This 24-by-27-inch near-square panorama portrays Yuri Kochiyama in New York City—the legendary activist who transformed her experience of incarceration into lifelong commitment to social justice, becoming one of the most significant Asian American political figures of the twentieth century. The compact dimensions create intimate portraiture of this remarkable woman.

Created in 1997, the work documents Kochiyama during her decades of New York activism. Incarcerated at Jerome, Arkansas, during World War II, she later moved to Harlem where she became deeply involved in civil rights and Black liberation movements, most famously cradling Malcolm X’s head in the moments after his 1965 assassination.

The near-square format creates balanced composition for portraying a woman whose activism connected Asian American experience to broader struggles for justice. Kochiyama’s embrace of coalition politics—working across racial lines while maintaining specifically Japanese American commitments—made her an influential figure across multiple movements.

The New York City setting documents the urban environment of Kochiyama’s activism: the Harlem apartment where she hosted political meetings, the streets where she protested, the community where she organized. The photo collage technique captures this legendary figure within spaces shaped by her decades of presence.

Kochiyama’s portrait connects incarceration experience to activist response, documenting a survivor who transformed trauma into political commitment. Her example demonstrates that victimization need not define response—that survivors can become agents of broader liberation.