January 1, 1979, The Joint Communique of Diplomatic Relations between the U.S. and China is announced and a formal gathering at the Chinese Embassy in Washington D.C. is held that night.
An elderly woman dresses in formal attire and arrives at the Embassy without an invitation. She does, however, have a Letter of Introduction to China’s premier leader, Deng Xioa Ping, dated 35 years earlier and signed by Mao Tse Tung.
The elderly woman is Helen Foster Snow. She is welcomed in and warmly embraced by Deng Xioa Ping. Who is this woman? Why do the Chinese recognize her and afford her such respect?​
This is a space dedicated to unveiling the remarkable journey of Helen Foster Snow. It's an opportunity to explore the life, achievements, and impact of a trailblazer who defied norms and left an indelible mark on the world. Join us on this cinematic adventure as we unveil the legacy of Helen Foster Snow.
PART 1
DAWN OF THE NEW CHINA
PART 2
EAST MEETS WEST
(HIGH SCHOOL RIVALS)
THE SALT LAKE CITY YEARS
Upon entering high school, at age 14, Helen moves to Salt Lake City to live with her grandmother and aunt. She attends West High School, the fierce rival of East High School.
Helen’s gregarious and outgoing personality makes her a natural leader, especially in fearlessly leading her classmates in pranks against East High. Her high school years are a whirlwind of school activities, involvement in organizations, and editing the school's yearbook.
School is a fertile ground for Helen to explore her independent spirit. She is elected student vice president of her senior class. She internalizes the mixed brand of traditionalism and activism she has learned in her youth from her father and mother. She graduates high school and enters the next phase of her life.
PART 3
SHANGHAI'D
Helen wants to attend college at Stanford, her father’s alma mater, but the cost of tuition is too prohibitive. Her father explains that "girls are not considered a good investment in higher education as they will only get married, while boys are worth it." Helen's father agrees to pay for her attendance at the University of Utah. Helen starts school but soon focuses on work instead. Helen is hired as a secretary for the Utah chapter of the American Silver Mining Commission. While at this position, she decides she would like to work abroad in addition to her aspiration to write her own "Great American Novel." Helen takes the civil service exam and passes, yet there are no open positions in Europe, where she initially desires to go. Instead, her employer has a connection in
China. With the support of her father’s Stanford alumni friends and a recommendation letter from Utah Senator Reed Smoot, Helen departs from Seattle aboard the S.S. President Lincoln to take a clerkship in the U.S. Consulate in Shanghai. She turns 24 on the voyage and arrives in Shanghai in September 1931.
Join us in our mission to shine a light on the extraordinary life of Helen Foster Snow. Together, let's ensure that her story resonates with audiences worldwide, inspiring future generations and reaffirming the timeless relevance of her legacy.
PART 4
FINE CHINA
Helen’s first order of business is to arrange a meeting with American journalist Edgar Snow who has been reporting about China since 1928. They meet in a local hot spot called the Chocolate Shop.
Helen is initially “disappointed.” Edgar is skinny, and “so pale that his freckles showed through… I’m not used to sick-looking people but to athletic types,”Helen writes in her journal that night. And as a fashionista, she especially disliked his loose-fitting suit.
Join us in our mission to shine a light on the extraordinary life of Helen Foster Snow. Together, let's ensure that her story resonates with audiences worldwide, inspiring future generations and reaffirming the timeless relevance of her legacy.
PART 5
A BULL IN THE CHINA SHOP
December 9th Student Movement
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At a time when many Chinese are impatient with the Nationalist government for not opposing the Japanese, the couple move to Beijing. They take up residence in a small house near Yenching University, where Edgar teaches journalism. Helen enrolls in courses at the university. As foreigners with extraterritorial status in China they are exempt from Chinese law and are able to assist students in protesting fascism and contribute to the student movement. Helen observes, "We couldn't do anything if we were under Chinese law. A Chinese would be executed for even messing with such things."
The Snows serve as a source of information for the students, providing them with information that is censored by the government. While the Snows never join the Communist party, they
sympathize with the Chinese students who desire to resist the Japanese.
3,000 students march in the streets, and Helen also reports on the demonstration. This protest inspires the organization of 65 other demonstrations in 32 cities across China.
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Join us in our mission to shine a light on the extraordinary life of Helen Foster Snow. Together, let's ensure that her story resonates with audiences worldwide, inspiring future generations and reaffirming the timeless relevance of her legacy.
