Tony Lee (nee Lee Boon-pong, 1948-2020) was born in Swatow, China to Wai Lee and Chang Pei Yu, the ninth of ten children. As landowners and Catholics, the Lee family faced persecution during the Communist takeover and fled to Hong Kong in 1950, then to Sao Paolo, Brazil, in 1953. Tony spent his childhood in Sao Paolo, where his family ran a fruit and vegetable store until they were able to move the entire family to Seattle. Though Tony’s original birth records were lost, his parents chose February 12—Abraham Lincoln’s birthday—as his new birthday when he moved to the United States.
The Lee family lived in Seattle's Wallingford neighborhood, where again they ran a corner grocery store. While attending Lincoln High School Tony took up tennis and basketball, worked at his family’s store, delivered newspapers, and performed other odd jobs. Tony received a scholarship to Harvard University where he first pursued a math degree before settling on political science. After graduating in 1969, Tony returned to Seattle to attend the University of Washington Law School. Upon passing the bar exam, Tony began his work with Evergreen Legal Services (ELS) where he represented indigent clients, including immigrants and refugees. Tony liked his clients but never enjoyed the courtroom; he instead found his calling as a lobbyist in Olympia on behalf of ELS and its clientele.
In the early 1980s Tony worked with the Tenants Union to advocate for rent control and with the Washington Association of Churches to fight for funding for homeless shelters, community health centers, and food banks. In 1995 Frank Chopp hired Tony as Advocacy Director for Solid Ground (formerly Fremont Public Association), where he continued his advocacy work until his retirement in 2014. Tony co-founded the Asian Pacific Islander Coalition (APIC), Equity in Education and Statewide Poverty Action Network (formerly Washington Welfare Reform Coalition), served on steering committees for the Alliance for Jobs in Clean Energy, Front and Centered, and Seattle Human Services Coalition, and worked on the King County Alliance for Human Services, Washington State Basic Food program, and Affordable Care Act policies.
During his lifetime, Tony was honored with several awards and recognitions, including the Goldmark Award from the Washington Legal Foundation, Heroes for Homeless Award from Operation Nightwatch, and Lifetime Achievement Award from the Seattle Human Services Coalition. In 2018, a mixed-use building with affordable housing in Seattle's Lake City neighborhood was named for Tony Lee.
Known for a trademark booming laugh, Tony remained in Seattle, serving the Asian Pacific Islander, immigrant, refugee, and low-income communities. He was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and died in November 2020.
Sources: Solid Ground website: "Honoring the life & legacy of Tony Lee," posted November 12, 2020. Seattle Times obituary published November 19, 2020. Interviews in this collection.
Arranged in 2 series.
"Tony Lee: Immigrant Experience and Advocacy" is an oral history project organized by Angela Bartels, Tony Lee's wife. The collection contains audio recordings and transcripts of conversations between Tony Lee and his friends and former colleagues about their experiences working together in advocating for immigrants, refugees, and low-income people. The interviews took place in Tony Lee and Angela Bartels's home in Seattle 2017-2018.
The interviews are 60-90 minutes long and arranged chronologically.
Each interview consists of two parts.
Files received as WAV files and preserved. Sound recordings and transcripts are available in the Special Collections reading room.
No restrictions on access. Access copies available in the Virtual Vault.
Files received as WAV files and preserved. Sound recordings and transcripts are available in the Special Collections reading room.
Creator's copyrights transferred to the University of Washington Libraries Special Collections.
Donated by Tony Lee and Angela Bartels, September 16, 2020.
Interview includes discussion of Tony Lee's college days (03:20)
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Digital files of interviews