<div>I’m raising funds to create a bronze bust of <strong>Mr</strong>. <strong>Wong Kim Ark (WKA) for San Francisco’s Chinatown</strong>. WKA was the first individual to win official birthright citizenship in our nation when the Supreme Court decided in his favor in 1898 in The United States v. Wong Kim Ark. He was born and lived in San Francisco’s Chinatown (ca. 1873), not far from my sculpture studio. Emboldened by the Chinese Exclusion Act, The United States attempted to deport him in 1895, claiming that he was not a legal citizen. With the financial support of the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association in Chinatown, he fought deportation. The case escalated to the Supreme Court, and was decided in WKA’s favor, establishing birthright citizenship under the 14th Amendment.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>The story fascinated me when I first heard it, and I began working on this project right away. I’m planning on a full-scale portrait of WKA, including head, neck, and upper body. My 1/2 scale plaster model is currently on display for AAPI week celebrations at the Veterans’ Building in San Francisco’s Civic Center and will be shown throughout May 2026. At a time when the Supreme Court is set to reconsider this longstanding policy, I’m interested in humanizing the idividuals whose lives are affected by these changes. Regardless of the outcome, the story of WKA is an important one in our journey and development of national identity. 
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Here’s where the project stands:
</div>
<ul>
<li>I have proposed to place the bust in the outdoor courtyard of the Nam Kue School. The school is located within view of WKA’s birthplace and has historical ties to it. The proposal has been accepted by the school.
</li>
<li>I have a community fundraising partner in the Rose Pak Community Fund  in San Francisco's  Chinatown. I’m proud to say I have received my first pledge of 20K. We will need to raise a total of 100K to create and install the sculpture.
</li>
<li><strong>WKA’s descendants have endorsed this project</strong>. Norman and Sandra Wong (siblings, great-grandchildren of WKA) live in the Bay Area and are active in carrying his legacy forward.
</li>
</ul>

Terri Pierce

Walter Matia

Arthur Feidler

Charles Hyde

Dana Younger

Pierre Camilien

Douglas Miller

Anonymous

Carla Mistele

Lydia Choy

Susan Robbins

Robert Clyatt

Catherine Langlois

Mark Knize

Carol Fay

Patricia Theiss Nyland

Bronze bust of our First Birthright Citizen: Wong Kim Ark

Bronze bust of our First Birthright Citizen: Wong Kim Ark

Still $11,702 to go. Help us build momentum.