With his new book, “The First Chinese American: The Remarkable Life of Wong Chin Foo,” local author Scott D. Seligman brought Chinese-American history to a book discussion Nov. 6 in the media center.

“The First Chinese American” is a biography of Wong Chin Foo, a late 19th-century activist who advocated for cultural acceptance of Chinese people and worked to popularize their culture.

“Seventy years before Dr. Martin Luther King talked about judging people by the content of their character, Wong got there first,” Seligman said at the event.

Wong’s attempts to promote Chinese-American integration in the nation drew the ire of Chinese organized crime. Wong survived several assassination attempts to start the first U.S. Chinese-language newspaper outside of the West Coast, introduce chop suey to the country, and even attempt to form his own political party to fight the Chinese Exclusion Act, according to Seligman.

“Chinese Americans have someone they can bond to who really fought for them,” Seligman said.

Despite Wong’s significant achievements and enigmatic personal life, Seligman’s biography is the first book to be written about him.

“The First Chinese American” is the sixth book about China that Seligman has written or co-authored. Seligman explained that he became interested in Wong after finding him on a list of Chinese Americans alongside many more modern icons.

Seligman turned to writing after a long career in government, where he met Whitman parent Judith Bayer, who helped orchestrate the reading.

The reading was sponsored by Whitworld, a PTSA subgroup that aims to incorporate international families into the Whitman community. Whitworld events include book club meetings and ethnic meals cooked by group members.

“We have a very growing community of Chinese,” said Whitworld co-chair Lucy Kramer. “It’s fantastic that we have a representation in the community.”