March 19-20, 2024, we welcomed Rob Buscher, the newly appointed Executive Director of the Japanese American Confinement Sites Consortium who led the strategic planning meeting and advocacy with David Inoue, JACL National Executive Director on the Hill with 12 Japanese American organizations for the future of JACSC! We educated members of congress about the Norman Y. Mineta Japanese American Confinement Education Act, threats of the Minidoka and Tule Lake confinement sites amongst other issues.

JACSC organization members met with Kota Mizutani of the Vice President’s Office of Public Engagement, Barbara Holston, Adviser to the Deputy Assistant to the President and Asian American and Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (WHIAANHPI) Senior Liaison, and Deena Jang, Policy Director, WHIAANHPI to talk about meaningful public engagement. From left to right: Deena Jang, WHIAANHPI; Noriko Sanefuji, Smithsonian National Museum of American History; Aura Newlin, Executive Director of the Heart Mountain Wyoming Foundation; John Tobe, JACL DC co-president; Ariel Imamoto, JACL Norman Y. Mineta Policy Fellow; Ray Locker, Heart Mountain Wyoming Foundation; Brent Seto, JACL Mike Masaoka Congressional Fellow; Jack Shimabukuro JACL Daniel K. Inouye Policy Fellow; Mia Russell, Director of Special Initiatives at Japanese American National Museum; Kota Mizutani, Senior Advisor, White House Office of Public Engagement; Rob Buscher, Executive Director of the Japanese American Confinement Sites Consortium, Barbara Holston, WHIAANHPI Advisor, Katie Fujiye Nuss Louis, Poston Community Alliance, Heart Mountain, Sam Mihara, Heart Mountain survivor and national speaker; Julie Abo, JACL DC.

Ready to meet with the Department of the Interior!

Meet up with Erika Moritsugu, Deputy Assistant to the President and Asian American and Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Senior Liaison. Front row left to right: Geoff Froh, Deputy Director of Densho; Paul Tomita, Minidoka survivor; Cathy Kiyomura, Minidoka Pilgrimage Planning Committee and descendant; Erika Moritsugu. Back row, left to right: Dan Sakura, Sakura Conservation Strategies; Anna Tanaka, Minidoka Pilgrimage Planning Committee and Minidoka descendant; Hanako Wakatsuki, Executive Director of the Japanese American Museum of Oregon; Carolyn Thompson, Assistant Director of the Historical Museum of Fort Missoula.

“Memory and the Nation” Program Will Feature a Panel Discussion 

Date: Monday, Feb. 19, 2024, 1pm to 2:30 pm

Location: National Museum of American History 1300 Constitution Ave NW Warner Bros. Theater, 1 Center Washington, DC 20013

Registration Link (Seating is limited) HERE.

For more details about the program go HERE. 

(Excerpted from press release) The JACL DC Chapter is excited to co-sponsor the Smithsonian National Museum of American History’s Day of Remembrance, the 82nd anniversary of President Franklin D. Roosevelt signing Executive Order 9066, this Presidents Day, Feb. 19. The day will be commemorated with a panel discussion at the National Museum of American History.

The order granted the U.S. Army the authority to remove civilians from military zones established in Washington, Oregon and California during World War II, resulting in the forced removal and wrongful incarceration of more than 125,000 Americans of Japanese ancestry. Forced to abandon their jobs, homes and lives, these individuals were relocated to 10 concentration camps in remote regions of the country. 

Organized by the museum in alignment with the Smithsonian’s “Reckoning with Our Racial Past” initiative, this event will begin at 1 p.m. in the Warner Bros. Theater and will feature a panel discussion with William A. Harris, the director of the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum; artist and biologist Perrin Ireland, Roosevelt’s great granddaughter; and Madeline Y. Hsu, professor of history and director of the Center for Global Migration Studies at the University of Maryland. Moderated by David Inoue, the executive director of the Japanese American Citizens League, the discussion resonates with the Smithsonian’s goal “to create a hopeful future for all people using history and reconciliation to contextualize and transform our understandings and responses to race and racism.” Information and registration details are on Eventbrite. 

From all of us to all of you at JACL DC in DC, Maryland and Virginia!

