Presentation Title

Peter Shot a Man

Panel Name

Literary Treatments of Tragedy, War, Fear, and Redemption

Location

Lecture Center 15

Start Date

3-5-2019 3:15 PM

End Date

3-5-2019 4:30 PM

Presentation Type

Multimedia/Creative Presentation

Academic Major

English

Abstract

Peter Shot a Man is a fictionalized story about Peter Liang, a Chinese American police officer who shot and killed Akai Gurley, a black man, in 2014. The purpose of the story is to analyze the act of violence through socialization. In doing so, the story investigates the process of racial minorities claiming a place for oneself in America in relation to other racial minority groups and the seemingly inevitable violence involved. To do so, the story is broken into three parts: the first begins when Liang has just arrived from Hong Kong to New York City in 1997, where he begins elementary school. The second part begins in the mid-2000s, when Liang is in high school and applying to college. The final part begins with his graduation from the police academy, which then leads and ends with his shooting of Akai Gurley. Each part investigates facets of the Chinese immigrant experience in relation to black folk in the context of the changing fabric of neighborhoods.

Select Where This Work Originated From

Senior Thesis/Project

First Faculty Advisor

Aashish Kaul

First Advisor Email

akaul@albany.edu

First Advisor Department

English

Second Faculty Advisor

Edward Schwarzschild

Second Faculty Advisor Email

eschwarzschild@albany.edu

Second Advisor Department

English

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May 3rd, 3:15 PM May 3rd, 4:30 PM

Peter Shot a Man

Lecture Center 15

Peter Shot a Man is a fictionalized story about Peter Liang, a Chinese American police officer who shot and killed Akai Gurley, a black man, in 2014. The purpose of the story is to analyze the act of violence through socialization. In doing so, the story investigates the process of racial minorities claiming a place for oneself in America in relation to other racial minority groups and the seemingly inevitable violence involved. To do so, the story is broken into three parts: the first begins when Liang has just arrived from Hong Kong to New York City in 1997, where he begins elementary school. The second part begins in the mid-2000s, when Liang is in high school and applying to college. The final part begins with his graduation from the police academy, which then leads and ends with his shooting of Akai Gurley. Each part investigates facets of the Chinese immigrant experience in relation to black folk in the context of the changing fabric of neighborhoods.