Executive Director of ArtForce Iowa and HealthConnect Fellow
(October 2019-June 2021)
Developing diverse and healing-centered texts that reflect authentic stories of individuals who are minoritized and marginalized
As a daughter of Hmong refugees, Christine Her struggled to balance her Hmong and American identities growing up. She conceived #KNOWJUSTICE: The Legacy Collection because she recognized that many stories in our community are not being told and that telling stories is important to honor identities, heal collectively, and address racism.
“In every moment of grief or celebration,” said Her, “stories have taught me that the greatest thing we can do for each other is to show up with compassion, actively listen, and amplify the authentic voice of the storyteller.”
Through the fellowship, Her built a team of artists, content creators, academic scholars, designers, and storytellers committed to collecting and preserving stories, with an initial focus on those who have refugee or immigrant backgrounds. The team is defining best practices for creating artistic content, and stories are being shared on a new online platform.
Building relationships has been especially important to advancing the project. Her has taken time to foster feelings of psychological Safety and authentic belonging among the partners involved. She also has advocated for sharing diverse stories in classrooms. At a recent meeting, Congresswoman Cindy Axne agreed to champion a Teaching Equitable Asian American Community History bill.
#KNOWJUSTICE: The Legacy Collection launched May 31 with more than 350 views of a documentary featuring Her’s parents’ story. Her and the project have been featured on several news outlets and extensively on social media platforms. Her was honored with the American Express Emerging Leader Award from the Americans for the Arts in June 2021.
Through Her’s relationship-building efforts, the project is becoming community-owned. Her is now looking to offer scholars who come from specific ethnic backgrounds a safe space to learn about their histories alongside others with similar experiences. Those involved in the project have already been deeply impacted by the process, including Her. “If people who are working on the project can find healing, this project is a success,” she said.
