A personal series by filmmaker and photographer Christian Lee (previously featured here). Lee is an award-winning storyteller and Hoyt Scholar at UCLA. For Lee, the camera can be used to restore dignity and agency to communities often erased from the larger story of American life. The photos presented here revolve around Lee’s own upbringing. When his family immigrated to the United States, they settled in South Los Angeles. Lee remembers driving down Western Avenue and spontaneous visits to Crenshaw, where they would visit the tiny apartment his father and his siblings grew up in:

“The relationship my relatives shared with the city unfolded as a complex interplay between sorrow and joy, struggle and success—the frequently synthesized immigrant narrative began taking dynamic shape as we attended the Annual Kingdom Day Parade. Honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy was instrumental to the progress of our respective communities and the deep impact that Dr. King’s heroism had. It allows us to confront a complex history layered with tension, injustice, and violence. This region of the city has not always been unified, however, as my loved ones remind me, we never cease to rebuild. The wildfires and widespread hatred threatened to prevent us from uniting. The Kingdom Day Parade was cancelled, and many Los Angelinos were mourning. Still, we found a way to heal. Attending the rescheduled Dr. King parade was a beautiful demonstration of solidarity in a time when apathy seems prevalent. When I interacted with those children spectating curiously from their porches or the families cheering under our city’s palm trees, I saw a future. I saw hope.”

Christian Lee participated in our 2025 Booooooom Art & Photo Book Award and made our shortlist. His first monograph, Crenshaw, will be published by Kris Graves Projects (KGP Monolith) in April 2026.