April is here already, and our mild winter has come and gone. I felt grateful that we did not have to endure the harsh winter of those in the Midwest and eastern coast. However, I now look forward to the summer for our San Fernando Valley with questions in my mind. It is very easy to keep doing what I have been doing in the past. It takes less effort than to make drastic changes. I’m referring to our drought conditions and the rising water and sewer charges. From a practical dollars and cents viewpoint and from a viewpoint of civic responsibility, I realize that I need to make some changes. A nudge from others would be helpful. We have experienced and knowledgeable people within our chapter and within the community center, and I encourage them to share their knowledge and experience with others. Yas Gohata has taken steps on water conservation, and others may have done as well. My brother in Orange County drove down to San Diego to see George Takei’s play Allegiance last year, and as a result, felt compelled to participate in the Tule Lake Pilgrimage this year. Ellen and I will join my brother Andy and Suzanne in a 4 bedroom Village Apartment unit on the Oregon Technical Institute campus in Klamath Falls. The Tule Lake Pilgrimage takes place on the 4th of July weekend on even numbered years. Phil Shigekuni was planning to attend, but had a change of plans. However, he still plans to present a resolution at the national JACL conference in San Jose in the 2nd week of July. His resolution is intended to offer an apology to the Tule Lake draft resistors for some of the positions taken by JACL during and after the confinement. There’s a saying “In my youth I saw the world as black and white. Now I see the world painted in shades of gray.” A multicolored kaleidoscope might be a better description for the stories of Tule Lake. Hiroshi Kashiwagi spoke at the Commission on Wartime Relocation and Internment of Civilians public hearings in San Francisco in 1981. He described how the government used strong threats (that was later found to be false and illegal). Those threats broke down the resistance to the draft, but not without tragic consequences: “In our frustration and anger we turned against each other … Can you imagine the confusion and the turmoil? What to do? We had no recourse to counsel.” He also described Tule Lake as “a psychologically abnormal, unhealthy place. There are no doubt thousands of views of the injustices and conflicts arose in Tule Lake. The next few months will be interesting. Old feelings and grudges might be rekindled. My hope is that people will also be able to step back and take a longer view of history, and offer it as another component to the overall narrative. Harold Kameya KPCC reporter Josie Huang recently interviewed SFVJACL chapter president Harold Kameya about our organization's resolution in support of the controversial Korean comfort women monument in Glendale. You can read the story here. At our last board meeting, the Board of Directors of the San Fernando Valley chapter of the Japanese American Citizens League formally adopted a resolution that expresses support for the Glendale comfort women monument and for justice for all victims of sexual exploitation by Japan's Imperial military during World War II. Recently, a small delegation of conservative Japanese lawmakers came to Los Angeles to call for the removal of the monument. Locally, some Japanese immigrants have likewise expressed their dissatisfaction with the monument. As a civil rights organization, we see it as our duty to stand in solidarity with people aggrieved by government oppression. Our resolution reads as follows: As a Japanese American civil rights organization located near the city of Glendale, we feel compelled to take a position on this controversial issue. We remember Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s quote of “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” Based on the extensive research done by the Congressional Research Service that supported the US House of Representative Bill HR121, whose findings have not been challenged by factual data, and Having discussed the issues with members of the NCRR (Nikkei Civil Rights and Redress), and representatives from both the NCRR and the SFV JACL having met unofficially with three Restoration Party members of the Japanese Diet, and having experienced communication difficulties because of our belief and value systems seeming to be totally incongruent, we found the situation of the perpetuator asking a third party to accept their statistics (and not that of the victims) to be surreal, and Hearing NCRR’s suggestion to have the Japanese nation hear the testimonies of the victims being totally ignored (most likely because of such actions being so incompatible with the cultural values of Japanese society, in addition to their political situation), and Having the delegates from the Restoration Party providing us with copies of the 1944 Prisoner of War Interview #49 in Burma, which they stated was definitive proof that the comfort girls there were prostitutes, and having studied that report (as did the Congressional Research Service), we have concluded that the descriptions of the comfort girls going shopping, going to picnics and going to social dinners to be totally incompatible with all testimonies by other comfort women, and we have concluded that much of the information in that report were given by the two civilian Japanese “house masters”, and In our American society where a certain amount of empathy and compassion are values that are expected in our citizens, we are shocked to witness Japan’s political leaders continue to have their national pride and national image trample any vestige of empathy and compassion for the non-Japanese Comfort Women, and their expressed desire