MW

Zijie’s 30 Years is a personal project that looks into my mother’s struggle overcoming her family’s poverty and the lasting effects of the Cultural Revolution. Born near the beginning of the Cultural Revolution in 1965, my mother Zijie reached high school age just as the new reforms were sweeping through China. Thus, she became the first in her family to be able to fully pursue her education. This opportunity inspired my mother to push against economic and social boundaries that had restricted her older siblings. Her pursuit of learning gave her the agency to define her life choices and leave the country that had deeply shaped her family. This book and photographic series voices her achievement in overcoming these circumstances and redefining her future in the US.