48 10 805 https://archives.caaav.org/files/original/6c713405e7ad3d4ff89891b5a00652ee.jpg 69167f49bdeb3c77d0849816b17c5f01 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Protest against film Rising Sun in Times Square Description An account of the resource Members of the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund, carrying a banner bearing their name and logo, join fellow New Yorkers to protest racism against Asians at the premiere of the film Rising Sun near West 45th Street and Broadway in Manhattan. One Black protestor holds a sign that reads, “20th Century Movie, 19th Century Mentality.” Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource July 30, 1993 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Allegra Favila Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Copyright is held by CAAAV Organizing Asian Communities. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Photograph Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CAAAV_1545 "Rising Sun" Anti-Asian Violence and Representations Demonstration https://archives.caaav.org/files/original/e72da6bc7e4ca3eed3a25e4c68b74c6d.jpg f40bf956492a329e7670991cfcaff491 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Protest against film Rising Sun in Times Square Description An account of the resource Asian New Yorkers march past the Roundabout Theatre near Manhattan's Times Square to protest racism against Asians at the premiere of the film Rising Sun. Protestors hold signs written in Chinese and English decrying racism. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource July 30, 1993 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Allegra Favila Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Copyright is held by CAAAV Organizing Asian Communities. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Photograph Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CAAAV_1553 "Rising Sun" Anti-Asian Violence and Representations Demonstration https://archives.caaav.org/files/original/63f4b811a72d76abe7752fdd6409d74d.jpg fdf15fa6b98e9c4c3d13d9dcd5770f26 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Protest against film Rising Sun in Times Square Description An account of the resource Asian New Yorkers and members of the press gather in front of the Roundabout Theatre near Manhattan's Times Square to protest racism against Asians at the premiere of the film Rising Sun. One demonstrator’s sign reads “Ebony and Ivory Live Together in Bipolarity, Genocide of All Asians is the Stark Reality!” Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource July 30, 1993 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Allegra Favila Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Copyright is held by CAAAV Organizing Asian Communities. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Photograph Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CAAAV_1559 "Rising Sun" Anti-Asian Violence and Representations Demonstration https://archives.caaav.org/files/original/e3486f7512f91ab7231f8ae2f3b7601a.jpg 7a2ddd913fa9e19eb241e4d9533b072b Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Protest against film Rising Sun in Times Square Description An account of the resource Asian and Black New Yorkers gather in front of the United Artists Theatre in Manhattan's Times Square to protest racism against Asians at the premiere of the film Rising Sun. Many protestors hold signs as they march. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource July 30, 1993 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Allegra Favila Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Copyright is held by CAAAV Organizing Asian Communities. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Photograph Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CAAAV_1560 "Rising Sun" Anti-Asian Violence and Representations Demonstration Solidarity Work https://archives.caaav.org/files/original/0eae257c8da7cef36b5a26f7c55eca1a.jpg 9128b50e5c97b4030ff9871f91b1bf8f Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Protest against film Rising Sun in Times Square Description An account of the resource Asian and Black New Yorkers gather in Manhattan's Times Square to protest racism against Asians at the premiere of the film Rising Sun. A sign in the shape of a tombstone bears the writing “Robert Buchanan, August 10, 1992, Olympia, WA,” in memory of a 17-year-old Asian boy who was killed in a racist attack. