AIISF Newsletter / April 2022
A Message From AIISF’s Executive Director
I hope that all of you are enjoying the longer and warmer days. It’s a beautiful time to visit Angel Island so if you haven’t seen the new Angel Island Immigration Museum building (open on weekends only) or Taken From Their Families, an exhibit about Japanese American incarceration during WWII, then check out www.aiisf.org/visit to plan your next trip.
It’s my pleasure to introduce Angelo Racelis as the newest member of our AIISF team. Angelo is our administrative coordinator and will be assisting with a range of different responsibilities. He previously served as the Operations and Visitor Services Coordinator at the Chinese Historical Society of America (CHSA).
Speaking of CHSA, be sure to check out their new Bruce Lee exhibit which launches later this month! Kudos to CHSA Executive Director Justin Hoover and the team there for what promises to be an amazing addition to Chinatown. The preview photos and videos look amazing!
AIISF is a founding member of the Chinatown Media and Arts Collective (CMAC). Be sure to register for your free tickets to attend its inaugural event, Neon Was Never Brighter: A Glimpse Into The Future which will feature a number of art activations and performances across San Francisco’s Chinatown.
With Asian and Pacific American Heritage month right around the corner in May, we are gearing up for a number of events and programs. Be sure to save the date for:
May 1 – 31: A temporary exhibit on Angel Island entitled Lighting the Darkness. For the month of May, 140 LED candles will be displayed at the Angel Island Immigration Station to recognize the 140th anniversary of the passage of the Chinese Exclusion Act. Each candle is a reminder of one year of the law’s historic and continuing negative impacts.
May 2: A virtual presentation with the Chinese American Heritage Foundation in Boston (see more info below).
May 6 – 7: Multiple events -- including a memorial wreath-laying, a large scale projection at Fort Mason, and a program at the Chinese Culture Center -- to recognize the 140th anniversary of the passage of the Chinese Exclusion Act in collaboration with APA Heritage Foundation, API Legal Outreach, Chinese Culture Center of San Francisco, CMAC, and several other organizations and individuals including past AIISF Board President Felicia Lowe and past AIISF Executive Director Eddie Wong.
May 11: A virtual program co-hosted with the Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation.
And much more. We’ll be sharing additional details later this month. Stay tuned and stay safe!
Edward Tepporn
AIISF Executive Director
Angel Island Immigration Station: A Selection of Personal Stories and Poems
May 2, 2022 | 5 pm PDT / 8 pm EDT
FREE via Zoom | Register Here
This year, AIISF is partnering again with the Chinese American Heritage Foundation for their AAPI Talks 2022 in celebration of Asian and Pacific American Heritage Month. Learn more about some of the people and poems connected to the Angel Island Immigration Station.
HELP! Angel Island Descendants Needed
AIISF has received a number of recent requests to interview descendants of immigrants who were detained on Angel Island. If you would be open to sharing your family’s story either with an academic research team and/or a media reporter, please email Ed at etepporn@aiisf.org.
We deeply appreciate your assistance in sharing your family’s story to help raise awareness about Angel Island.
Upcoming Exhibition: Lighting the Darkness
May 6 - May 31 | Detention Barracks Museum
The history of the former US Immigration Station at Angel Island is directly linked to the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882. The passage of this law marked the first time in our nation’s history that a specific country was singled out. The law prohibited Chinese laborers from entering the US and barred the Chinese from becoming U.S. citizens. In the decades that followed, additional exclusionary immigration laws and policies were passed that impacted most countries from Asia and the Pacific.
May 6, 2022 marks 140 years since the passage of the Chinese Exclusion Act. AIISF's Lighting the Darkness exhibition is a solemn reminder of the many lives, families, and communities who were impacted by this and similar laws. It also pays tribute to the strengths and ongoing contributions of immigrants then and now.
Each candle represents one year since the passage of the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882. Although it was finally repealed in 1942, the impacts of racism and xenophobia continue today.
Community Events
We Are Bruce Lee: Under The Sky, One Family at CHSA
Opening April 24, 2022 | Learn More
Located at the CHSA Museum in Chinatown, San Francisco, We Are Bruce Lee is an exhibit featuring contemporary art and historical artifacts that celebrates the remarkable life of a Chinese American icon, who transcended race, geography, and culture through uncanny strength and resilience.
NEON WAS NEVER BRIGHTER: A GLIMPSE INTO THE FUTURE
霓虹閃爍愛華埠: 展望未来 | Saturday, April 30 | Learn More
The Chinatown Media & Arts Collaborative (CMAC) is hosting its inaugural event, Neon Was Never Brighter: A Glimpse Into the Future. This outdoor event is a free, multi-sensorial outdoor experience showcasing art activations created from diverse media. A tribute to Chinatown's legacy, the event aims to advance the social and economic recovery of the neighborhood through art and culture.
THE PAPER DREAMS OF HARRY CHIN
Directed by Jeffrey Lo
May 4 - June 18 | Learn More
Use code AIISF50 for 50% the ticket price
Set during the Chinese Exclusion Act, the story centers on Harry Chin, a Chinese national who entered the United States through forged documentation - a secret his kept throughout his life, including his own daughter. Similar to many other "paper sons and daughters", the story of the Chin family reveals the personal and political repercussions of making a group of people “illegal.”