Tapestry of Asian American history woven on BI

Historic preservation is not always about erecting a monument — it’s also about knitting the intangible fabric of culture for generations to come. In that sense, Bainbridge Island is a tapestry.

About 150 members of the Asian and Pacific Islander Americans in Historic Preservation (APIAiHP) Forum visited BI Sept. 14, marking the first time the national forum has come to the Northwest. As part of the three-day summit, the group spent a day on BI, learning about the history of the Japanese and Filipino American communities and sharing experiences from their work around the country.

We “are thrilled to draw more national attention and visitors to the Bainbridge Island Japanese American Exclusion Memorial, a site of profound historic importance,” said Huy Pham, executive director of APIAHP. “We hope that attendees left with not only a greater understanding of the memorial’s significance but also a deeper connection to the Japanese and Indo-Filipino American histories and communities, both near and far to them.”

This year’s forum coincided with a warning bell. In 2023, Seattle’s Chinatown-International District made the list as one of the 11 most-endangered historic places in the U.S. The designation was the first time a locale in Washington has been included since the list began in 1988.

“By rallying around the places that symbolize their history and stories, many neighborhoods and communities are leading the charge to protect what makes them special in the face of overdevelopment, displacement and gentrification,” NTHP officials say in a news release.

Forum attendee Susie Kagami, executive director of KOHO in San Francisco’s Japantown, said that generational trauma from incarceration during World War II and racism at home led to a wave of assimilation in the Japanese American community in the Bay Area, which left younger generations without a sense of belonging.

“We want to amplify traditions and rituals, and give license to younger generations to reconnect with their heritage,” Kagami said. “This conference has helped me discover that my work is an opportunity and pathway for activism […] it’s taught me that activism can show up in many different forms, not just preserving monuments and buildings, but in culture and heritage for younger generations.”

BI is seeing the result of decades-long efforts of exactly that.

150 forum attendees arrived at the BIJAEM for the largest-ever visitation to the site by a private tour group.

Debra Grindeland, treasurer of the BI Japanese American Community, explained that BI’s tight-knit community helped keep incarcerated islanders connected to their neighbors, their properties cared for, and ensured that many were able to safely return. “We attribute this to the community, not just to Japanese-American Bainbridge Islanders,” she said.

Community is central to historic preservation, but communities are not always centralized. Chris Kumaradjaja, forum attendee who works in building conservation in New York City, explained that motivating a community is a challenge because of the density of the city; the Chinese population of NYC alone spans three Chinatowns. “Seattle’s Chinatown, in comparison, is very homegrown,” Kumaradjaja said. “It’s surprising that people spend their whole lives in the neighborhood, and it’s inspiring how proud people are to share their stories, how big the culture is and how motivated folks are to preserve its history.”

The final stop of the tour was BI’s Filipino American Hall at Strawberry Hill Park, a focal point for the island’s Filipino and Indipino community. Gina Corpuz, Indipino advocate, shared the history of her heritage. A collaboration with local filmmakers has raised the profile of her community, and the film has now been adopted into the BI School District history curriculum.

Naghmana Sherazi, consultant for the governor’s Office of Equity, “absolutely loved” her time on BI. She saw an opportunity to combine state history with community outreach — in Eastern Washington, in particular.

“I didn’t know the history of South Asian people in the Pacific Northwest — that Sikh and Indian immigrants would settle in Canada, then travel south to America to work on the railroads,” she said. “I’d love to think about think about preserving the history of the Muslim, Indian and Pakistani community in Spokane, and this shows how to do it.”