Oklahoma City's Asian District Marks 50-Plus Years as One of Two Asian Districts on Route 66
As Route 66 approaches its 100th anniversary, Oklahoma City's Asian District is marking more than half a century of culture and community along the historic highway. Stretching along Classen Boulevard from Northwest 23rd Street to Northwest 36th Street, it is one of only two Asian districts on Route 66, the other being Los Angeles's Chinatown.
After the fall of Saigon in 1975, Vietnamese refugees rebuilt their lives along the corridor, and Chinese, Korean, Thai and other Asian communities followed. Steve Le, executive director of the Asian District Cultural Association, calls the district "the heartbeat of Oklahoma City" because it brings people together. He founded the Asian Night Market Festival in 2018 expecting 2,000 visitors; more than 10,000 came.
The association has placed Route 66 shields at both ends of the district, and the Oklahoma History Center's traveling exhibit "Our Journeys," telling the stories of Vietnamese boat people and other Asian immigrants, runs through January 2027. (Source: Asian District Cultural Association)
Source: Asian District Cultural Association
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 位于亚裔区克拉森大道上的牛奶瓶大楼（Milk Bottle Building, Oklahoma City, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons） / The Milk Bottle Building on Classen Boulevard in the Asian District (CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons)
