shaping the Future: The New Western World - Personal Skills

if you live in San Francisco
whether you moved here or were born here
at some point you become curious how
does our city work who speaks for its
population its ambitions and its needs
and who are the people whose work
charisma and connections really make
things happen our guest today is one of
those people rose PAC was born in China
went to Catholic schools in Macau speaks
English Chinese and Portuguese she has a
master's from the Columbia School of
Journalism once worked as a star
reporter for the San Francisco Chronicle
she saved the Chinese hospital runs the
Chinese New Year parade and every recent
mayor supervisor and power broker knows
her dies with her or was trying to get
on her calendar some people say she even
picks mayor's please welcome to this
table at the new West Rose PAC one of
San Francisco's hardest working citizens
well that's a highly complimentary but
some mayor's would not consider me so
hard-working
I remember me refer me as a stirrer
at once you know well what I was
thinking of is some people have
influence because they have a lot of
money or they own a lot of things or
they have political networks but your
influence comes from work and from the
community and from knowledge and from
maintaining your own network there's no
magic it's really hot work it's hard
work I work all the way through well
let's start a little bit with your
biography you were born in China how did
your family end up coming we were
refugees that landed in Hong Kong my
mother with three little girls you know
in 52 in Hong Kong and my dad was lost
in the war she never found him you know
my mom was expert at sewing you know
embroidery actually silk at Bridal
that's very delicate yeah so she managed
to embroider bridal veils and cuffs and
stuff and that's how she brought us up
she sewed all her life now you were very
well educated too because you have a
master's degree yes and so at some point
you must have been interested in
journalism how did that when did that
develop that developed during the
Cultural Revolution in China the impact
in Hong Kong and Macau floods of
refugees swam cross over the mountains
to come out to flee Mao Zedong you know
in those days for starvation hunger and
the reporters were writing about it I
was actually junior high school student
and I tried very hard to impress about
my classmates because I went to a
private school they were all very rich I
was the poorest of the school and
impress upon them to help with the
refugee kids so I organized a lot of
those rich girls Brigade I called and so
we you know Chinese New Year that winter
we gave each one of the refugee adult a
quilted jacket readiness you know a
blanket rise toothbrushes you know all
the basic necessity and I did the
collection from when you're a community
organizer even before you were yes yes
and then I realized that in order to
reach more people
I begged a couple of newspaper reporters
and editors and pleaded my cars and my
case and and realize how powerful the
pen were
now how did you get to the Chronicle
because you were a star reporter on The
Chronicle actually I got hired The New
York Times a rosenthal hired me no
kidding it was a miserable summer it was
humid God so I said oh no I'd rather go
back to San Francisco so I called up one
of my sponsors you know the Cahill
family's the kid who was brought me back
to San Francisco
all because oh then I stayed at Enfield
with him while I was come back to look
for a job because I gave up my job at
the New York Times Wow
yeah and then who was the editor of The
Chronicle then was it's a bill german
bill german was the managing editor and
eight Mellon cop was token city editor
right okay and it was very interesting I
first went and saw eight Mellon cough
then then then he referred then he
wanted me to see Bill German okay and
Bill German whisperer and said we are
the only professional here all this
others they came out from college but
they don't have the degree and I said
there's only three of us here that
happen columbia journalism degree so
you've got your job I was the fourth
woman reporter on the city desk right in
the history of in the history of the
Chronicle and the first Asian I remember
when I first went to work the Korean
president South Korea president was
visiting the State Department the camp
was the assistant city manager editor
and he said mr malinov wants you to go
cover this you know and I said oh and
it's just yeah you guys speak the same
language right so I'd go huh I see his
Korean I'm Chinese
don't you guys speak the same language
oh man that was exactly it that was the
era yeah that was the era and I said no
sure you know well it was an era when I
yeah first started in the newspaper
business know that the line of type
machines yeah and it wasn't unusual for
people to have a bottle of whiskey and
the desk and you know it was a very well
then they was it started to change very
quickly yeah in the 60s and 70s they
