the post
scriptum project*
post
scriptum
project*
p.s. from the editors
In early 2021, when we settled upon the idea of opening submissions up to strangers, we decided, "If we can even get to 20 submissions, that'll be enough." Today, we present to you hundreds of submissions from almost all AAPI creators, activists, artists, students, parents, and humans who come from all over the globe.
We thank you for contributing to our digital magazine, whether you actually submitted to us, spread the word about it, or are currently here reading this note!
Our goal with this site was not to talk about the recent surge in violence against Asian communities. We are more than that. We are more than the actions others inflict upon us; we are bodies with stories and agencies and voices. We don't want to, nor do we think we can, deal in lofty words and abstractions like "navigating unprecedented times" or "dismantling institutionalized racism." So we choose to document the miniscule, the quiet narratives most often excluded from our history. So we meet the mom who stopped riding the subway, the first-generation boy who struggled to convert Celsius to Fahrenheit, the middle-school girl who started making food baskets for Filipino elders.
So we plant the trees. The forest is for you to find.
When you look through this site, we hope you feel pride in your Asian culture; pride in your heritage and history; pride in your community; pride in the creativity and courage of AAPI individuals.
When you look through this site, know that you are seen, heard, and loved. Know that you have never been alone in any struggles you may have faced.
We hope you enjoy this culmination of the AAPI experience and identity and know that we can find strength in our collective voice.
yours truly,
samantha liu & alefiya presswala
thank yous
Thank you to our domestic readers and contributors who have visited us from Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.
Thank you also to our international readers who so far have checked in from Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Cambodia, Canada, China, Colombia, Czechia, Denmark, England, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Greenland, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Kuwait, Lithuania, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Panama, Peru, the Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
the project
Conceived in early 2021, the post scriptum project began as an article pitch to examine the evolution of Asian-American identity. We began to search for answers as we asked teens around the world one question: "What does your Asian-American identity mean to you in 2021?"
From the poignance, authenticity, and rawness of their responses arose the full-fledged post scriptum project, which documents, as its name suggests, the unheard narratives of Asian-American individuals—that is, the stories from the asterisks, margins, and footnotes of the United States.
We hope this our collections might shed light on each individual's stories while, perhaps, assembling a collective narrative for these oft-excluded bodies.
voices is a series slash anthology of the individual submissions we received from across the world, from New York to California, from South Korea to the Philippines, in response to the question: "What does your Asian-American identity mean to you in 2021?"
interviews is nothing more than its name suggests. From influencers and artists to strangers in an Hmart; from five minute conversations to two hour sessions; from childhood struggles to present identities to future dreams; this collection details the context and full transcription for each interview.
visions is a collection spotlighting the work of Asian-Americans creatives. Individuals submitted to us their original pieces for publication in our gallery, as a miscellany of primary sources including rally speeches, artwork, journalism, poetry, and more.
the collections
the theme
This site employs artwork from the "Dispersed Crowds" series by Palestinian artist and curator Khaled Hourani. The editors found inspiration in his portrayals of collective protest and exigence in his advocacy for Palestinian arts.
the editors
Alefiya Presswala
Jordan Guzzi
Samantha Liu
Serena Li
Tyler Vu
Vanessa Gong