This short documentary chronicles the culture and arts of Cambodian Americans and the Lowell, MA community through the e | dG1fZGlsamdESXF5aGM
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Short filmTranscript
00:00Hello, my name is Khoi Chau, I'm the first Cambodian American mayor in the United States.
00:08When we came to Long in 1985, it was comfortable, so to speak.
00:15It was just a different feeling altogether.
00:18I want to share what we have in the city of Long.
00:27Those here in Long, you can scream and clap your hands, those here for the Long Boat Festival
00:352023!
00:41And this is my beautiful wife, the first lady.
00:46I look forward to this every year, so it just, it delivers.
00:50You come here, you feel the passion, the excitement, the whole city is out here.
00:55The whole city came to dance.
00:59Lowell's got a great history of supporting all the different boats that come to this city.
01:05Certainly a big melting pot for so many different people.
01:10It's called Hashtag Lowell Boat!
01:13Hashtag Lowell Boat!
01:15Let's say it all one more time!
01:17Hashtag Lowell Boat!
01:25We absolutely value art in every sector of the city.
01:31So my goal and my hope is to continue to support the arts.
01:35Let's think art is both the present and the future.
01:43I'm Bernard Long.
01:44I'm a non-binary Cambodian American artist.
01:49The Cambodian American identities is a thing I wrestle and do with a lot, I guess, within my practice.
01:59I treat art as an act of rebellion to the genocide and to oppression.
02:09Hello, I'm Sid.
02:10I'm a Cambodian tattoo artist from Lowell, Massachusetts.
02:13I've been tattooing for three years, and this is my work.
02:18Our culture, our music and everything was all shut down because in Khmer Rouge, they did not like music.
02:23They did not like art.
02:25I'm reclaiming it in a different way and tattooing for sure.
02:28It's going to inspire new generations to pick up art.
02:32Seeing my dad as mayor has really changed my outlook on life, making me want to do better things.
02:38And really just keep pushing our family name and just really helping the community.
02:44I feel like Lowell really gave people like me really the most opportunities, the most opportunities to succeed.
02:53If I can become mayor of a great city like this, I think other people, especially the young generation, they can do more.
03:03They can achieve more than me, and I believe in that.
03:08It's not only, this is the part of, this is the land of milk and honey.
03:13You can be anybody you want to be as long as you work hard and as long as you have the self-driven, I would say.
03:22It has been, has always been like this, but I think we just pronounce it more.
03:37Copyright © 2020, New Thinking Allowed Foundation
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