to dilute or rescind the 1993 apology by Chief Cabinet Secretary Yohei Kono is an affront to all women throughout the world, and We are pleased to know that there exists a small faction of today’s Japanese citizens who feel that Japan should admit to and apologize to the WWII victims, and we note the recorded testimonies of Japanese soldiers who used the Comfort Women, Therefore, we, the San Fernando Valley chapter of the JACL, hereby go on record to state our support of the installation of the KoreanComfort Women monument in the city of Glendale as a reminder of ‘crimes against humanity’, and to state our support of Representative Mike Honda’s HR121 bill which, in addition to the Korean Comfort Women charges, additionally called out the 2000 UN Security CouncilResolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security (signed by Japan) which recognized the unique impact of armed conflict on women, and which specifically noted that in 1921, Japan signed the International Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Women and Children.* * The monument also serves as a grim reminder of unrecognized sexual slavery in today's world. Zoe, an international human rights organization was founded by a Japanese American couple residing in the San Fernando Valley. For many years, the many dedicated staff and volunteers in ZOE have rescued thousands of young women, in this country, and throughout the world from lives of sexual slavery. We are also honored that the LA chapter of the transnational Filipina feminist organization, AF3IRM (Association of Filipinas, Feminists Fighting Imperialism, Re-feudalization, and Marginalization) has endorsed our resolution. Thank you, AF3IRM! November, 2013 It has been quite an honor to serve as the SFVJACL president for the past 15 years...well, it just feels like 15 years! I mean that in a good way. It seems much longer because this chapter is so very active. From special film screenings and plays, monthly movie outings, Manzanar and other field trips, to protests, educational programs and civil rights functions. This chapter does it all! I wish I could take credit for the flurry of activity, but the truth is I have very little to do with any of it. The SFVJACL Board of Directors, many of whom have been around for decades (again, I mean that in a good way!), year after year help develop wonderful programs for our community. They work tirelessly providing new and innovative programs for the San Fernando Valley while also taking leadership roles in the PSW, National JACL and civil rights movement. It has truly been an honor to work with such an amazing and dedicated group of individuals! Of course, the work of the SFVJACL Board would be for naught if there wasn't involvement from the membership and community as well. Many of you volunteer at our events and attend our functions and provide financial support to this organization so wecan continue doing what we do. I have worked in law enforcement for nearly 30 years and worked with many communities and have never come across a more caring, compassionate and humble group of people anywhere. That is what I love about the JACL and, in particular, the SFVJACL. The people!! We will be in good hands with Harold Kameya at the helm in 2014. He is a passionate individual with a true commitment for fighting for civil rights of all people. He is very active in following issues locally, nationally and internationally and has shown true leadership in this chapter keeping us true to our mission regarding civil and human rights advocacy. I will be honored to work under his leadership as he brings new ideas and direction to the position of our chapter president.I won't shed a tear since Asian men don't show emotion. Instead, I will smile (and not a smirky smile like I just got out of having to do something) because I know this organization will grow with new ideas while maintaining its rich tradition of programs for our community. I am proud to have been a part of this organization and this community and I am equally excited about what the future holds for us -as an organization, as a community, as civil rights activists. I wish all of you a happy holiday season and a prosperous 2014! Brian Moriguchi, President Editor's Note: Thank you, Brian, for your years of leadership! We're glad you're staying on as program co-chair! Let's all join together to welcome Harold Kameya as he accepts the (virtual) gavel and work together to defend civil rights and social justice in 2014. Controversy continues to develop over the Glendale, CA City Council's decision to erect a monument commemorating the victims of sexual slavery by the Japanese Imperial Army during World War II. Recently, members of Japan's conservative Restoration Party came to Los Angeles to discuss their opposition to the monument and symapthetic discourse related to the so called "comfort women." As a civil rights organization dedicated to issues of equity and social justice, our organization stands with the victims of oppression whether at home or across the Pacific. To this end, two of our members, Phil Shigekuni (civil rights chair) and Harold Kameya (president-elect) participated in dialogue with the members of the Restoration Party along with Kathy Masaoka and Wilbur Sato from Nikkei for Civil Rights and Redress (NCRR), which has long supported reparations for comfort women. The SFVJACL and NCRR representatives shared their experiences fighting against forms of state oppression and reiterated the comfort women controversy as women's and human rights issue. The meeting was covered by both the Los Angeles Times and Al-Jazeera America. Please return to our blog for further updates. Previous articles on this topic by SFVJACL members appear here and here. By Jean-Paul deGuzman, Web Coordinator and Scholarship Chair |