Renowned Chinese American writer Maxine Hong Kingston was one of the honorees at Thursday's Legacy Awards Gala held in New York City.
The gala, held by the Museum of Chinese in America (MOCA), aimed at celebrating Chinese Americans' leadership and achievement in the United States, and inspiring people to better connect themselves with their community.
Kingston was awarded for her contributions not only as a writer, but also as a poet, educator and activist.
She said the award is special because it is from a museum of "Chinese in America" instead of "Chinese American." Being confident of identifying oneself as Chinese without fearing to be discounted as American is something quite new to Chinese Americans and she is excited about the change.
Kingston's best known works include The Woman Warrior, a National Book Critics Circle Award winner, and China Men, a National Book Award winner. She was awarded the 2013 National Medal of Arts by President Barack Obama in 2014.
Katherine Ho, who covered Coldplay's "Yellow" in Mandarin for the soundtrack of the hit movie Crazy Rich Asians, was awarded the breakout artist of the year.
"The proceeds from the Gala help to ensure MOCA continues to flourish as both a national and local treasure, and grow as a home and place of dynamic inquiry and reflection," said Nancy Yao Maasbach, MOCA's president.
Founded in 1980, the museum is dedicated to preserving and presenting the history, heritage, culture and diverse experiences of people of Chinese descent in the United States.
