Bruce Lee statue to be installed in SF Chinatown
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Promotional materials for the "We Are Bruce Lee" exhibit at the Chinese Historical Society of America Museum in Chinatown. Photo: Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images
San Francisco is finally getting its very own Bruce Lee statue.
Why it matters: Locals had for years advocated for a statue in his honor amid the city's efforts to take down those with racist histories.
- The martial arts icon and film star was born in Chinatown in 1940.
Driving the news: The Chinese Historical Society of America Museum (CHSA), which is leading the project, has hired artist Arnie Kim to bring Lee's sculpture to life and will work with community representatives to identify the ideal location in Chinatown for the statue.
- Lee's statue will immortalize a moment from his 1973 movie "Enter the Dragon" in which he prowls on the ground in a fight to the death.
Context: The project is a collaboration with the Rose Pak Community Fund, the Bruce Lee Foundation and Stand With Asians. The Rose Pak Community Fund will provide $50,000 as first-round seed money, and CHSA is asking the community to help fundraise the $150,000 needed in total.
What they're saying: Lee broke barriers not just in film and martial arts but also in the way he handled adversity throughout his life, especially in an industry that emasculated him because of his racial identity, Mark Young, Stand With Asians co-founder, said as part of a launch event Friday.
- The statue will be a tribute to Lee's role in galvanizing the local community to understand its own history, according to CHSA.
- It will also serve as a "pilgrimage destination" for people around the world, said Gorretti Lo Lui, vice president of the Rose Pak Community Fund.
Between the lines: The statue builds on CHSA's efforts to spotlight the life and times of what it calls "Chinatown's native son."
- That includes the "We Are Bruce Lee" exhibit examining his creative talents, athletic prowess, philosophical inclinations and role as unifier between Black and Asian communities.
Flashback: Lee's connections to San Francisco run deep. Even though he lived and trained in Hong Kong as a child, he made a name for himself after returning to the city at 18.
- He later opened Jun Fan Gung Fu Institute in Oakland and went on to debut his famous one-inch punch and two-finger push-up during an exhibition at the International Karate Championships in Long Beach, where he was discovered by Hollywood.
The big picture: Under former Mayor London Breed, San Francisco took down multiple statues with racist implications, including one of Christopher Columbus and another one that portrayed the colonial subjugation of Native Americans.
- The city later formed the Monuments and Memorials Advisory Committee (MMAC) to assess the future of its public art collections.
- The MMAC issued its final report in June 2023 after surveying almost 680 community members.
- When asked what they like most about the city's monuments and memorials, 53% said they "represent the histories, stories, and/or events I want San Francisco to be known for."