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource July 30, 1993 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Allegra Favila Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Copyright is held by CAAAV Organizing Asian Communities. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Photograph Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CAAAV_1570 "Rising Sun" Anti-Asian Violence and Representations Demonstration Solidarity Work https://archives.caaav.org/files/original/9583941b2bad78be5befdbb4161157f9.jpg 81144edcb51b502757e49ab7da88f5d6 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Protest against film Rising Sun in Times Square (New York City) Description An account of the resource July 30, 1993: CAAAV summer interns Jonathon Sung Bidol, Ginny Moon, and Julia Wang gather over one-hundred demonstrators outside Times Square’s Criterion Theater to protest Philip Kaufman’s racist film, Rising Sun, on its opening day. “Rising Sun! Raising hate!” the crowd chants.<a href="https://maggie.hosting.nyu.edu/caaav/rising-sun-raising-hate#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1">[1]</a> “JAPANESE MEN SLEEPING WITH WHITE WOMEN! GET THE LYNCH MOB,” reads one protestor’s sign.<a href="https://maggie.hosting.nyu.edu/caaav/rising-sun-raising-hate#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2">[2]</a> Staged in conjunction with dozens of other demonstrations across the United States, this protest aimed to “educate moviegoers about [Rising Sun’s] insidious stereotyping and the potential for anti-Asian violence its xenophobic message promotes.”<a href="https://maggie.hosting.nyu.edu/caaav/rising-sun-raising-hate#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3">[3]</a> The film, which follows two detectives as they investigate the murder of an escort at a Japanese company in Los Angeles, characterizes Japanese men as amoral, sexually-deviant foreigners determined to take over American institutions.<a href="https://maggie.hosting.nyu.edu/caaav/rising-sun-raising-hate#_ftn4" name="_ftnref4">[4]</a> Such insidious anti-Asian depictions redirect attention from internal causes of American economic problems and project blame onto “conniving” outsiders who look and act differently from white Americans.<a href="https://maggie.hosting.nyu.edu/caaav/rising-sun-raising-hate#_ftn5" name="_ftnref5">[5]</a> CAAAV’s protest against this stereotyping reflects an enduring commitment to fighting systemic and institutional racism, the root cause of anti-Asian violence in the U.S., and the organization’s awareness that hate crimes are often fueled by anti-Asian representations in American culture.<a href="https://maggie.hosting.nyu.edu/caaav/rising-sun-raising-hate#_ftn6" name="_ftnref6">[6]</a> Founded in 1986, CAAAV Organizing Asian Communities (formerly the Coalition Against Anti-Asian Violence) was created in response to rising anti-Asian violence across the U.S., particularly following the 1982 murder of Vincent Chin. A large part of CAAAV’s early activism centered on developing “a deeper analysis of the root causes of [anti-Asian] violence,” including the fact that such violence is neither random nor uncommon. Rather, it’s the result of centuries-long anti-Asian racism, which has become codified in the American legal system and in American culture.<a href="https://maggie.hosting.nyu.edu/caaav/rising-sun-raising-hate#_ftn7" name="_ftnref7">[7]</a> This entrenched racism is often expressed in anti-Asian representations; although Asian people have lived in the U.S. for centuries, they remain marginalized and othered, “seen as exotic, barbaric, and the perpetual foreigner,” even if they are naturalized or were born in the U.S.<a href="https://maggie.hosting.nyu.edu/caaav/rising-sun-raising-hate#_ftn8" name="_ftnref8">[8]</a> As the organizers of CAAAV’s anti-Rising Sun protest recognized, these racist caricatures directly fuel anti-Asian violence. In October 1987, for example, flyers portraying Asian business owners and homeowners as homicidal mobsters and conniving religious cult leaders were plastered across Bensonhurst and Gravesend, Brooklyn. This directly resulted in a spate of anti-Asian violence, including street harassment, vandalism of Asian-owned property, and beatings of Asian American youth. As the organization would do upon Rising Sun’s release, CAAAV explicitly challenged these anti-Asian representations. CAAAV founders Mini Liu and Monona Yin publicly condemned city officials’ refusal to take anti-Asian racism seriously, collecting over one-thousand signatures on a petition that protested the NYPD’s response and collaborating with a multiracial coalition of community leaders to address racial violence in South Brooklyn.