Announcements1. Summer 2021 Interns Applications Now Closed Thank you to all of our applicants! 2. Talking to Kids about Asian American Identity & Racism View the recording of our two-hour workshop here on strategies and tools, including trauma-informed practices, to discuss these topics with children. 3. NEW LESSON PLANS: Teaching about racism during COVID-19 Fully aligned with Common Core standards, this lesson plan gives teachers an entry point to teaching about racism and xenophobia during public health crises. Using the 1800s smallpox epidemics in San Francisco as a case study, this lesson prompts students to think critically about how racial scapegoating harms communities. Access the lesson here. AP U.S. History We are teaming up with Antiracist APUSH to develop lesson plans that are fully aligned with AP U.S. History Key Concepts & Skills! Our newest lesson is on the 1924 Immigration Act-- regarded as one of the most racist immigration laws of U.S. history. Download all three lessons here. |
building community through knowledge
The Immigrant History Initiative is a non-profit organization founded in 2017. The organization produces curriculum focused on immigrant histories and works with schools and communities to establish courses sharing this knowledge. We also provide teaching and course development support in partnership with other organizations bringing immigrant histories into the mainstream.
Our Work Covers...
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1. Curriculum Design
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This class was incredibly different in the best ways. It is so great and important that we learned about the timeline of Chinese-American identities. --Letter from our students,
December 2016 |
Statement on Atlanta Murders of 6 Asian Women
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We at the Immigrant History Initiative are horrified but unsurprised by the news of the shooting outside Atlanta yesterday and the killing of 8 people. The majority of those killed were Asian women who worked at spas, during a time when working in public spaces has already put their health and safety at risk. We need to reflect on the gendered aspects of this violence.
IHI is a small, start-up nonprofit founded and run by two Asian women. As Asian women, we have lived our whole lives at the intersection of sexism and racism. Asian women have had a long history of vilification in this country. They were one of the first targeted groups in a federal immigration law through the 1875 Page Act. For much of the 19th century, Asian women were excluded from the U.S. based on perceptions of them as sex workers and as reproductive threats to maintaining America's racial landscape. Early twentieth century films fetishized and demonized them, at the same time as white actors played them in yellow-face and won awards for their portrayals. Asian women are frequently the target of sexualized jokes, intended to demean and dehumanize. Reports have found that up to 55% of Asian women in the U.S. have reported domestic violence during their lifetime. It is no accident that Asian women have been targeted disproportionately in hate incidents during COVID. It is no accident still that the perpetrator in Atlanta chose massage spas where Asian women worked as his targets. The shooting in Atlanta is yet another deadly manifestation of ignoring the intersectional needs of Asian women. We won’t repeat what has already been voiced by many other organizations tirelessly working on addressing anti-Asian violence and fighting for the recognition that white supremacy and racism has affected and continues to deeply affect APIA communities. But we felt it essential to reflect on the gendered elements of what has happened, both yesterday and in this pandemic. We are asking our beloved community to speak up and speak out. Stand up for friends, colleagues, loved ones, and strangers. We need your help. Sincerely, Julia & Kathy Co-Founders Immigrant History Initiative |
IHI Fights for Black Lives Matter
At Immigrant History Initiative, we are dedicated to re-telling the history of the United States in ways that include the lives and experiences of people of color, beginning with the history of Asian Americans. This learning and un-learning process requires confronting the fact that America was built with the stolen labor of black slaves, and maintained by a system designed to dispossess black people of power, freedom and humanity.
It is the same system that imported thousands of Chinese laborers into the U.S., proposed to use them as a solution to the “problem” of emancipation, lynched them and expelled them from towns, and passed laws to exclude them. It is the same system that denied citizenship to immigrants of Asian origin for a century and imprisoned them on Angel Island for months to years as white officials interrogated the legality of their belonging. It is the same system that let the murderers of Vincent Chin off with a $3,000 fine after they beat him to death with a baseball bat for being a “Jap” who was stealing their jobs. It is the same system that incarcerated Japanese Americans during WWII, interrogated and deported Chinese Americans during the Cold War, surveilled and detained Muslim Americans after 9/11, and continues to challenge the belonging of people in this country because of the color of their skin.