sent me out nomination Delores a cat was
stranded on the tree oh I had that story
too not the same cat yeah
Wow the cat in the tree story well they
used to have photographer that drives
the reporter out yes right so that
morning they have short one photographer
so I had to go out on my own which is
fine I went out muttering under my
breath I mean I went through I went to
graduate school I went through in apply
as a refugee aimed for ten years to come
to you as to study I asked every tourist
and foreigner that I met which is the
best journalism school in the world
everybody nine out of ten told me was
Columbia so that's what I set my goal
for and Here I am covering you know the
cat robbery
when Nixon is going to China and all
that and they're not you know so I went
out there found the cat in the tree the
cat know looked around nobody was
watching me so I picked up some rocks
and threw them at the cat and the cat
jumped off the tree then I went to the
corner borrowed the phone and said no
cat in no treatment and also the the
heydays of the gangs yes right we're
chasing me up and down you know like you
wouldn't believe it
i I don't know well you have to back up
a little bit because I mean there's
always been youth in
town selling things in every community
yeah but what happened in the 70s was in
the late 60s when Johnson signed the
reunification act for the Chinese family
up until World War
you know after World War 2 in the 60 60
to 63 you can bring your family over
from China because the communist country
so you have generations of parents and
children separated I didn't know that by
the war and so oh all along in Chinatown
was a bachelor Society after Johnson
signed the legislation to let the family
reunite so you have an influx of kids
and family coming in the wives you know
and then here you have grown up kids
that do not speak English or you know
teenagers that you cannot catch up with
school words because of the language oh
that's interesting so what do they do
this so they hang around Chinatown get
into trouble then that's the Bruce Lee's
movies the hopeful movie star coming so
the youngsters all will follow that I
was writing and following them one
cupful movie and then the next day you
have gangs you know limit rating
imitating in a movie and I remember the
Cho fog caring was one of Bruce Lee's
movie and they come up with one of the
initiation club members so I hid in the
Sun set in the shrubbery they they were
doing their initiation in the garage and
then they are there young kids and they
don't know what they pick up a little
bit from the movie they can only half
understand it so I know I remember when
he butchered
as as a sacrifice to the gods you know
right and they didn't do such a good job
the chick that was running all over the
garage bleeding and I had to laugh so
hard that I gave myself away I was
hiding outside they chase after me so I
ran into the car drove all the way to
the police station being chased by gangs
there was nothing I could do you know so
I drove Wow very fast and I crashed the
gate into you know Bryan Street the the
police station they have this wooden
yeah into getting those down yeah I just
had to ram it you know because they went
chasing after me and all those cops so
it was all of those things but then at
some point you must have decided you
know yes a lot of work in the community
or well what happened was it actually
was a very sad story that prompted me to
leave
I had run-ins you know competing
interests whether its community or
sensational news you know because nobody
could access the community bro they
speak the language
one day I got a story that they want me
to interview in Chinatown this family
that has TB in those days TB is worse
than AIDS yeah the embarrassment the
shame a lot of stereotype you know
things were involved and of course I
found a family you know but they were so
scared and they didn't want anybody to
know yes so i sat there a whole
afternoon debating you know it was a
quandary whether ethic
what I should do so I went back to the
Chronicle and said I couldn't find the
family right I remember was a Tuesday
Wednesday was my day off
Thursday you know the whole family
whether they had TB or not the whole
family parents and kids were whore
huddle there with one picture in the
right big picture I was heartbroken then
turned out but the Chronicle reporter
went in because of the language problem
the family thought they were health
inspector government people
I have trouble a lot of trouble with
that spirit right then of course then
the state was going to shut down the
Chinese Hospital yes right because the
staircase was 2 inches narrower that the
new code allowed the hospital called me
up and then so I had to decide what I
should do could be writing the story and
then and then helping bodies so so I
took a leave you know and went to help
the hospital cheering Wow and then Liam
McCarthy was the speaker there yes right
so I went to Leo you know and turned the
