A Tale of Two Cities
Dhaka City, 2002.
When the four women featured in this archive left their hometowns in Bangladesh, their journeys likely began in Dhaka, the bustling capital. Along the way, perhaps they glimpsed the massive ocean steamers, or jahaj, bobbing gently on the waters of Dhaka, the floating city. From there, they boarded flights bound for John F. Kennedy International Airport, just outside Brooklyn. And during those first disorienting days in New York, maybe they passed by the Brooklyn Bridge, its steel and stone stretching across the East River, standing guard over the vibrant borough. These two cities, Dhaka and Brooklyn, serve as symbolic pillars to the lives explored in this project.
In tracing the paths between them, this archive collects the lived experiences of Bangladeshi immigrant women as they navigate life in the United States. Through a series of intimate oral histories, the project documents how these women navigate the intersection of past and present. Their stories—Aziza’s longing for return, Saira’s negotiation of motherhood and friendship, Sajni’s fierce protection of cultural continuity, and Mila’s quiet strength in the face of economic hardship—are shaped by the intersecting forces of gender, migration, and cultural identity. Each narrative complicates the popular image of the immigrant journey by centering not only on what these women left behind but also on what they carry forward: family, faith, memory, and the labor of care. This is not just a story of immigration. It is a story of rebirth. Rather than reduce these lives to stereotypes or symbols, this archive foregrounds their voices in all their complexity. It captures both the heartbreak and the hope, the contradictions that arise when women shoulder the dual expectations of preserving culture and adapting to change. It also honors the quiet endurance behind their choice, their unique forms of resistance, and their visions of home, whether found, lost, or imagined.
Brooklyn Bridge, 2010.
These are stories of women who are often unseen and unheard. This project seeks to change that.