Vivamos Siempre Como Hermanos, is a Chinese grocery store pop up by Chinese Chorizo Project, is a nod to the 100 or more forgotten centers for community that existed in the Barrios of downtown Tucson, Arizona. The pop up held at the Tucson Museum of Art and Historic Block, featuring borderland narratives from and historic images of Chinese grocery stores from Arizona Historical Society, prepared our community to begin a dialog exploring their own relation to the borderlands. How has their connection to forced displacement and historical erasure affected their perception of time, place and people? How does this kind of dynamic storytelling act as collective resistance?

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The store named Vivamos Siempre Como Hermanos after BAC artist Stephany Zamarripa Castillo’s painting of the same name speaks to the community, solidarity, and mutual aid cultivated within the historic Chinese grocery stores. Shelves are stocked with goods donning labels with stories from the  and historic photos courtesy of Arizona Historical Society.

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The Chinese immigrant experience of the late 1800’s to 1970’s in Tucson is significant to borderland identity and immigration policy however is often left out of the immigration narrative. In an era marked by harsh racist legislation and fueled by the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act, Chinese and Mexican immigrants and BIPOC communities survived by building strong bonds within Chinese grocery stores in the barrios of Tucson. These mutual aid centers ensured survival during times of hardship offering groceries on credit. 

How in small and big ways can we continue to make space for reflection on history, community, and identity as well as give opportunity to contribute to the borderland narrative?