Buried Alive

We are currently in the production phase of historical podcast, Buried Alive. This podcast is a convergence of stories exploring the experiences of Chinese people in both China and the United States. The 1960’s and 1970’s were a period of huge changes and political movements in both Countries and this podcast will explore the role of art movements in expressions of Chinese culture and resistance. 

The Misty Poets 

In the 1960s, at great risk to their lives, a group of young teens in China defied the authoritarian regime by reading and writing forbidden texts, painting and exhibiting avant garde works of art, and exploring Western music. Held in secret, these early underground salons laid the groundwork for a movement resulting in a group later named “The Misty Poets.” Their stories from China’s Cultural Revolution have been buried by fear and fading memory. We want to present the stories to preserve a history that should never be forgotten but importantly also reflects the struggles we see and feel in America today.

Chinese American Experiences

The 1960s and 1970s brought a surge of political activism among the young Chinese American artists and poets along the west coast. Voices of the Chinese have historically been silenced through institutional racism; often ignored or not provided a platform with which to speak, they were not heard until after civil rights legislation. 

Through a prism of arts and culture we will examine the activities of young Pacific Northwest Chinese American artists and poets seeking freedom and equality while their counterparts in China were using their art to fight against an oppressive government. The Chinese are one people who have been divided by culture and politics but have the same root.