time lines
Artist Statement
"While my family has been in and out of the United States for nearly ninety years, the atrocities my family has had to go through, like so many, continues to astound me. My grandparents immigrated to the United States during a time when Chinese were not accepted. One came as a paper daughter during the Chinese Exclusion Act, memorizing a life that was not her own, simply to escape poverty in her homeland; the other was grade school dropout and later an Oakland grocery store owner. The other two came during the midst of McCarthyism.
time lines, speaks to the many centuries of silence and reluctance to participate in American politics. Each gravestone represents a consequence that Asians and Asian Americans have faced due to our mere presence in the United States, many of them unmarked, but sono to be filled. Our presence is political. Our bodies become prisoners to this political rhetoric. With a long history of war and promise of “democracy,” this, then, expands into our homes and homelands. It is up to us on whether we stay down or rise up.
Photo by Dennis Yu
Katie quan (she/her)
Born and raised in San Francisco, Katie Quan (she/her) is a third generation Chinese American. Her creative platform, This Asian American Life gives voice history, community, and collaboration. Her work has been exhibited in Overachievers Magazine, SF Zinefest, Kearny Street Workshop, Asian American Women's Artist Association, and Chinese Historical Society of America. She currently teaches at City College of San Francisco. Learn more about her work: www.thisasianamlife.com