<a href="https://maggie.hosting.nyu.edu/caaav/rising-sun-raising-hate#_ftn9" name="_ftnref9">[9]</a> Such activism illustrates CAAAV’s critical analysis of the root causes of anti-Asian violence and the strategic actions it takes to address systemic and institutional racism. Today, CAAAV continues to combat anti-Asian representations and hate crimes as the COVID-19 pandemic inflames anti-Asian racism. In advocating for poor and working-class Asian immigrant and refugee communities and protesting against anti-Asian representations, CAAAV supports and empowers some of New York City’s most vulnerable residents and provides them with essential services and resources during a particularly dangerous time for Asians and Asian Americans.<a href="https://maggie.hosting.nyu.edu/caaav/rising-sun-raising-hate#_ftn10" name="_ftnref10">[10]</a> Notes <a href="https://maggie.hosting.nyu.edu/caaav/rising-sun-raising-hate#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1">[1]</a> “Rising Sun! Raising Hate!,” The CAAAV Voice 5, no. 2 (1993): 3, accessed March 14, 2021, http://caaav.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/Voice_Fall_1993.pdf. <a href="https://maggie.hosting.nyu.edu/caaav/rising-sun-raising-hate#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2">[2]</a> “Rising Sun! Raising Hate!,” 3; “Protest against film Rising Sun in Times Square (New York City),” CAAAV Organizing Asian Communities Digital Archive, accessed March 16, 2021, http://maggie.hosting.nyu.edu/caaav/admin/items/show/1091. <a href="https://maggie.hosting.nyu.edu/caaav/rising-sun-raising-hate#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3">[3]</a> “Rising Sun! Raising Hate!,” 3. <a href="https://maggie.hosting.nyu.edu/caaav/rising-sun-raising-hate#_ftnref4" name="_ftn4">[4]</a> “Rising Sun (1993),” IMDb, accessed March 14, 2021, http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0107969/; “Rising Sun! Raising Hate!,” 3. <a href="https://maggie.hosting.nyu.edu/caaav/rising-sun-raising-hate#_ftnref5" name="_ftn5">[5]</a> “Rising Sun! Raising Hate!,” 3. <a href="https://maggie.hosting.nyu.edu/caaav/rising-sun-raising-hate#_ftnref6" name="_ftn6">[6]</a> “History of CAAAV,” CAAAV Organizing Asian Communities, accessed March 14, 2021, http://caaav.org/about-us/history-of-caaav. <a href="https://maggie.hosting.nyu.edu/caaav/rising-sun-raising-hate#_ftnref7" name="_ftn7">[7]</a> “History of CAAAV.” <a href="https://maggie.hosting.nyu.edu/caaav/rising-sun-raising-hate#_ftnref8" name="_ftn8">[8]</a> Vivian Wong et al, “Archives (Re)Imagined Elsewhere: Asian American Community-based Archival Organizations,” in Through the Archival Looking Glass: A Reader on Diversity and Inclusion, ed. Mary A Caldera and Kathryn M. Neal (Chicago: Society of American Archivists, 2014): 114. <a href="https://maggie.hosting.nyu.edu/caaav/rising-sun-raising-hate#_ftnref9" name="_ftn9">[9]</a> Vivian Truong, "From State-Sanctioned Removal to the Right to the City: The Policing of Asian Immigrants in Southern Brooklyn, 1987–1995," Journal of Asian American Studies 23, no. 1 (2020): 66-68. <a href="https://maggie.hosting.nyu.edu/caaav/rising-sun-raising-hate#_ftnref10" name="_ftn10">[10]</a> “Our Work,” CAAAV Organizing Asian Communities, accessed March 14, 2021, http://caaav.org/our-work. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource circa 1993 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Helen Stec This post was completed as coursework for HIST-GA 3901 Community Archives, taught by Maggie Schreiner, in the Archives and Public History MA program at New York University. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Copyright is held by CAAAV Organizing Asian Communities. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Photograph Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CAAAV_1567 "Rising Sun" Anti-Asian Violence and Representations Demonstration Solidarity Work https://archives.caaav.org/files/original/58fa963603eddf3b03e04bf7d28d573e.jpg f8817b79922b73c69b53486dd7fa1cd1 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Protest against film Rising Sun in Times Square (New York City) Description An account of the resource This photographs shows a crowded scene in front of a movie theater. On its marquee, adorned in red block letters, is a title: RISING SUN. On the street, members of CAAAV hold signs as tourists pass by, reading “Japanese men sleeping with white women! Get the lynch mob,”<a>[1]</a> and other images depict the sign “Gangsters, businessmen & waiters – we demand better roles for Asian actors.”