Hoodline recently spoke with CHSA Gallery Coordinator Palma You about CHSA’s upcoming Chinese in the Sunset District exhibition, which is slated to open in November 2017. Read the full interview at hoodline.com.
If you are interested in participating in this project, please visit our call for submissions page >
Here are excerpts from Hoodline’s article:
“While Chinatown’s history has been well-documented, other Chinese-American communities around San Francisco have frequently been overlooked when it comes to the historical record.
To bring those stories forward, the Chinese Historical Society of America is preparing an exhibit on the history of the Chinese community in the Outer Sunset.
“[This history has] not been documented,” said Palma You, gallery coordinator at the CHSA. “It’s not been studied. We’re going to fill that gap in that story.”
You said the CHSA team is looking at the period between 1950 and 2010. They have tracked down pioneer families—Chinese-American families who moved to the Outer Sunset after World War II—and service organizations during the period.
You and CHSA are asking the public to stories, photos and artifacts that support the stories from the period, and they will have a direct impact in shaping the exhibition….
The office of District 4 Supervisor Katy Tang, who represents the Outer Sunset, is funding the project through a grant. As a result, the exhibition is focused specifically on the Outer Sunset, rather than including other major Chinese communities in San Francisco like the Richmond or the Excelsior.
During the last few months, CHSA has sent out multiple calls for submissions to Outer Sunset families.
“We’re getting a good response from the early pioneer families,” she noted. “Early pioneers are willing to share their memories. They feel it’s important to share their history and pass it down. I didn’t know they still existed.””