Several years ago, Traci Huahn, who is now a retired attorney, was researching Asian civil rights cases when she came across the file Tape vs. Hurley â a historic 1885 case pitting an 8-year-old Chinese American girl versus the San Francisco school board.'I was really surprised I did not know Mamie Tape's story. I grew up in the Bay Area, and it was surprising to me that this history wasn't taught in schools,' said Huahn.
'But the school board and superintendent were able to find ways to prevent Mamie from attending school there.'The school denied Tape because she was not vaccinated, and because they claimed their classrooms were too full. But the case did force the school district to open the Chinese Primary School, which still stands today on Clay Street, now called Gordon Lau Elementary.'So, it was a partial victory for Mamie Tape,' said Huahn.