24” x 36”

mixed media (rice sack, beads, sequins, stenciled text)

In 1930, Lee Suk Wan entered the U.S. as a "paper sister" to her brother-in-law. When she was 13, her parents immigrated to the U.S. As a consequence, she was left under the care of her grandmother in China. She waited for nine years to come to this country, adopting the false identity of Gum Ngon Su and the false age of 18 for her stay at Angel Island. To appear younger than her real age of 22, Suk Wan wore two simple braids. She was interrogated once a month for 18 months, and because her answer about the number of brothers in her "paper family" did not match that of a "paper brother" she was deported back to China. When she arrived in China, Suk Wan learned that her case had appealed by her brother-in-law and she had been cleared to re-enter the U.S. Suk Wan was so intimidated by her Angel Island experience that she chose to stay in her home country so she would not have to face another excruciating interrogation. Suk Wan eventually married and raised a family, living through the Communist Revolution. She stayed in China for 50 years before returning to the U.S.