It is also the same system that uses the myth of a “model minority” to oppress black people, while continuing to exclude and deny belonging to those that it purports to elevate to whiteness.
As much as learning this history has taught us that racism is deeply, historically entrenched and systemic, it has also taught us that solidarity can prevail against white supremacy. In the 1960s, Asian Americans protested with African Americans against racism, imperialism, war, and xenophobia. Black, Asian, and Latinx students came together to form the Third World Liberation Front to fight for ethnic studies and self-determination through education. African American activists advocated for an end to racist immigration laws and to welcome Southeast Asian refugees. Without the Civil Rights Movement, there would be no Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965, and the United States would not be as diverse as it is today. These stories are endless, but they have also been suppressed systematically in an education system that prioritizes certain narratives over others.
We are committed to using history and education to un-learn these problematic narratives and work toward a just and anti-racist society. This mission necessitates that we:
Through solidarity, we build power. If any of this history sounds unfamiliar to you, we urge you to educate yourselves on all of it. Our resources are provided for free online, and we will continue sharing other sources to give a deeper understanding of the history of racism in this country.
With love,
Immigrant History Initiative
Other BLM Resources:
1. Spreadsheet of Education Resources and Literature and list of Black owned bookstores and book clubs: https://tinyurl.com/ycj6wqje
2. Document of BLM resources: https://tinyurl.com/ycw3zs9q
3. Document of additional BLM resources: https://tinyurl.com/ybw2hdg5
4. Reading and Media List: Born Black in the "Age of Mass Incarceration": https://tinyurl.com/yaejno42
5. Black History Month Reading List for Asian Americans: https://18millionrising.org/2020/02/bhm_reads.html
It is the same system that imported thousands of Chinese laborers into the U.S., proposed to use them as a solution to the “problem” of emancipation, lynched them and expelled them from towns, and passed laws to exclude them. It is the same system that denied citizenship to immigrants of Asian origin for a century and imprisoned them on Angel Island for months to years as white officials interrogated the legality of their belonging. It is the same system that let the murderers of Vincent Chin off with a $3,000 fine after they beat him to death with a baseball bat for being a “Jap” who was stealing their jobs. It is the same system that incarcerated Japanese Americans during WWII, interrogated and deported Chinese Americans during the Cold War, surveilled and detained Muslim Americans after 9/11, and continues to challenge the belonging of people in this country because of the color of their skin.
It is also the same system that uses the myth of a “model minority” to oppress black people, while continuing to exclude and deny belonging to those that it purports to elevate to whiteness.
As much as learning this history has taught us that racism is deeply, historically entrenched and systemic, it has also taught us that solidarity can prevail against white supremacy. In the 1960s, Asian Americans protested with African Americans against racism, imperialism, war, and xenophobia. Black, Asian, and Latinx students came together to form the Third World Liberation Front to fight for ethnic studies and self-determination through education. African American activists advocated for an end to racist immigration laws and to welcome Southeast Asian refugees. Without the Civil Rights Movement, there would be no Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965, and the United States would not be as diverse as it is today. These stories are endless, but they have also been suppressed systematically in an education system that prioritizes certain narratives over others.
We are committed to using history and education to un-learn these problematic narratives and work toward a just and anti-racist society. This mission necessitates that we:
- redouble our efforts to address anti-blackness through our curricula and resources;
- advocate to end police brutality against African Americans & other communities of color;
- Fight for Black Lives Matter, period.
Through solidarity, we build power. If any of this history sounds unfamiliar to you, we urge you to educate yourselves on all of it. Our resources are provided for free online, and we will continue sharing other sources to give a deeper understanding of the history of racism in this country.
With love,
Immigrant History Initiative
Other BLM Resources:
1. Spreadsheet of Education Resources and Literature and list of Black owned bookstores and book clubs: https://tinyurl.com/ycj6wqje
2. Document of BLM resources: https://tinyurl.com/ycw3zs9q
3. Document of additional BLM resources: https://tinyurl.com/ybw2hdg5
4. Reading and Media List: Born Black in the "Age of Mass Incarceration": https://tinyurl.com/yaejno42
5. Black History Month Reading List for Asian Americans: https://18millionrising.org/2020/02/bhm_reads.html
Get in touch!
Email us at staff@immigranthistory.org