whole thing upside down inside out and
then taught the community to go to all
the state healthcare meetings and have
the hot Chinese Hospital grandfather
clause done or to exempt from those
things right so that's how we saved a
hospital yeah
now you know all these merrill I'm gonna
ask you a little bit about your
experience of San Fran says I'm gonna
mention some mares yeah and I'd like to
know rose packs view okay so Joseph
Alioto senior do you remember him
yes of course and what would you say
about Joe well Joe have his little mafia
cabinet always just dealt with them do
you know and the unions yeah he was very
strong with the unions yeah that's the
extent of it
yeah but he got didn't he get a lot of
stuff built in San Francisco a lot of
the redevelopment was when Elliott we
develop Mary Boulevard Joe Alioto
was the first one that put some
diversity on City Commission not because
they were African Americans or Asian
Americans or people of color it's
because it's dictated by the unions they
were all union members and they were all
rubber stamping his stuff
that's my alright our next mayor George
Moscone George have the heart and never
had enough time and the George make a
decision always checking off with a
whole bunch of his friends you know the
other legislators whether did the
Burton's or Willie Brown he was a Willie
yeah
Dianne Feinstein Dianne Feinstein is
typical secret heart product so I can ID
with her okay
very trim and very proper serious she
was a serious mirror it's very serious
good heart she is a typical physician's
daughter and the physicians wife mmm but
she could be very very stubborn mm-hmm
and Diane's also very dogmatic still is
okay
she has no tolerance for scandal but she
was spoiled by her dad and amber
Feinstein so so she has a handful with
dick Blum are diagnosed are diagnosed is
Papa knows best very condescending look
also yes art has no tolerance for
difference of opinion really but he
comes from more of a community
background my answer but he's very
condescending and that doesn't work well
I wouldn't know it's his way or the
highway and he has no talk that's why he
lost it by such narrow margin if any of
those groups if it weren't
holier-than-thou you know they could
have put him back into office yes and
then he lost her what Frank Jordan Frank
Jordan Frank Jordan just blissfully went
through four years he he never took care
of the cops that was serving with him
for 25 years right he never would have
thought to bring them to a ballgame
invite his colleagues Frank is for Frank
now we come to Willie Brown Willie Brown
is big tent approach yeah yeah yes very
forgiving otherwise he couldn't have
lasted this long however I told him
figuratively and literally he has bad
eyesight he's not very good judge of
character
my impressions really can get along with
anybody that he wants to get along with
Willie no matter how obnoxious you are
he always remembered the dignity of the
office that he held and I know for a
fact that you know there's some people
he came to me to help somebody I said
are you kidding me why am I supposed to
help this guy's a moron he did this here
you go Miss Rose I would be so consumed
with hatred
and so consumed with getting even you
can't live like that yeah I think he's
right actually and so he said it's
politics forget it just move on okay
gavin newsom
gavin newsom is that the biggest eagle
you know I don't think California is big
enough for it did you work well with him
did he want your help in talking to the
community or in I don't think he really
cared much about doing anything for the
city the same way I don't think he cares
much about the state of California is
whatever gets him to the next stop hmm
and finally idli at Li I have been
heartbroken about it I want you to talk
about that because some people say you
and Willie Brown sort of made him there
or advanced his candle let me put it
this way you know here's the
hardest-working guy he's very decent guy
and he has all the luck in the world to
you know think if you think about you
know the economy everything we're going
to be lucky than smart yes but he is he
has kept every single one of gavin
newsom staff he has not brought in
anybody that's interesting yeah that is
weird
so they're all pushing the same agenda
that Gavin Newsom was his nature is to
get along with people friendly with
people yes but because the staff is so
bad that they don't have to rapport with
the board they could do a lot more okay
and he's not he's afraid of his own
shadow
he hasn't named any chinese-american to
any important positions or anything
I think he's bending backward to show
that he is the mayor of the city not the
mayor of Chinese Americans so that means
you're very insecure in your own kid
five years from now your subway will be
in these all these buildings will be
here all the Twitter all the new
technology but what will the city be
that's what you have to be careful
because I think the high-tech world is
