Undergraduate student Stephanie Jiang writes and directs youtube video for Plug Vancouver addressing anti-Asian racism in Canada.
Stephanie Jiang
Stephanie Jiang’s project was born from a final assignment for SOCI302 with Prof. Oral Robinson. Aiming to address an issue she is passionate about – anti-Asian racism – the project uses qualitative research in interview styles to showcase the reality of how anti-Asian racism has impacted many generations of Asian-Canadians.
Jiang combined anti-racism theory and family studies to address the specific, yet widely relatable immigrant experience, one that is intergenerational and lacking in discourse of everyday life. Once she was ready to begin interviews, she reached out to organizations to get resources to complete the video. She worked with the Plug and Trifecta, and aimed to shed light on downtown east side non-profit organization Yarrow Intergenerational Society for Justice as an association working within this field.
“The goal of this project is to create solidarity between minorities, generations, and other identities through the power of story-telling; to humanize the ever-so desensitized experiences of the world. Because it is only by standing together, through love and compassion for one another, that we can create change and unity.”
Ed. by Plug Vancouver Graphic Designer Karmen Leong
The completion of the project took well over a year, as Jiang struggled with a lack of funding and the difficulties of navigating production and direction on her own for the first time. Jiang stressed the process as a learning curve, coming in with no previous experience and being able to develop her project through passion and genuine interest, both on her and her collaborators part. Upon the final version being released on Youtube earlier this month, Jiang would like to express her gratitude towards Plug Vancouver, Matt Crawford, and Trifecta in the article.
Jiang views this project as one cultivating compassion and understanding by connecting with non-academic audiences, older generations, and identities going beyond east-Asians. One of her goals was to make people more aware of issues discussed in Sociology scholarship by making information both more accesible and relatable.
