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 |
|
|
JACL is Hiring! - Membership Coordinator |
|
 |
|
|
For the Record: JACL Statement Submitted to House Judiciary in Support of HR 40 |
|
 |
Submitted February 24, 2021, to the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties: "As we contemplate the creation of a commission to investigate African American reparations, it may be helpful to look to aspects of the Japanese American experience. Perhaps most revealing might be the differences of opinion in the Japanese American community. At the hearing last week, many questions were asked with regard to the form that reparations might take. Should there be individual payments, should there be funding for programs, or should there be a community fund. These were all areas of discussion within our community and source for much disagreement. Ultimately, that is why a commission is required, to hold the forums for open discussion on what forms reparation might take. To hear all the perspectives of the community to seek consensus on a set of solutions. Some point to Japanese American redress as the model for African American reparations. This would be a mistake. The experiences of Japanese American incarceration, while part of a pattern of racism in this country that can be traced back to Native American genocide and African American slavery, are also very different from those experiences of state sponsored injustice. Facets of the development of Japanese American redress were structured so as to not create a precedent for what African American reparations might look like. Again, this is the purpose of creating a commission, to fully identify what African American reparations should look like." |
|
|
|
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. |
|
|
|
Tsuru Rising! Youth Speak Out! – Activism for our Future |
|
 |
March 6 at 1-2:30pm PST | 2-3:30pm MST | 3-4:30pm CST | 4-5:30pm EST Please join us to hear from extraordinary young people using their voices and art to share stories, solidarity, and visions for the future. The dire circumstances of asylum-seeking children and families held in mass detention facilities across the country has awakened voices of protest from young activists. Please join us to hear from extraordinary young people using their voices and their art to share stories about their personal experiences, their acts of solidarity, and their vision for the future. |
|
|
|
University of Maryland’s Historic Preservation Program: Allen Hendershott Eaton Collection & the Art and Artifacts of Japanese American WWII Incarceration |
|
 |
|
|
Seeing LGBTQ Nikkei Conversation Series |
|
 |
Join us for Seeing LGBTQ Nikkei, a collaboration of J-Sei & Okaeri-Los Angeles, a series of programs centered on the perspectives and insights of different generations of queer Japanese Americans. The experiences of LGBTQ+ Japanese Americans are seldom the focus of community attention. Yet, the wisdom of LGBTQ Nikkei - forged through confrontations with racism, homophobia, transphobia, and sexism – is a vital resource as we create a more inclusive and compassionate society. Lessons from Two Pandemics: AIDS and COVID-19 - March 7, 2021, 4-5:30 pm PST Hear from LGBTQ+ Nikkei who have fought on the frontlines of the HIV/AIDS and COVID-19 pandemics. What lessons can we learn from activists in the 1980s and 1990s who educated Asian Pacific Islander communities about AIDS? And what have been the experiences of essential workers combatting the Corona virus? In conversation: Eric Arimoto (moderator), Lisa Fujie Parks, Kris Mizutani, Robert Nakatani, Lance Toma |
|
|
|
Films of Remembrance Extended |
|
 |
Due to popular demand for an unprecedented collection of films on the Japanese American incarceration during World War II, the 10th annual Films of Remembrance now featuring 39 on-demand films curated in 11 programs has been extended through Sunday, March 7, 2021 at www.filmsofremembrance.org/2021. Presented by the Nichi Bei Foundation, Films of Remembrance is a showcase of films on the forced removal and incarceration of the Japanese American community into American concentration camps during World War II. Programs cost $10 each, or just $50 for all 11 (a savings of $60). Just added to the offerings are four films and their panels that were livestreamed on Feb. 20 and 21: • “Rebel With A Cause: The Life of Aiko Herzig Yoshinaga,” a bio picture by Janice Tanaka on the late activist and researcher who helped find smoking guns documents that helped the Redress Movement. With a panel moderated by journalist Martha Nakagawa that featured filmmaker Tanaka, redress activist Chizu Omori, former California state Assemblymember Warren Furutani and singer/dancer Nobuko Miyamoto. • “Bearing the Unbearable” by Rory Banyard, a film on the Bainbridge Island Japanese American community that was the first in the country to be forcibly removed. With a panel moderated by former TV news anchor Wendy Tokuda that featured filmmaker Banyard, former Bainbridge Island incarceree Lilly Kodama and Japanese American Community of Bainbridge Island President Clarence Moriwaki. • “A Hero’s Hero” by Robert Shoji, a film on late Heart Mountain Fair Play Committee member Yosh Kuromiya and his nephew, LGBT and civil rights activist Kiyoshi Kuromiya, and “Within Their Gates” by Matthew Goriachkovsky, a film on former incarceree Yukio Shimomura. With a panel moderated by Tokuda with the filmmakers, Shimomura and Visual Communications Digital Histories instructor Joel Quizon. |
