The line between the oppressed and the oppressor is an extremely thin one. As history has shown, the oppressed often become the oppressor leading to a new population of the oppressed and on it goes.
This image depicts the thirst that the Eastern Asians have for accessing the privileges of Anglo-Americans, after a history of being alienated in the United States. Yet after moving to Los Angeles, I have clearly seen the other side: Eastern Asians are socially and economically accepted but nourish anti-black and brown sentiments, wielding power over others. Oppressed no more.
The queen in the image is decked in yellow and looks to her potential future. She is a yellow Wonder Woman. However, the land she stands on, Joshua Tree, is stolen by the Europeans from the Native Americans (the Serrano, the Cahuilla, the Mojave, and the Chemehuevi). American! Great! is a warning to the Eastern Asian community. Gleefully we may think that success of American integration is close, but perhaps we should look to the past before continuing.
A special thanks to Chloe Jeongmyo Kim for operating the camera http://www.chloejmkim.com/ and Sung Jae Lee for providing us ice-cream https://www.sungjaelee.com/ .