<a>[2]</a> This protest was one of many. Asian-American activists had been vocal about their problems with Rising Sun – citing its use of caricaturized depictions of Asian people and the way it promoted violence against them – and groups across the country had organized demonstrations for its premier in 1993.<a>[3]</a> Asian representation in film has long been lacking. Asian characters make up only 1% of leading roles, and when they do appear they often embody harmful stereotypes.<a>[4]</a> Asian men in particular are frequently portrayed as emasculated and sexless or, in the case of Rising Sun, as predatory businessmen with criminal connections.<a>[5]</a> Many of these harmful tropes stem from the racist and xenophobic fear, originating in the 1870s, that Asian immigration constituted a threat to the white Western world. This fear, often known as the idea of “Yellow Peril,” was particularly obvious in the pervasive anxiety that Asian men might corrupt white women.<a>[6]</a>   Rising Sun stokes these twin fears. It tells the story of police investigating the death of a white female escort, whose body was discovered in the offices of a powerful Japanese company.<a>[7]</a> As stated, both the fears of Asian people gaining power in the (white) American business world and of Asian men taking advantage of defenseless white women are baseless and rooted in historical xenophobia. Despite this, Rising Sun portrays them with no nuance or criticism. That CAAAV and other activist groups organized demonstrations against Rising Sun is unsurprising, given the material consequences that arise when these racist ideas are promoted in popular media. Not only do they take root in people’s imaginations – people who may “have little contact with Asian and Pacific Americans,” and on whom “the impact of films, television, and print is likely to be profound” – but they also foster real-life violence.<a>[8]</a> Backlash against the film cited this point. Michael Ishii, chairman of the New York Coalition Against Rising Sun, noted that “The message is that it’s okay to attack Asians, and that it’s a patriotic thing to do.”<a>[9]</a> Even Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, a Japanese American actor with a prominent role in the film, stated, “I’ve played a lot of stereotypes…But the angst from all the violence, and the fear that we as Asians feel everyday leaving our door in America wondering whether we’re going to come home, all that kind of angst is being dumped on Rising Sun.”<a>[10]</a> The signs that the CAAAV members hold in these photographs decry the state of Asian representation in Hollywood, although the “better roles for Asian actors” have largely failed to materialize in the nearly three decades since this protest.<a>[11]</a> What’s more, the signs also echo the sentiments of Ishii and Tagawa, particularly in the evocative reference to “the lynch mob” that can form when non-Asian people perceive Asians as a threat to their power or their civilization. The fact that this threat of violence remains a problem even now highlights that there is still a need to push for equal representation in media to this day. Notes <a>[1]</a> “Protest against film Rising Sun in Times Square (New York City),” CAAAV Organizing Asian Communities Digital Archive, accessed March 18, 2021, http://maggie.hosting.nyu.edu/caaav/admin/items/show/1091 <a>[2]</a> “Better Roles for Asian Actors,” CAAAV Organizing Asian Communities Digital Archive, accessed March 18, 2021, http://maggie.hosting.nyu.edu/caaav/admin/items/show/1042 <a>[3]</a> Nisid Hajari, “’Rising Sun’ Stirs Controversy,” EW.com (Entertainment Weekly, August 6, 1993), https://ew.com/article/1993/08/06/rising-sun-stirs-controversy/. <a>[4]</a> Thessaly La Force, “Why Do Asian-Americans Remain Largely Unseen in Film and Television?,” The New York Times (The New York Times, November 6, 2018), https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/06/t-magazine/asian-american-actors-representation.html. <a>[5]</a> Jennifer Richards, “Portrayals of Asians in Film