Hong family.

aYou Chung Hong (May 4, 1898 - November 8, 1977) was a prominent Chinese American immigration lawyer based in Los Angeles, California. He is reputed to be the first Chinese American person to pass, in 1923, the California State Bar exam. Born in San Francisco, California, in 1898, Y. C. was the son of a restaurant owner based in Daggett, California. He was raised in San Francisco by his mother after his father passed away when Y. C. was five years old. After graduating from high school, Y. C. settled briefly in Boston, Massachusetts, before returning to Los Angeles to work for the U.S. Immigration Service as an interpreter from 1918 to 1927 for court cases involving Chinese applicants for admission into the U.S. During the early 1920s, while working full-time for the U.S. Immigration Bureau, Y. C. enrolled in night classes at the University of Southern California School of Law. He earned his LL.B. in 1924 and LL.M. in 1925. From that point on, Y. C. became an active and successful immigration attorney by advocating for the right of Chinese Americans to bring their Chinese wives to the U.S. and pushing for the repeal of the Chinese Exclusion Acts. He was one of the key members testifying on behalf of the Chinese American Citizens Alliance before the Senate and House Immigration Committees in 1928 in Washington D.C. He testified in 1952 before a hearing of President Truman's Commission on Immigration and Naturalization. He served two terms as Grand President of the Chinese American Citizens Alliance (1949-1953), 14 terms as President of CACA's Los Angeles Lodge (1926-1949), and Chairman of the Chinese Times Publishing Company. In addition to his accomplishments in the legal field, Y. C. was also one of the founders of Los Angeles New Chinatown (1938). He was married to Mabel Hong, and together they had two sons, Nowland and Roger.

Mabel Hong (May 31, 1907 - April 30, 1998) was also an active community leader in the Los Angeles area. Born May 31, 1907, in Portland, Oregon, Mabel was one of the earliest Chinese American women to receive a college education in the state of Oregon. She married You Chung Hong in 1931. In addition to her duties as a homemaker of a large extended family, Mabel served in leadership roles in the Chinatown chapter of the American Women's Volunteer Services during World War II, the Chinese Women's Club of Los Angeles, and the Kuun Ying Club. She was a major influence in the design of the three New Chinatown buildings that were commissioned by You Chung Hong.

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