Join us for the release of the new documentary film,
The Chinese Gardens, which looks at the lost Chinese community in Port Townsend, WA - examining anti-Chinese violence in the Pacific Northwest in the late 1800s, and drawing connections between past and present race relations in the US.
Through text, brief interviews, and images of the empty spaces of Port Townsend's former Chinatown, the film examines early instances of racism against the Chinese in this country, from the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 through various lynchings, beatings, and murders. The Chinese Gardens also documents Chinese American resistance to these crimes, illuminating the hidden history of that tumultuous time.
Valerie Soe is a San Francisco writer, educator, and artist. Her experimental videos and installations, which look at gender and cultural identity and anti-racism struggles, have exhibited at venues such as the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles the Museum of Modern Art and the New Museum in New York City, and at film festivals worldwide. Her most recent award-winning documentary, The Oak Park Story (2010) has exhibited widely across the country. In addition, her essays and criticism have appeared in books, journals and publications, including Countervisions: Asian American Film Criticism; Afterimage; Cinematograph and The Independent.
Refreshments will be served.
Where:
SF State campus, College of Ethnic Studies
1600 Holloway Avenue
Ethnic Studies & Psychology Building (EP)
Room 116
San Francisco, CA 94132
When:
Friday April 6, 2012
12:30 PM to 2:00 PM PDT