Dear All,

Thank you to those of you who attended our annual community Mochitsuki celebration. We hope you enjoyed the mochi pounding and shaping, bento lunch by Tako Grill, daifuku, Crafty Ladies pop-up, our epic raffle and connecting with our community. Whether it was your first time or your fifteenth time, we hope you found it enjoyable and memorable. We hope you’ll keep coming back!

We’d like to say a big “thank you” to the Embassy of Japan in the United States, Minister Masaru Sato, Ms. Fumiho Suzawa, Minister Tomoaki Ishigaki and all of the Embassy of Japan staff who joined us on Saturday. We appreciate their continued interest, support and friendship. We are also thankful to community member and leader, Ms. Erika Moritsugu, Deputy Assistant to the President and Asian American and Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Senior Liaison and her husband and son who also attended.

We are also thankful to the creative Crafty Ladies led by Nancy Yamada who donated $1,000 to our Chapter and $1,000 to the JACL DC Graphic Novel Project, kicking off fundraising for this historic educational project. You’ll hear more about this exciting project in the coming year. Thank you to the members: Barbara Sakamoto, Mitsuko Furuhashi, Michelle Amano, Jean Marumoto, Sonia Misawa, Eileen Roulier, Joy Aso, Barbara Nekoba, Shirley Bertoni, Debbie Omori, Meghan Bertoni, Lori Kasamatsu, Barbara Ikejiri, Yoko Morita and Janet Nuzum.

A special thanks to our culture-bearers and mochitsuki rice pounding, leaders, Kota Mizutani and Erika Ninoyu.

Also, thank you to our wonderful volunteers, Chris Yamamoto, Lauren Iwamiya, Kazuma Parkinson, Erika Suzuki, Cristina Hayashi, Barbara Nekoba who helped with the details before, during and after the event.

A big thank you to our chairs, Marilisa and Edson Mori, Emcees John Tobe and Janice Faden, raffle organizer Janet Nuzum, registration leader, Kim Hirose as well as the tireless board, Brad and Lori Sakaguchi, Michelle Amano, Ryosuke Shibuya, Noriko Sanefuji, Bridget Keaveney and Jack Shimabukuro.

Lend a hand and make some new friends! If you are interested in volunteering for next year’s Mochitsuki or an upcoming event, please send us an email at jaclwdc@gmail.com.

We hope you have a safe and peaceful holiday season.

On behalf of the JACL DC board,

Linda Sato Adams and Julie Abo, Co-presidents, JACL DC Chapter

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION Saturday, Dec. 2, 12 pm to 2:30 pm at Thomas Pyle Middle School, 6311 Wilson Ln., Bethesda, MD 20817

NOV.11, 4PM Eisenhower Theater, Kennedy Center, 2700 F St NW, Washington, DC 20566

LOS ANGELES, CA – Following sold-out shows in Honolulu, Irvine, Los Angeles, and San José, Defining Courage is bringing the show to the The Kennedy Center’s Eisenhower Theatre in Washington, DC, on Veterans Day, Saturday, November 11, 2023, at 4 p.m. (EST). The immersive live performance honors the most decorated US soldiers of World War II—the 100th Infantry Battalion, the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, and the Military Intelligence Service. Tickets start at $50 and are on sale now. More details about the show are available at DefiningCourageShow.com.

The stories of these Nisei soldiers (Americans of Japanese ancestry), many fighting for the US while their families were incarcerated in America’s concentration camps, are told in a unique live performance that combines live storytelling, new and historic film footage, eyewitness interviews, and live music.

“The stories we know are still just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the stories that are out there. I feel like there’s an infinite amount of these wonderful stories to tell, so I’ll always be devoted to the Japanese American story,” said David Ono, the host and co-producer of Defining Courage. “The goal was to create an unforgettable show that combines live music and narration with multimedia storytelling. It is the perfect way to keep this important story alive in the most memorable way.” Created by Ono, News Anchor at ABC-7 Los Angeles, and fellow Emmy-award-winning filmmaker Jeff MacIntyre, Defining Courage features music by composers Enzo De Roza and Sheridan Seyfried.

