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Weekly Digest
January 31, 2023 |
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Winter 2023 JACL National Board Meeting |
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On Saturday, February 4th, the JACL National Board will be hosting its quarterly board meeting. The board meeting will be open to the public and be held in person. A hybrid option will be available but you must RSVP in order to join. Details on joining the meeting and other information necessary will be sent out following registration, no later than 24 hours prior to the meeting's start time.
For those attending in person, the board meeting will be held at the JACL National Headquarters in San Francisco's Japantown at 1765 Sutter Street at 9:00 am PST on February, 4th. Anyone attending in person will be required to follow COVID guidelines, including wearing a mask during the meeting and following vaccination requirements. |
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Tonight - Coming Together in Memory of Gavin Boston - SF Japantown |
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Please join the Japanese American Religious Federation, We Are One, Japantown and neighboring community organizations and community members tomorrow as we come together in memory of Gavin Boston who tragically lost his life in January while working in Japantown. Healing begins with all of us coming together. Tuesday, January 31st, 6:30 pm @ Peace Plaza, Japantown The family of Gavin Boston is hosting a GoFund Me page. Donations of any amount is welcome. |
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The Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Constitution dinner on Saturday, January 28, 2023, in San Francisco has been postponed. Please stay tuned for more details on rescheduling and future events. |
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Reps. Takano, Tokuda, Sens. Hirono, Duckworth Introduce Legislative Package Honoring Fred Korematsu on His Birthday |
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Yesterday, Rep. Mark Takano (D-CA), Rep. Jill Tokuda (D-HI), Senator Mazie Hirono (D-HI), and Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) introduced a legislative package to honor Fred Korematsu in several different ways. You can read the full press release from Rep. Takano's office below for details on the several bills included and how each would honor Fred Korematsu's legacy. The package was introduced with support from JACL National, several JACL chapters, as well as many other local and national organizations. |
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Governor Murphy Establishes January 30 as Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Constitution |
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Yesterday, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed a joint resolution (AJR98) designating January 30 of each year as “Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Constitution in New Jersey.” JACL applauds New Jersey for becoming the newest state to honor Korematsu Day in perpetuity. Read the |
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Batter Up: A Conversation About Asian American Representation at MLB Recording |
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In partnership, the Japanese American Citizens League (JACL) and Major League Baseball (MLB) are proud to present a panel discussion, "Batter Up: A Conversation About Asian American Representation at MLB". This event will feature celebrated leaders, who will discuss their own career paths, the importance of representation in leadership, and how to increase diversity among players, fans, and stakeholders in baseball. Viewers will also learn about JACL’s critical work in civil rights advocacy and how they partner with other organizations to achieve these goals. The webinar was moderated by Shane Barclay, Owner and President of Japan Ball. Panelists Include: - CJ Widenhouse: Senior Director, Legal and Business Affairs at MLB
- Darrell Lampa: Director, Talent Acquisition at MLB
- Jane Son: Co-Head, Foundation & Community Engagement at New York Mets
- Katherine Cheng: Vice President, People & Culture and DEI at Seattle Mariners
- Stephen Nelson: Host/Play-by-Play at MLB Network & NHL Network
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"Rebuilding Home Plate – Baseball in Arizona’s Japanese American Incarceration Camps" Open Now! |
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“Rebuilding Home Plate – Baseball in Arizona’s Japanese American Incarceration Camps” opens to the public 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., January 26. The exhibit tells the stories of Japanese Americans who were stripped of their constitutional rights during World War II and how “America’s Pastime” was a means of enduring and escaping their imprisonment. “Rebuilding Home Plate” is presented in partnership with the Nisei Baseball Research Project, the Arizona Baseball Legacy and Experience, and the Japanese American Citizens League-Arizona Chapter. |
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The Yellowhead-Blue River Road Camps Online Talk by Leanne Sumiko Riding |
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From our friends at The Nikkei National Museum & Cultural Centre Wednesday, February 1, 2023
7:00pm PST
Online
Free to attend In 1942 when Japanese Canadians were forcibly uprooted from their homes in the coastal regions of British Columbia, they were treated as a labour resource. Male individuals were ordered to labour camps and work projects, including the Yellowhead-Blue River Highway Project. In this talk, Leanne Sumiko Riding will give an overview of the road camps and the men who lived there, including the names and locations of the camps, local geography and environment, populations, building types, opening and closing dates, and current conditions of the camps. She will also share her insight on the passive and active resistance in the camps, camp gardens and issei (first generation) self-expression, entertainment such as baseball and hiking, and local reactions of the broader Canadian community. |
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Call for Day Of Remembrance Events! |
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As we're coming up on Day of Remembrance, JACL is once again asking all of our chapters and supporters to send us information on any events that you know of so that we can share it with the wider membership and Japanese American community! Please send any information you have on your DOR events, including date(s), times, any website/social links, and images/flyers you might have! We'll continually update the listing so if you currently only have some information and are still waiting on more, send us what you have and we can update the event page. The event page and calendar will be made available later. Send any program information you have to Education and Communications Coordinator, Matthew Weisbly at mweisbly@jacl.org |
