Soon after the end of the American Civil War, the Mississippi Delta saw its first wave of Chinese immigrants. The number of Chinese immigrants would continue to rise throughout the early 90s. Originally coming to work on the cotton fields, they quickly turned to opening grocery stores. However, they were not allowed to open these businesses in White neighborhoods, so they found solace in primarily Black communities. These stores not only served as mainstays of the communities, but also as the physical homes of the Chinese families that were faced with hurdles when trying to own their own homes. While being restricted from homeownership, Chinese immigrants were allowed to own businesses and would live in the basements or attics of these stores. These stores serviced the Black communities, being the only stores that would accept payment on credit in a time when Black Americans were facing segregation laws and racial discrimination.

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Fast forward about 30-40 years in Augusta, Georgia. 16-year-old Charles Oatman was sent to jail after accidentally shooting and killing his 5-year-old niece, JoAnna Robinson, during a mental health crisis. 6 weeks later on May 9, 1970, Charles Oatman died in Richmond County Jail. His body was found with three long gashes across his back, cigarette burns covering his body, and the back of his skull busted out. His autopsy had found that he died of drowning, his lungs filled with fluid. The story was that Charles Oatman fell out of his bed after a card game. The Black community was not convinced, believing that the jailers had either killed Oatman themselves, or were willfully negligent of the abuse he was facing. Oatman’s death sparked outrage from the Black community. Soon after, they took to the streets, protesting, marching and fighting for justice and racial equity. Over the course of two days, protestors set roughly 30 businesses ablaze, targeting mainly White and Chinese businesses. 

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The anti-Chinese sentiment was apparent in these Black communities, but not completely unwarranted as anti-blackness was rampant in the Chinese communities. Many of the Delta Chinese saw the Black residents as purely customers and established that relationship as completely transactional. Of course, there were Chinese businesses that did integrate into the Black neighborhoods they settled into, seeing their fellow Americans as neighbors and friends, and these businesses were protected by the Black community when the riots happened. At the end of it, 10 Black residents were shot and wounded, and another 6 killed. 52 years later, in 2021, the Department of Justice reopened the case, investigating the “Augusta 6”, which includes John Bennett, Sammie L. McCullough, Charlie Mack Murphy, James Stokes, Mack Wilson, and William Wright Jr., the six Black men killed by police during the riots.

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This dish is inspired by the stories of Chinese and Black residents in the South across the Mississippi Delta. Taking the humble bowl congee along with the flavors of a classic dish, tomato and eggs, we wanted to bring these flavors together with a variation of shrimp and grits. The congee is cooked in a light shrimp stock, with ginger and century egg mixed throughout. On top, our variation of Shrimp Creole, shrimp cooked in a tomato based sauce, with a base of green bell peppers, onion, celery. We replaced celery with its Chinese counterpart, along with ginger, garlic, scallion, and lemongrass. The mixture is cooked in a shrimp butter made with the shrimp heads. The experience, we hope, elicits memories of eating a warm bowl of congee with a side of tomato and egg, and simultaneously like eating a warm bowl of shrimp and grits. Acknowledging this horrific historical incident and the death of Charles Oatman, John Bennett, Sammie L. McCullough, Charlie Mack Murphy, James Stokes, Mack Wilson, and William Wright Jr., and the destruction of family businesses, we want to bring these communities together again, in a way that both Chinese and Black families could find home in, despite coming from different sides.

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Photograph by Mischelle Moy

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References:

The Legacy Of The Mississippi Delta Chinese

Neither Black Nor White in the Mississippi Delta 

Meet the Chinese community on the Mississippi Delta

The Untold Story Of America's Southern Chinese 

Remembering The Augusta Civil Rights Riot, 50 Years Later

DOJ investigating killings of six black men during Augusta Riots 50 years ago

No Justice In Augusta: Remembering A Little Known Race Riot

Department of Justice Investigating Six Black Men Killed During 1970 Augusta Riots

Community remembers 1970 Augusta Riot amid DOJ investigation