What does collective history look like for people who are refused access to their own histories?

I designed and facilitated a workshop for adoptees and adoptive families about collective history within the adoptee community. Participants used reflection questions and open discussion to create a timeline of significant and historical moments for transnational and Asian adoptees.

Adoptees are rarely offered a choice or say in the narratives and stories shared about us. This exercise offered adoptees an opportunity to choose the moments in history that matter to us, challenged us to think about what and whose histories get told, and what we can build together when we draw from our own knowledge, experiences, and wisdom.