BUY TICKETS HERE. Promotion code: BOLDLY

“Defining Courage” is presented by Story Boldly, the Japanese American National Museum, and Outside In Theatre. Local partners for the Veterans Day performance are the Go For Broke National Education Center, Japanese American Citizens League, Japanese American Veterans Association, National Japanese American Memorial Foundation, National Veterans Network, and US-Japan Council.

A program of Tadaima: A Community Virtual Pilgrimage 2023, produced by Japanese American Memorial Pilgrimages

1 PM HT / 4 PM PT / 7 PM ET

Linda Adams, Janice Faden and Stephanie Rowe of the JACL DC Chapter will share how they have worked in collaboration with the Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) in Maryland to create a fictional graphic novel based on the life experiences of Japanese Americans focusing on immigration, incarceration, and anti-Asian hate crimes. The graphic novel will incorporate literacy and social studies standards for all Grade 5 students in MCPS and impact approximately 12,000 students annually beginning in April 2024. Go HERE to see the live program.

Japanese American Legacy Lawyers: Contributions of Japanese American Lawyers, Past and Present

Thursday, November 2, 2023, 10:00 am to 12 noon

Japan Information & Culture Center, Embassy of Japan 1150 18^th Street, NW, Suite 100, Washington, DC 20036

Free and open to the public; RSVP by October 27 at https://forms.gle/hEs5urPnKkxkV72F9 Or email jaclwdc@gmail.com

You’re invited to “Japanese American Legacy Lawyers,” a program that pays homage to past and present attorneys of Japanese heritage who have contributed to bettering the lives of Japanese Americans and all Americans. The attorneys being recognized are Shirley Ann Higuchi, Stuart Ishimaru, Erika Moritsugu and in absentia, Judge Raymond Uno. Host, Deputy Chief of Mission of the Embassy of Japan, Koichi Ai will welcome everyone and moderator Phil Tajitsu Nash, AALDEF co-president will share a brief history of Japanese American Lawyers. He will engage the honorees in a fireside chat of where we’ve been and where we’re going followed by Q and A and light refreshments. The Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund 50^th Anniversary Fund, the Japan Information & Culture Center, Embassy of Japan and Japanese American Citizens League, DC Chapter are co-organizers of the event. 

Wednesday, October 11, LUNCH 11:30 am TALK 12:45 pm at the Great Falls Public Library, 9830 Georgetown Pike, Great Falls VA 22066 (Photo of Manzanar above used with permission of Sandra Sugawara)

Join us for a very special author and book signing event which will feature a very talented local photojournalist, Sandy Sugawara who recently published Show Me the Way to Go Home, about the 10 WWII incarceration sites as they look today. The talk is free and open to the public and will be held on Wednesday, October 11, at the Great Falls Public Library, 9830 Georgetown Pike, Great Falls VA 22066 (703-757-8560). Sandy will talk about the genesis of this gorgeous book and her discoveries along her journey with regard to each camp. Lunch is from 11:30 to 1:00. The talk will be from 12:45 to 2:00. Lunch by Abunai can be pre-ordered with Barbara Nekoba. See the delicious menu options and prices here. Receive payment details by filling out this form. This is a partnership with Barbara, the JACL DC chapter and the Great Falls Library. Sandra will be available to chat and sign copies of her book. Cost of the hardback book is $65.00.

The unique exhibit is now showing at the Japan Information and Culture Center, Embassy of Japan, Washington, DC. 1150 18th St. NW, Washington, DC. Exhibit hours are 9:00 am to 5:00 pm, Monday to Friday. The exhibit is open to the public and admission is free. The exhibit closes on December 15, 2023.

The exhibit features rare photographs and documents depicting Japanese American WWII military service. The photographs were taken by the Armed Forces and by the Japanese American veterans themselves. This is a unique opportunity to see a rarely told story of an incredible unit and its contribution to American history. The JICC invites the public to hear historian Eric Saul speak about the photos on display at a 1:00 pm talk on November 8, 2023. The program will be free, but an Eventbrite ticket will be required to enter. Learn more at the sponsors’ websites: Japanese American Veterans Association at https://www.java-us.org/. JAVA’s point of contact is Neet Ford, Executive Director, at javapotomac@gmail.com. Japan Information & Culture Center, Embassy of Japan website is https://www.us.emb-japan.go.jp/jicc/index.html.