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As Trump continues to spit fire on immigrants with his hateful rhetoric and anti-immigrant policies, the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center launched a new video titled, "America Is In The Heart."
Based on a memoir first published in 1946 by a Filipino immigrant, Carlos Bulosan, it features other well known figures such as comedian, Hasan Minhaj, grassroots organizer, Ivy Quicho, and author, Junot Díaz, who are shown reading from the book, as the images from several immigrant communities fade in and out during the video.
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"America Is In The Heart" is a 1946 semi-autobiographical novel by a Filipino American immigrant poet. In the book, Bulosan chronicles his journey from the Phillipines to the United States and how he overcame the xenophobic milieu that he experienced in the North American country.
In an interview with the Angry Asian Man blog, the director, Frank Chi, revealed that he first came across Bulosan's memoir when he was in college and it helped him "repel that poison" and heal, referring to xenophobia.
"When you're an immigrant, and Asian American, you're bombarded by attempts from everywhere that say you don't belong. For me, Bulosan's words helped repel that poison. He helped teach me how to be an American in my own way, on my own time," Chi said.
Adriel Luis, curator of the digital and emerging media for the museum, told the NBC that Smithsonian reached out several immigrant communities during the filming of the video.
"Similar to how other historic writers like James Baldwin and Sylvia Plath have been rediscovered by younger generations, Bulosan’s work also continues to resonate beyond just the Filipino American experience of the 1940s," Luis said.
"The Bulosan film also takes a written artifact of that era [and] time, but captures the spirit of hope and determination that is still felt by immigrants today."
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