|
|
|
2021 JACL National Convention Announcement |
|
 |
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! |
|
|
|
|
1 Month Left for General Applicants! JACL National 2021 Scholarship Program |
|
 |
REMINDER: 1 MONTH LEFT FOR GENERAL APPLICATIONS FRESHMAN APPLICATIONS ARE NOW CLOSED! WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Japanese American Citizens League (JACL) announced that the 2021 National Scholarship and Awards Program is now underway. The JACL annually offers approximately 30 college scholarships for students who are incoming college freshmen, undergraduates and graduates, and those specializing in law and the creative/performing arts. There are also financial aid scholarships for those demonstrating a need for financial assistance. 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.” 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 1, 2021, 11:59 p.m. Hawaiian Standard Time (HST). For more information on the National JACL Scholarship Program, contact Scholarship Program Manager Matthew Weisbly at scholarships@jacl.org. |
|
|
Another Scholarship opportunity is through Foundation 649! A nonprofit focused on providing college scholarship opportunities to East and Southeast Asian American students who are actively engaged within our community. Their application deadline is April 1, 2021. |
|
 |
|
|
JACL 2021 Legacy Fund Grant Announcement |
|
 |
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/ 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. |
|
|
UC Santa Cruz LASER talk with Faculty on Japanese American Incarceration |
|
 |
March 11, 2021 at 5pm PST/8pm EST Dr. Jasmine Alinder, “Representing Japanese American Incarceration”
Katharyne Mitchell, “Sanctuary Space and Insurgent Memory” Leonardo Art & Science Evening Rendezvous (LASER) is an international program bringing together artists, scientists, and scholars for presentations and conversations. Join us at 5 p.m. for presentations by Dean of the Humanities and Professor of History, Dr. Jasmine Alinder and Katharyne Mitchell, Dean of the Social Sciences and professor of Sociology at UC Santa Cruz. |
|
|
|
2021 Minoru Yasui Student Contest |
|
 |
“If there is suffering or pain that is unfairly imposed upon anyone, it’s my duty, it’s your duty to try to alleviate it because that’s the way in which we gain a better life for all of us.” — Minoru Yasui The Minoru Yasui Student Contest is proud to announce its 2021 essay competition on Refugee and Immigrant Experiences. We celebrate the ideas and opinions of students in grades 6 through 12 and challenge them to write an original and thoughtful essay exploring refugee or immigrant experiences. Their essay should also demonstrate an understanding of the life and legacy of Minoru Yasui, who spent over 40 years as a dedicated leader serving diverse and often marginalized communities. Students are encouraged to research and share meaningful stories about the conditions, challenges, and support experienced by immigrants and refugees coming to the United States. At the same time, we hope to inspire the next generation of leaders who can embrace complex issues as Min Yasui did - with courage, agility, and thoughtfulness. For more information on contest details, please go to the Minoru Yasui Legacy Project website: minoruyasuilegacy.org/student-contest. Here’s what you need to know: Other resources include: -
For curriculum, logistics, and educational resources related to the life and legacy of Minoru Yasui and primary sources about Oregon’s Nikkei community, please contact Jennifer Fang at jennifer@oregonnikkei.org -
For student experience and research guidance, please contact Alan Zhou at alanzhou2018@gmail.com or Kyler Wang at kyler.y.wang@gmail.com |
|
|
"Black + Japanese Reparations" Virtual Event Series and Book Club |
|
 |
|
|
Help find a Bone Marrow Match for Paul and Kazumi! |
|
 |
|
|
|
|
Join Us in Support of H.R. 40 |
|
 |
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. |
|
|
|
|
We've updated our Hate Crimes Page to include more information and reporting options for members of the community as hate crimes increase as a result of COVID-19. You can visit the updated page here. |
|