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Call to Action: Protect Minidoka National Historic Site! |
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From Friends of Minidoka: The Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the proposed Lava Ridge Wind Project in south-central Idaho was released by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) on January 17, 2023, and sent to the EPA for approval. It was published in the Federal Register on January 20. The public comment period started Friday, January 20, and will end at 11:59 pm MDT on March 21, 2023. For more information about the Lava Ridge proposal, see additional posts on the Friends of Minidoka site linked below. |
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JACL NY/SC's Back to School Campaign! |
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Edit this section of copy to tell your supporters how their action will help ignite change. Use stories, quotes, data, and other inspiring content to capture their attention and get them to act. |
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Edit this section of copy to tell your supporters how their action will help ignite change. Use stories, quotes, data, and other inspiring content to capture their attention and get them to act. |
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The first-ever JACL National Youth/Student Council Back to School Campaign offers youth the opportunity to hear about the JACL as an organization and receive a special registration discount if they attend an event! You can reach out to NY/SC Youth Representative Sheera Tamura for more details at stamura@jacl.org. |
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San Diego JACL February Monthly Community Dialogue |
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2023 JACL National Scholarship Applications Available Now! |
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Scholarship Program guidelines, instructions, and applications have been posted on the JACL website, www.jacl.org, and can be accessed by clicking the “Youth” tab on the menu bar. You may also click the button below "To Learn More or Apply Click Here." Following previous years, the application forms for the scholarship program will be completely online. Freshman applications must be submitted directly by the applicant to National JACL through the online form no later than March 6, 2023, 11:59 p.m. Hawaiian Standard Time (HST). Applications for the non-freshman scholarship categories (undergraduate, graduate, law, creative/performing arts, and financial aid) are also to be sent directly by the applicant to National JACL through the online form no later than April 3, 2023, 11:59 p.m. Hawaiian Standard Time (HST). All those applying to the National JACL Scholarship Program must be a youth/student or individual member of the JACL; a couple/family membership held by a parent does NOT meet this requirement. Applicants must be enrolled in school in Fall 2023 in order to be eligible for a scholarship. If a student has received two National scholarship awards previously, they are no longer eligible to apply as the limit is two national awards per person. |
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Manzanar Commitee Announces 8th Annual Sue Kunitomi Embrey Student Awards Program for K-12 Students |
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Photo: Some of the winners of the Fifth Annual Manzanar Committee Student Awards Program. Photo by Jason Fujii/Manzanar Committee LOS ANGELES — On December 4, the Manzanar Committee announced their Eighth Annual Sue Kunitomi Embrey Student Awards Program, a creative works program in which K-12 students may submit essays, short stories, poetry, works of art, including drawings, collages, posters, and works involving technology, including animation, podcasts, movies, or videos.
Winning entrants will receive up to $100.00, and their work will be recognized during the Manzanar Pilgrimage and may be published in the Pilgrimage program, on the Manzanar Committee’s website (https://manzanarcommittee.org), in the Sue Kunitomi Embrey Student Awards printed program, and in the Manzanar Committee’s newsletter, the Manzanar Messenger. The Manzanar Committee will determine the final award amounts.
All submissions must be postmarked no later than February 23, 2023. Winners will be contacted shortly after that date.
Program information and application forms can be downloaded at:
https://manzanarcommittee.org/program-details-application |
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JACL Arizona Chapter - First Annual Essay Contest and Upcoming Korematsu Day |
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JACL-AZ held its 1st Annual Student Essay Challenge in 2021. It was the vision of one of our board members to provide students with the opportunity to study and develop excellent writing skills while learning about their heritage. HS topic: “What does it mean to be an American? Norm Mineta Legacy Project.” Elementary/Middle School topic: Share a story about a family hero or the heroes in your life. We are very proud of three students that won: Erika Germinario was our first-place winner in the HS division; Josh Tominaga was our 2nd place winner in the HS division. Ema Saliba was our first-prize winner in the 8th-grade division. In addition to their cash prizes, they each enjoyed creating a wonderful video about their individual feelings of excitement as they studied and wrote about their experience. (Videos available below to view) A celebration was held during Golden Week at the Japanese Friendship Garden this past April. Erika Germinario  Watch Here Joshua Tominaga  Watch Here Ema Saliba  Watch Here The families of each student are very proud and excited. There was an expression of gratitude and appreciation to JACL - AZ for everything members and volunteers do for the community and for inspiring the next generation! We were also happy to announce the 2nd Annual Essay Challenge recently. In memory of Norm Mineta, we continue to honor him in our essay challenge. High School students have the option of learning about the life of the distinguished career of Norm Mineta by visiting http://minetalegacyproject.com. HS Students also have the option to choose to write about Fred Korematsu and visit the Korematsu Institute at: https://korematsuinstitute.org to learn about Fred Korematsu, who challenged the constitutionality of Executive Order 9066. Arizona celebrates Fred Korematsu Day: Jan. 30, 2023. Essays due Feb. 3, 2023. Please note that essays must be anonymous for judging purposes.
Refer to https://bit.ly/JACL22Essay to apply and submit your essay. Deadline Feb 3, 2023, 11:59 PM
For more details, visit jaclaz.org. |
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