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JACL
 

Weekly Digest
April 20, 2021

 

COVID-19 and JACL operations and resources

JACL's physical offices remain closed. Staff continue to do the work of the organization remotely.  Please direct all phone calls to our Washington, D.C. Office at (202) 223-1240 and we will get back to you as quickly as possible. Otherwise, we will all be available via email. All staff emails can be found HERE. You can also check our website, jacl.org, for updates and COVID-19 resources. You can view our resources page here. 

Stay safe everyone and we hope to see you all in person again soon. 

- JACL National Staff

 

Due in 1 Week!

JACL 2021 Legacy Fund Grant

The JACL Legacy Fund Grants Committee is pleased to announce that applications are now being accepted for 2021 Legacy Fund grants. The LFG Co-Chairs, Roberta Barton, and Toshi Abe encourage JACL chapters in good standing and JACL District Councils to apply. This year, the maximum grant award is $6,000. 

Legacy Fund grants will be awarded for projects and activities that support the mission of JACL and are supportive of the National JACL Strategic Plan. Instructions and application forms may be downloaded from the National JACL’s website at https://jacl.org/legacy-fund-grants-2021 and submissions for grants must be received by May 1, 2021.

The Legacy Fund was established by the JACL National Council at the 1990 JACL National Convention in San Diego. Much of the original funds were donated by JACL members who gave portions of their redress awards to further the legacy of the JACL. Each year, a portion of the earnings from the Legacy Fund Endowment provides the funds to run the LFG program. 

For questions or additional information, please contact the co-chairs, Roberta Barton (rbarton4106@comcast.net) and Toshi Abe (tabe@jacl.org). Completed applications are due by May 1, 2021. Grant award recipients will be announced at the JACL National Convention.

 

JACL Young Professionals Caucus -Professional Development Contact List Survey 

The Young Professionals Caucus (YPC) is an affinity group within the JACL for self-identifying young professionals and provides a space for sharing experiences, building and deepening relationships, and collective growth through monthly virtual community spaces, innovative inter-chapter programming, and open forums for uplifting advocacy, resources, and encouraging direct action and dialogue.

We would appreciate you completing this survey about your current and past professional and individual experiences. We plan to compile an internal contact list for our members and potential/future members. Your participation in this survey will help YPC develop future programming.  

Providing information is voluntary and the information collected will only be used internally within JACL. The survey takes about 10 minutes to complete. 

 

Book Event! "Facing the Mountain:
A True Story of Japanese American Heroes in World War II"

About the event: 

Join Densho on May 11 for the official launch of Facing the Mountain, a new book about WWII Japanese American incarceration and the 442nd RCT by Daniel James Brown, NY Times bestselling author of The Boys in the Boat. The virtual event will feature a conversation between Brown and Densho Executive Director Tom Ikeda, who has conducted oral histories with many of the men highlighted in the book. Facing the Mountain grew out of conversations Brown had with Ikeda in 2015.

About the book: 

Facing the Mountain is an unforgettable chronicle of wartime America and the battlefields of Europe. Based on Brown’s extensive interviews with the families of the protagonists as well as deep archival research, it portrays the kaleidoscopic journey of four Japanese American families and their sons. While some fought on battlefields as members of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, others fought to defend the constitutional rights of a community. Regardless of where their battles played out, these individuals were exemplifying American patriotism under extreme duress by striving, resisting, standing on principle, and enduring

 

H.R. 40 Updates and Join in Support

Last Wednesday, April 14, the House Judiciary Committee voted for the first time in the bill's 30 year history to advance H.R. 40 to the House floor for a full vote! This is a monumental step in bill's life and a start towards righting another wrong in our nation's history. 

JACL Executive Director, David Inoue, discusses JACL’s support of H.R. 40. H.R. 40 would create a commission to examine the institution of slavery, its legacy, and make recommendations to Congress for reparations, beginning a process of repairing and restoring after centuries of enslavement. Click the image above to watch the full video statement. 

 

"Our League of Dreams - Documentary of the JACL" Fundraiser

JACL National and film producer Lane Nishikawa have agreed to work together to produce the first educational documentary film about the 90-year history of the JACL. 

