Southern History

A watercolor painting depicts a fenced camp with multiple barracks, a watchtower, and a muddy landscape with puddles in the foreground, capturing the stark reality of Japanese American Incarceration during World War II.

Rising Above in Arkansas – Japanese American Incarceration During WWII

This digital project explores the history and legacy of Japanese American incarceration at Rohwer and Jerome during World War II. Using maps, archival materials, photographs, and spatial storytelling, the site helps students visualize how thousands of Japanese Americans were forcibly relocated and confined from 1942–1946. 

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A person stands with hands on hips in the middle of a large cotton field, as if reflecting on themes explored in the Far East Deep South film, gazing toward the horizon under a partly cloudy sky.

Far East Deep South – Film and Discussion Guide

This discussion guide includes a timeline, discussion questions, activities, and a chapter-by-chapter breakdown to facilitate learning and conversation on themes established in Far East Deep South, an award-winning film directed by Larissa Lam and produced by Baldwin Chiu. Far East Deep South follows a Chinese American family’s journey to the Mississippi Delta, where they uncover surprising family revelations and explore the complex history of Chinese immigrants in the segregated South. The film highlights the deep connections between the Chinese and Black communities during the Jim Crow era and the lasting impact of discriminatory immigration policies.

Teacher Resource
A red and white graphic of Arkansas’s outline features bamboo stalks and a dogwood flower, bordered by a rough red square—an emblem reflecting the Arkansas Chinese Heritage.

Arkansas Chinese Heritage Project

Founded in 2023 as a joint initiative of the University of Central Arkansas’ Center for Asian Languages and Cultures and the Chinese Association of Arkansas, the Arkansas Chinese Heritage Project documents the experiences of Chinese Americans in Arkansas through oral histories, archival research, and educational resources. The site includes lesson plans on the Chinese Exclusion Act and the 1869 Memphis Planters Convention, offering students a localized lens on national conversations about immigration, labor, and race in American history.

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Logo for The Asian American Education Project, featuring the organization’s name inside an open book outline with green, blue, orange, and red edges, symbolizing Asian American education and accessible educational resources for all.

The Asian American Education Project

Founded in 2021 by Stewart and Patricia Kwoh, using learning resources developed in partnership with the UCLA Asian American Studies Center, Stanford University SPICE and PBS Learning media, this site contains over 48 individual lesson plans for grades K-12 focused on various aspects of Asian American history, organized by time period, with fantastic search features! Here are a few with specific connections to the South:

Lesson Plan
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