We Belong — Jaclyn Reyes

We Belong (2021)
HAND-PAINTED BANNERS & SIGNS

Developed through a participatory workshop with the Queens Museum and presented at the inaugural Little Manila Block Party, October 2, 2021, Woodside, Queens, NY.

We Belong is a participatory sign art project developed with the Queens Museum in partnership with organizers of No Longer Invisible, a multi‑racial, multi‑faith vigil and community gathering responding to ongoing attacks against AAPI communities. The museum presented collectively hand‑painted banners, individual signs, and video documentation, and invited Little Manila Queens Bayanihan Arts to lead a public workshop centered on the phrase “We Belong.” Rooted in the visual language of hand‑painted storefront and sidewalk signage common to Flushing and other immigrant neighborhoods, the project assembled multilingual affirmations contributed by museum teens, staff, visitors, and community members.

The banner’s configuration references the symbolism of Tibetan prayer flags—networks of color that signal peace, compassion, strength, and wisdom—reimagined here as a civic surface for shared declarations across East, Southeast, and South Asian communities in Queens. By weaving multiple languages and styles into a single field, We Belong frames belonging as collective authorship rather than a singular statement.

Following its presentation at the museum, We Belong was installed at the inaugural Little Manila Block Party on October 2, 2021, along 70th Street and Roosevelt Avenue in Woodside, Queens. There, it operated as both a neighborhood landmark and an open invitation to link Filipino community efforts with those of neighboring Asian diasporas—claiming public space through visibility, collaboration, and care.