very good you know it's technology is
science is progress the heads of those
high Tech's that by and large you know
the Chairman and the field on top a
conscious of their civic responsibility
but their workforce and other management
level they're like ostriches in this
very day head in the sand they don't see
the surrounding area mm-hmm they don't
understand
you know but isn't that why they want to
be here because of culture and city life
and the mission and the restaurant posed
to Silicon Valley which is very bland
bland they like it but then they don't
they're not aware while they're
purchasing their ideals they're pushing
and bending a lot of people out of shape
hmm the workforce in my community for
example they started with low income so
their social security are about
averaging seven hundred and sixty
dollars a month in the old days up until
five years ago you pay $300 $200 out of
760 for rent you can still barely get by
now those single our s our own communal
kitchen communion back yeah six seven
hundred dollars a month that's why we
find our seniors scavenger picking up
cans going through refuge for vegetables
you know bins and fruit bins so we have
never seen anything like it
our housing stock in Chinatown the
pinyons uh over 50 years old yes
there's no remodeling 60 modeling no
nothing it's a very good point because
you see remodeling all over the city but
not in these older communities yes so
five years ago I just happened to look
for a friend that I haven't seen for a
long time he was in his 80s so I checked
him out mr. Lao so he has his meals
delivered but I happened to be there on
the Saturday so I said all mr. Lao what
are you eating yet but a plastic top
there pink I remember so he says oh you
know they have a cutback so now Saturday
Sunday they don't deliver the meals so
they delivered on Friday so I go check
they were frozen food oh my goodness the
senior in his 80s in Mobile they don't
have a freezer no they share communal
kitchen right right they don't have a
microwave so the guy put in the plastic
tub and just eat frozen food of course
come Monday I charged in the de mayor's
office I said you know your
sitting there ivory tower and your
budget staff balanced the budget on the
backs of the poor of the poorest the
people that can not help themselves you
take out you know a dollar fifty from
each meal and so they don't they don't
do weekend meals so I demanded that his
staff and his chief of staff come down
to Chinatown I paid for it and you guys
eat the lunch
you yourself eaten yourself and see how
healthy it is and how look at all the
seniors the city is a flush with all
this money and those are the most
serious money that somebody like you
who's not an elected official is out
there
taking these cases for the citizens but
where's the Board of Supervisors where's
the elected people that's why I said the
guy six years never even visited the
lunch counters never even they just come
during election time vote for me I'm all
for you you know so that's why I can
stand them and I yelled at them yeah
well people say I say something rose
people often said you San Francisco such
a wonderful city it has such charm and I
think if you look at the history of the
city there's always been some extra I
mean people grow up here or they move
here and they like it here
yeah they do some give back yes and
that's why San Francisco is special if
you took all that out and you just had
taxes votes wouldn't have sir Francisco
no that's what I was telling you I said
maybe some of the high tech owners and
the big bosses they're starting to
realize so they write a check for the
hospital you know whatever but it takes
more than one big check for Children's
Hospital
it takes your workers you know to be
engaged with their neighbors who cares
about the quality of life for your
neighbors who cares about this San
Francisco became this place I knew
because a lot of little people helping
volunteer contributions I on my radio
Chinese radio fundraising I raised about
a hundred and fifty thousand but in
small amounts they're all $5 $10 and
well it just gives so much back to me
the seniors at the beginning of the
month when they got the seven hundred
and eighty dollars they take our $5 I've
walked it up to the hospital give it to
you miss fact I know how hard you worked
I don't have much but here it is so some
days you know you you you you
so depressed you know and I don't think
you ever get them but but you do in the
way you know when you run into trouble
and stuff but then these people like
this that just encourages you to get
going you know and I'm only 24 million
shy of 180 million so gonna get there
yeah yeah so I hope I live long enough
the next two years to finish it
Oh rose thank you very much for being
here today it's just been marvelous we
could go on for hours yes me don't have
to do it again okay but thank you very
much thank you well yeah it's good to
see you I always think about you I
forget how much we have in common there