The last time I visited a Holocaust museum, I was in 8th grade, on my class’ overnight field trip to DC. The museum was educational and impactful, but I do remember that there was no mention of Jewish refugees finding safety in Shanghai in any exhibit. Though learning about the Holocaust was a part of both my middle school and high school curriculums, I was still not taught about Shanghai opening its doors to Jewish refugees. The Holocaust museum LA’s Shanghai exhibit was the very first time I learned about Jewish communities exisiting in China during World War 2.
As I was exploring the exhibit, I had time to talk with Zach Ritter, an educator who’s hunger for knowledge is apparent in any conversation. I was surprised to learn that “Superman” - the DC comic about a superhero that I’ve grown up watching and reading in America, is actually a Jewish comic about the Holocaust. Zach informed me that during the Holocaust, Jewish students drew the famous Clark Kent as a white-passing Jewish person, who experienced double consciousness from appearing white, but identifying as Jewish. The story was that Clark Kent could live amongst the Nazis due to the way he looked, but he would actually turn around and fight them any chance he could. I couldn’t believe that such a “famously American” story had such a rich history that isn’t American at all - Superman wasn’t originally about a regular guy fighting monsters, it was about the experience of a white-passing Jewish person fighting Nazis during the Holocaust. Learning about the origin of “Superman” made me reflect on how America could erase such a powerful, cultural text. Centering the entire “Superman” franchise around its original plotline and content would have been the perfect opportunity to educate audiences on the Holocaust. After my experience in the Shanghai exhibit, I’ve been grappling with these questions - What institutions within our society enable the normalization of erasing histories? How can we, as students, change this phenomenon for future generations?
During my time at CLA, we’ve had discussions about our frustrations regarding the lack of AAPI history in our education. I have learned more about Asian American and Pacific Islander history in these past four weeks at CAUSE than I ever have throughout my entire educational career. After talking with other interns in my cohort, we’ve concluded that none of us have been educated on our own histories in school, unless we’ve made our own effort to learn about them ourselves. Even then, sometimes searching for holistic perspectives on historical events can be difficult. Recognizing that history was written by those in power in the past, I understand entire communities are often excluded from important stories. It can be frustrating, but I found comfort in knowing my cohort members share similar feelings.
These experiences have catalyzed a new goal of mine: to really prioritize and appreciate the power of education. At CLA, I feel very grateful that AAPI education has been a core component of this internship experience. I feel I am more connected to the Pacific Islander part of my identity after learning about the history of the Philippines. I wonder if I would have felt more connected to my Filipino heritage from a young age, if AAPI history was a part of my education.