Going through the Chinese-American Inclusion/Exclusion exhibition with my groupmates, Sara and Tara, I had one goal in mind: searching for pieces of Chinese-American history that invoked surprise and interest in me. It was rather difficult to decide on only three pieces of information that shocked me since I found myself tilting my head at so many parts. Overall, I realized I didn’t know much about the well-known Chinese-American figures in history and their backgrounds. For example, Anna May Wong was very popular in my family. I remembered that my grandma tried to convince my sister and me that we were related to her. In her exhibit, they described her life’s journey as an actress from America to Europe to China. It startled me that back then, directors would rather have non-Chinese actors play Chinese roles. This blatant racism against Asian actors is still here with us today, but I had no idea how bad it had been back then. I was disappointed that Anna couldn’t get the bigger roles that she deserved in America.

It made me happy to see that another female historical figure’s story was being presented as I moved to “One Woman’s Story.” Usually, in history, I find that men are more glorified than women. Along Anna Lee Chin’s story was short and simple, it was still inspirational. It was rather shocking to hear a woman do so much despite her race and gender. She farmed and negotiated with other non-Asian farmers while taking care of her children at home. I wish they elaborated more on what kind of harassment she faced if there were any.

Following the exhibit on Anna Lee Chin, I was drawn to the unfamiliar name of Danny Chen, a 19-year-old Army private who had died in marine training after severe relentless harassment from his non-Asian peers. It was heartbreaking to look at the pictures of a boy who just wanted to fight for his country, knowing that he never got the chance to achieve his dream. Despite the severity of this case, those who had driven to this point had not received the worthy punishment, other than a bit of jail time. I didn’t realize that this young army private’s death had been so influential in fighting against Chinese-American racism. I wish more talked about this, especially with the recent increase in harassment against Asians due to COVID-19. Danny Chen’s memory will live on in those who continue to fight against Asian racism.