Key Takeaways:
- The Am I Next? protest art project is a response to federal immigration raids in Los Angeles, featuring illuminated images of everyday LA residents and their stories.
- The project aims to highlight the fear and trauma experienced by millions since the Trump administration’s approach to immigration enforcement began.
- The campaign features portraits of Angelenos, including US citizens, who have been detained or accosted by federal agents, and asks the question: if fellow residents are arrested without consideration of constitutional rights, then who is really safe?
- The project is a collaboration between the California Community Foundation, LA Plaza Cultura y Artes, and the Japanese American National Museum.
- The use of force, dehumanization tactics, and racist targeting of immigrants feels all too familiar for the Japanese American community, who were interned during World War II.
Introduction to the Am I Next? Project
The Am I Next? project is a powerful protest art installation that has been launched in response to the federal immigration raids in Los Angeles. The project features large-scale portraits of everyday LA residents, along with brief stories of people who have been detained or accosted by federal agents. The images are projected onto the facades of buildings in downtown Los Angeles, including the California Community Foundation, LA Plaza Cultura y Artes, and the Japanese American National Museum. The project aims to highlight the fear and trauma experienced by millions of people in the city, where nearly half of the residents are Latino.
The Impact of Immigration Raids on the Community
The immigration raids have had a significant impact on the community, with many people living in fear of being detained or deported. The raids have also led to a sense of trauma and anxiety, with many people feeling like they are living in a state of constant uncertainty. The Am I Next? project aims to bring attention to this issue and to ask the question: if fellow residents are arrested without consideration of constitutional rights, then who is really safe? The project features portraits of Angelenos, including US citizens, who have been detained or accosted by federal agents, and highlights the stories of people like Mauricio, who was waiting for a bus, Rosalina, who was at home with her children, and Juan, who was on his lunch break from his construction job.
The Collaboration Behind the Project
The Am I Next? project is a collaboration between the California Community Foundation, LA Plaza Cultura y Artes, and the Japanese American National Museum. The project was conceived as a response to the federal immigration raids, which have been criticized for their violent and militarized approach. The project features the work of Pulitzer-winning photographer Barbara Davidson, who met with LA residents in neighborhoods such as East LA, Venice, and Echo Park to take their portraits. The project also includes images of familiar faces, such as veteran actors and activists Edward James Olmos and George Takei, and Los Angeles mayor Karen Bass.
The Historical Context of the Project
The Am I Next? project has a significant historical context, particularly for the Japanese American community. The Japanese American National Museum, which is one of the partners in the project, was the site where over 37,000 Japanese Americans from Los Angeles boarded buses for American concentration camps in 1942. The museum is also where about 75 armed federal agents conducted an immigration raid in August, during a news conference event with Gavin Newsom. The use of force, dehumanization tactics, and racist targeting of immigrants feels all too familiar for the Japanese American community, who were interned during World War II. The project aims to highlight the similarities between the past and present, and to remind people that when we protect the rights of anyone in our community, we are really protecting the rights for everyone, including ourselves.
The Expansion of the Project
The Am I Next? project is not limited to Los Angeles, with plans to expand to other cities such as San Francisco and New York. The project will run indefinitely, with the goal of bringing awareness to the issue of immigration enforcement and the need to protect the constitutional rights of all Americans. The project’s message is clear: the violent way in which immigration enforcement is happening needs to be exposed and not normalized. As Miguel Santana, president and chief executive of the California Community Foundation, said, "We will keep it going until we can all sleep at night knowing that our core American constitutional rights are not going to be violated. We’re living in a moment where every American has to decide if those rights apply to all of us or some of us."