PART 6
TEMPEST IN A TEA POT
XIAN – APRIL 1937 – MARTIAL LAW HAS BEEN ENACTED – DEADLY FORCE AUTHORIZED
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She'd come to China seeking adventure and inspiration to write the “Great American Novel.” But here she was, clinging for her life on a flimsy downpipe because she felt compassion for the students and revolutionists who had just completed the Long March. A march five times as long as that of her grandparents over some of the toughest terrain in the world. A march and a "cause" that needed to be chronicled and shared with the world. She determined that it was her duty to meet up with them in Yan’an. That is if she didn't die from falling or getting shot for being caught out of her room. But she was going to become a foreign correspondent, that was for sure.
The world be damned if it "just isn't something that a 'woman' does."
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Join us in our mission to shine a light on the extraordinary life of Helen Foster Snow. Together, let's ensure that her story resonates with audiences worldwide, inspiring future generations and reaffirming the timeless relevance of her legacy.
PART 7
INSIDE RED CHINA
In April 1937, Helen makes the trip to the caves of Pao-an, Yan'an, the location of the Chinese Communist Party's headquarters. The conditions are impoverished, miserable, and dire. The Japanese occupy Northern China beginning in July, and bad weather conditions made it impossible for her to leave. Trapped in Yan'an, Helen is able to interview Mao Tse Tung and gets his support for what will become
the Chinese Industrial Cooperatives. Mao explains the history of the Red Army for the first time to Helen despite Edgar's multiple interviews with him the previous year. Chinese Communist leaders had not shared the history of the party previously as they wanted to be seen as equals within the community rather than "heroes of the people." Mao provides Helen with a letter introducing her as a war
correspondent, which gives her access to otherwise restricted areas.
Join us in our mission to shine a light on the extraordinary life of Helen Foster Snow. Together, let's ensure that her story resonates with audiences worldwide, inspiring future generations and reaffirming the timeless relevance of her legacy.
PART 8
WAR WITH JAPAN
CHINA GOES GUNG HO
Helen uses her writing position with certain publications to create support and financial backing in America for the Chinese Cooperatives. The Snows became good friends with Colonel Evans Carlson, who has a connection to President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Helen seeks Roosevelt’s support for the cooperatives in accordance with his New Deal policy. Eleanor Roosevelt becomes a member of the American Board of Sponsors for the Cooperatives. The Cooperatives receive the much needed funding from Americans as well as Chinese citizens in the Philippines.
After the Chinese Industrial Cooperatives' first year in existence, 1,284 industrial cooperatives are functioning with 15,625 members. Helen publishes China Builds for Democracy, a book on Indusco for an American audience. The book not only creates publicity, the Indusco system reaches its highest numbers, with 1,867 cooperatives and 29,284 registered members. The model spreads to other nations, including India, Burma, and … Japan.
Join us in our mission to shine a light on the extraordinary life of Helen Foster Snow. Together, let's ensure that her story resonates with audiences worldwide, inspiring future generations and reaffirming the timeless relevance of her legacy.
PART 9
PACKING HER CHINA FOR HOME
With war closing in the Snows decide to move back to the United States in fear that the Japanese will make them prisoners of war.
Edgar is offered a position as a war correspondent for the New York Herald Tribune. Helen encourages him to take it. She returns to the United States without him. After a short while, Edgar realizes he doesn't want to be without his wife and the living conditions are too difficult for him. The Snows had been in China for a decade. A year after their departure the attack on Pearl Harbor takes place.
Join us in our mission to shine a light on the extraordinary life of Helen Foster Snow. Together, let's ensure that her story resonates with audiences worldwide, inspiring future generations and reaffirming the timeless relevance of her legacy.
PART 10
PART 10
CHINA WELCOMES HELEN BACK
Helen returned to China for the first time in 1972, just after President Richard Nixon's visit, and for the second time in 1978. She completed her autobiography, My China Years, in 1984.
In 1996, China bestowed one of its highest honors for a foreigner by naming Helen a Friendship Ambassador. Helen died in Connecticut at the age of ninety on January 11, 1997. An official Chinese memorial service took place in the Great Hall of the People on Tiananmen Square in Beijing, a rare honor and testament to the impact this Utah woman had on an entire nation.
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Join us in our mission to shine a light on the extraordinary life of Helen Foster Snow. Together, let's ensure that her story resonates with audiences worldwide, inspiring future generations and reaffirming the timeless relevance of her legacy.