OUR LEAGUE OF DREAMS received a $25,000 Japanese American Community Foundation Grant Award through the assistance of the San Diego Chapter JACL. This will cover the costs of shooting in the first five cities. We need your help to meet our production budget goals. Lane has mapped out seventeen cities that he would like to shoot interviews.

Your individual donation or JACL Chapter donation will go a long way towards helping us achieve our goals. We will make sure that your names are prominently highlighted in the end credits of the film.

Once the film is completed, JACL National and Lane will work with any JACL Chapter that wants to hold a public film screening event in their city to fundraise for their chapter, to educate their youth, and network to new audiences for potential new members. 

 

2021 JACL National Convention Updates!

Due to the ongoing safety issues presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, the JACL National Board has decided to postpone a physical convention until at least the Summer of 2022. In the interim, JACL National will be conducting a virtual convention hosted this coming summer, July 15-18, 2021. The virtual convention will include National Council sessions, as well as the usual breakout sessions and workshops that are hosted during convention. More information around the virtual convention and registration will be announced soon!

For Convention Committees, Chapters, and Members: 

Credentials, Resolution, and CBL Forms are now available on the JACL webpage! You can find them below along with the guidelines and due dates for each form! 

 

JACL Organizational Sign Ons

 

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT...

 

JACL Anti-Hate and Hate Crime Resources

For resources, toolkits, articles, and more about anti-hate programs and hate crimes, you can visit our page on JACL.org by clicking the link below.

 

Working with eBay to End Sale of Japanese American Incarceration Artifacts

Last week, the JACL and other Japanese American organizations became aware of the sale of several pieces of artwork made by an incarceree at Manzanar Incarceration Camp during World War II on eBay. A letter was sent to eBay signed by 59 national organizations and 29 individuals as well as a change.org petition that received over 1,000 signatures. With only a few hours to spare, several of these coalition members met with eBay representatives who removed the listing and another listing which was found later. 

As a result of this meeting, eBay has asked members of the coalition to work with them on creating guidelines and keywords to be used to search for other items so that eBay can better review items to keep them from being sold in the future. 

You can read a full statement by the Japanese American Confinement Sites Consortium (JACSC) here.

You can read a CNN article with interviews from coalition members here.

 

Intergenerational Trauma of Japanese Americans Webinar and Discussion hosted by San Diego JACL

 

Japanese American Veterans Association Scholarship Program

Click the pencil icon above to replace this temporary copy. When you add the content for this text block, make sure it's personal, informational, emotional, and actionable. That's how to ignite change!

The Japanese American Veterans Association announces its annual Memorial Scholarship Program for 2021. The scholarships will benefit a range of graduating high school seniors, undergraduate students, and post-graduate and professional education students. 

Descendants of those who served in the 100th Infantry Battalion, the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, the Military Intelligence Service, the 1399th Engineer Construction Battalion, or other United States military unit, including the Women’s Army Corps or Army Nurses Corps are eligible and encouraged to apply. 

Current members of JAVA whose membership began prior to April 1, 2019 are eligible and encouraged to apply. Children of current JAVA members are also eligible and encouraged to apply if the applicant’s parent or guardian was a member of JAVA prior to April 1, 2019. 

Past or present members of the Army’s 100th Battalion, 442nd Infantry (USAR),  are eligible and encouraged to apply for the Senator Daniel K. Inouye Memorial Scholarship. Applicants should demonstrate their lifelong commitment to public and uniformed service leadership for the nation.

Applicants should first review published rules and forms. Applications and supporting documents must be electronically submitted no later than 11:59 p.m. on Friday, April 30, 2021, to javascholarship222@gmail.com. Applications not received by that date or that fail to meet the submission requirements will NOT be considered. Applicants will be notified of a decision by early June 2021. Awards will be presented at a JAVA scholarship awards ceremony on July 17, 2021. 

 

"Black + Japanese Reparations" Virtual Event Series and Book Club

 

Help find a Bone Marrow Match for

Paul and Kazumi!

 
 
 
 
 

Follow JACL on:

 

JACL Headquarters
1765 Sutter Street
San Francisco, California 94115
(415) 921-5225 | mbr@jacl.org

JACL DC Office
1629 K Street NW, Suite 400
Washington, D.C. 20006
(202) 223-1240 | policy@jacl.org

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