and Television: Get Started,” Ithaca College Library (Ithaca College), accessed March 18, 2021, https://libguides.ithaca.edu/c.php?g=861718&p=6175738. <a>[6]</a> Teresa A. Mok, “Getting the Message: Media Images and Stereotypes and Their Effect on Asian Americans,” Cultural Diversity & Mental Health 4 (3) http://search.ebscohost.com.proxy.library.nyu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=edo&AN=31159946&site=eds-live. <a>[7]</a> “Rising Sun,” IMDb (IMDb.com, July 30, 1993), https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0107969/. <a>[8]</a> Stanley Sue and James K. Morishima, The Mental Health of Asian Americans, Jossey-Bass, 1982. http://search.ebscohost.com.proxy.library.nyu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=brd&AN=68339687&site=eds-live. <a>[9]</a> Hajari, “’Rising Sun’ Stirs Controversy.” <a>[10]</a> Hajari, “’Rising Sun’ Stirs Controversy.” <a>[11]</a> La Force, “Why Do Asian-Americans Remain Largely Unseen in Film and Television?,” The New York Times, November 6, 2018. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource circa 1993 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Jubilee Marshall This post was completed as coursework for HIST-GA 3901 Community Archives, taught by Maggie Schreiner, in the Archives and Public History MA program at New York University. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Copyright is held by CAAAV Organizing Asian Communities. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Photograph Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CAAAV_1557 "Rising Sun" Anti-Asian Violence and Representations Demonstration Solidarity Work https://archives.caaav.org/files/original/6f420a63af895a0a67bfb47bb4548874.jpg efa50ddf3ff44ac6808391a8e3805036 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Protest against gentrification in Chinatown (New York City) Description An account of the resource A demonstrator protests against real estate developer Benjamin Shaoul and gentrification in Chinatown (Manhattan). They hold up a poster that reads, "BENJAMIN SHAOUL HANDS OFF CHINATOWN." Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource circa 2000-2020 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Helen Stec Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Copyright is held by CAAAV Organizing Asian Communities. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Photograph Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CAAAV_1237 Chinatown Chinatown Tenants Union Demonstration Tenant Advocacy https://archives.caaav.org/files/original/32cdd6f84a87f748977cb5d59f5a985b.jpg e40977e63ec3cea27bf50852333eda06 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Protest Against Mayor Rudy Giuliani Description An account of the resource Demonstrators protesting against New York City’s Mayor Rudy Guiliani. They are holding signs that read (from left to right) “IMPEACH GULIANI,” “ARREST GULIANI,” and “RACIST RUDY.” Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource undated Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Nicole Font Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Copyright is held by CAAAV Organizing Asian Communities. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Photograph Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CAAAV_1324 Demonstration Police Brutality https://archives.caaav.org/files/original/6170059e4e173aa7385b876ca8031ef7.jpg 3e58f81064bb50b881cb71dafa46abb2 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Protest against New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani Description An account of the resource A large group of protestors gather in Sara D. Roosevelt Park (Lower East Side, Manhattan) to protest against New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani. They hold up several signs and posters that read (from left to right) "IMPEACH GIULIANI," "ARREST GIULIANI," "INDICT GIULIANI," "GIULIANI IS A VIOLATOR OF EVERY NEW YORKER'S CIVIL RIGHTS," and "GHOULIANI." Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource circa 1994-2001 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Helen Stec Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Copyright is held by CAAAV Organizing Asian Communities. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Photograph Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CAAAV_1326 Demonstration Police Brutality Racial Justice Committee Solidarity Work