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Past Exhibits
Glamour & Grace: Miss Chinatown USA
For half a century, San Francisco has been captivated by the grace, glamour, and exuberance of the Miss Chinatown pageant. In the pageant tradition, contestants, family, and friends serve as ambassadors of Chinese American heritage and culture, drawing attention to San Francisco Chinatown and other home communities as they spread good will throughout the Bay Area and beyond. This special exhibit offers an affectionate and fun-filled look at the glitz, substance, and significance of this favorite community tradition. View the online exhibit here: www.civilrightssuite.org/MissChinatown
To Enjoy and Defend our American Citizenship
CHSA explores the experiences of the Chinese American Citizens Alliance (C.A.C.A.) in their groundbreaking work alongside groups such as the NAACP to challenge discriminatory laws while creating the support systems necessary for survival in a segregated United States. In recent years, C.A.C.A. has carried on its civil rights legacy with its opposition of anti-immigration policies, racial discrimination, and hate crimes. In the 1880s, the federal government passes legislation that removes the equal protection under the law provided by the 14th Amendment to the Constitution. Racial discrimination and violent attacks intensify throughout the next decades, and community members face the challenge of organizing to fight for basic human rights. Links: CHSA Civil Rights Suite - [...]
The Chinese of California
Through a unique collection of artifacts, images, documents, and personal stories, The Chinese of California explores the complex history and unique challenges of Chinese Americans in their fight for civil rights. As legislation exemplified by the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 removed the constitutional guarantee of equal protection under the law for people of Chinese descent, discrimination and violent attacks intensified against them, leaving Chinese Californians to fight for basic human rights—and for the very existence of their communities. A first-ever collaboration of The Bancroft Library of the University of California at Berkeley, California Historical Society, and Chinese Historical Society of America, The Chinese of California will challenge preconceptions about the [...]
Civil Rights Suite
In celebration of 2008 Asian Pacific Heritage Month, the Chinese Historical Society of America is proud to present the Civil Rights Suite, a trio of exhibits comprised of The Chinese of California, Remembering 1882, and To Enjoy and Defend Our American Citizenship. This triumvirate of exhibits is a first voice institution representing the Chinese American fight for equality. In 1882, Congress passed the nation’s first immigration law—the Chinese Exclusion Act. As legislation removed the constitutional guarantee of equal protection, discrimination and violent attacks against people of Chinese descent intensified, defining the fight for basic human rights and the very existence of Chinese Americans. The Civil Rights Suite is a summation of many issues stirring within the current [...]
Detained at Liberty’s Door
Detained at Liberty's Door traces the formation of the Angel Island Immigration Station and highlights the inspiring story of Mrs. Lee Yoke Suey, the wife of a native-born citizen who was detained for more than 15 months on Angel Island. Only an association with one of California's most powerful & iconic families secured her freedom. This traveling exhibit, developed by CHSA, has been displayed at the California History Center, De Anza College in 2011.