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BART partners with the San Francisco Asian Women’s Shelter and artist Amanda Phingbodhipakkiya to confront domestic violence on public transit

Let's Talk About Us posters on digital screens at Powell Station

Let's Talk About Us posters on digital screens at Powell Station

The San Francisco Asian Women’s Shelter (AWS) and artist Amanda Phingbodhipakkiya are partnering with BART to launch a new domestic violence prevention campaign, “Let’s Talk About Us,” to reach Bay Area residents and BART riders. The public art campaign seeks to start a conversation on preventing violence before it starts and stopping it from reoccurring, particularly among the Asian American and Pacific Islander community. The campaign also provides resources for people experiencing domestic violence, for allies who want to offer support to someone they know, and for riders who witness it in the BART system.

The artworks are displayed in more than a dozen stations systemwide and onboard trains that serve each BART line. They address a variety of themes and interventions related to domestic violence, featuring messages such as “Be the Friend Who Brings It Up,” “Just Listen,” “Our Community, Our Responsibility,” “We All Deserve Respect,” and “Love Shouldn’t Hurt.” Each message is linked to a corresponding artwork, and the campaign includes more than 100 individual pieces of art. QR codes on the posters will direct BART riders to the “Let’s Talk About Us” resource website.

“While you’d expect to always find safety within the API community, the last few weeks have shattered that illusion,” said Phingbodhipakkiya. “The link between domestic violence and mass shootings is frighteningly clear, so it’s up to us to continue to expand conversations, share resources, and shift behaviors. I was drawn to this project because I believe it’s everyone’s responsibility to care for our communities. Art is one of our most powerful tools for progress. And through this work, we're inviting dialogue and moving people to action.”

AWS and Phingbodhipakkiya approached BART based on the success of Phingbodhipakkiya’s prior art projects in public spaces around the world, and their effectiveness in reaching a wide audience, including vulnerable communities.

BART embraced the campaign and partnership in recognition that domestic violence happens in the BART system.

“BART is committed to enhancing the safety of women and girls, who are disproportionately victims of domestic violence and other forms of gender-based violence,” said BART Board President Janice Li. “Our stations are often the location for child visitation and custody pick-ups or drop-offs as they serve as a neutral location for adults to meet. These interactions can escalate, and this campaign can help disrupt the patterns of harm and ensure safe passageways for all riders.”

BART, AWS, and Phingbodhipakkiya hope the posters provoke important conversations in family and social circles and help connect people to the community-based programs offered by AWS.

“This campaign helps us envision what can be when we look out for each other as a norm,” said Orchid Pusey, Executive Director of AWS. “Violence against children, partners, ex-partners, elders, and strangers is interconnected, and preventing that violence starts at home, with each of us. This campaign can help flip the script through images and messages of mutual love, respect, belonging, and safety.”

A press conference to launch the campaign was held on February 15, 2023, at Powell St. Station, where the largescale and brightly lit art posters were on display.

San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu spoke in support of the campaign: “Domestic violence touches every community, regardless of age, race, income, sexual orientation, or immigration status. I am grateful to the Asian Women's Shelter, artist Amanda Phingbodhipakkiya, and BART for raising critical public awareness through the ‘Let's Talk About Us’ campaign. To end domestic violence, we all need to talk about it."

“Let’s Talk About Us” grew out of a violence prevention grant from the AAPI Civic Engagement Fund. For more information about the campaign and a list of resources, guides, and exercises, visit letstalkaboutus.org or follow the campaign on social media using the hashtag #LetsTalkAboutUs.

Let's Talk About Us posters at Civic Center Station platform

Let's Talk About Us posters at Civic Center Station platform

About San Francisco Asian Women’s Shelter:

Asian Women's Shelter (AWS) was founded in 1988 to address the urgent and unmet needs of survivors of domestic violence and human trafficking, especially those who are immigrant or refugee women, children, LGBTQ+/GNB, and/or youth. While we have the cultural and language capacity to address the specific needs of individuals from Pan-Asian backgrounds, AWS welcomes survivors of all genders, ages, races, nationalities, language communities, abilities, income levels, and more.

About Amanda Phingbodhipakkiya:

Amanda Phingbodhipakkiya is a Brooklyn-based multidisciplinary artist, educator, and activist. She is developing a community archive of AAPI stories, histories, and dreams from across the Bay Area called “Let the Future Speak”. As artist-in-residence with the NYC Commission on Human Rights, Amanda’s art series celebrating the resilience of the AAPI community, “I Still Believe in Our City,” reached millions in New York City and worldwide. Her work has been shown at Times Square, Lincoln Center, the US Embassy in Thailand, and is held in permanent collections at the Library of Congress, the Museum of Chinese in America (MOCA), the Museum of the City of New York, and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.