Thursday, March 11, 4-6PM PDT
RSVP

Densho has teamed up with the Tacoma Art Museum (TAM) to offer a workshop for K-12 teachers. We’ll explore the works of Kenjiro Nomura, an artist who was incarcerated at the Minidoka concentration camp during World War II, and consider how art sheds light on our history and present. You’ll come away from the workshop with discussion prompts, Thinking Routines, and creative practices to help you teach about the WWII incarceration of Japanese Americans. 

Thursday, March 25, 6:00PM PST
RSVP

In her new book, Nisei Radicals: The Feminist Poetics and Transformative Ministry of Mitsuye Yamada and Michael Yasutake, Diane Fujino reveals a radical lineage of Japanese American activism through the lives of feminist poet, Mitsuye Yamada and her brother, Michael Yasutake.

In honor of women’s history month, we welcome Diane Fujino to discuss her book and the role that Mituye Yamada’s political activism played in building the Asian American and US Third World women’s movements and support for political prisoners.

After presenting her book, Fujino will be joined by Yamada for a discussion about the ways her poetry intertwines with her personal life, while also illuminating Japanese American women’s lives, and about the importance of speaking out against racism. 

Presented by Densho with Elliott Bay Book Company, University of Washington Press. Funding for this event was provided, in part, by City of Seattle Office of Arts & Culture.

January – July 2021
More Info & RSVP

Join the USC Shinso Ito Center for Japanese Religions and Culture for Black + Japanese American Reparations, a special virtual events series and book club. Many Black reparations advocates have pointed directly to the Civil Liberties Act of 1988 granting reparations to Japanese Americans interned during World War II as a precedent that can inform the case for restorative justice for African Americans. Indeed, as Ta-Nehisi Coates has argued, reparations is more than a recompense of past injustices, but a national reckoning “that would lead to spiritual renewal.” Co-hosted by Densho, Japanese American National Museum, and Tsuru for Solidarity. The reparations-themed book club which meets every third Tuesday from January to July at 4pm PST.

Thursday, January 21, 2021
Watch Webinar Recording

In his new book, “The Unsung Great: Stories of Extraordinary Japanese Americans,” scholar and journalist Greg Robinson showcases the lives and achievements of relatively unknown but remarkable people in Nikkei history. Join us for a book launch event on January 21 where Robinson will explore the unknown aspects of the diverse and artistically vibrant Nikkei community in prewar and wartime New York. He will then be joined by artists Tomie Arai and Sheila Hamanaka in a conversation moderated by Brian Niiya, Densho Content Director.

Copies of the book are available for purchase at Elliott Bay Book Company: bit.ly/UnsungGreat

Co-presented by Densho, Japanese American Association, NYC DOR Committee, JACL-NY, University of Washington Press, and Elliott Bay Book Company.

February 14-21
More Information

This year we mark the anniversary of Executive Order 9066 with a full week of action and remembrance. Join us each day between February 14th and 21st as we dig deeper into the past and find new ways to take action towards justice and equity today. 

Sunday, 2/14
Embrace: Show Japanese American history orgs some love!

Monday, 2/15
Learn: Discover and share resources for the classroom

Tuesday, 2/16
Bridge: Build deeper understanding and connection through community

Wednesday, 2/17
Dig Deeper: Explore Densho resources to learn more about our history

Thursday, 2/18
Connect: Understand how Japanese American WWII Incarceration is part of broader systems of oppression

Friday, 2/19
Remember: Observe the anniversary of EO 9066

Saturday & Sunday, 2/20-21
Take Action: Let this history inform your solidarity with other targeted groups

Tuesday, February 16 at 1PM PDT
Watch Webinar Recording

What Constitutional rights were promised to Japanese Americans during World War II? Why weren’t these promises kept and protected? What forces weaken the protections of the Constitution? What can you do when you see the abuse of power? What are the remedies when we fail to uphold the Constitution?

Join Dale Minami, best known for heading the coram nobis legal team that overturned the conviction of Fred Korematsu, and Tom Ikeda, Densho’s founding Executive Director, for a discussion framed by these questions. Minami and Ikeda will connect the lessons of the WWII Japanese American incarceration with the events of today.

Added Webinar Bonus – After you register, you will be given a link to a free viewing of the documentary, ALTERNATIVE FACTS: The Lies of Executive Order 9066, a one-hour documentary about the false information and political influences that led to the World War II incarceration of Japanese Americans.

Thursday, February 18 at 12PM PDT

Join Densho Executive Director Tom Ikeda for “Racism, Resilience, and Resistance: Executive Order 9066 in 2021” from 12-1:30pm PDT. This panel discussion hosted by the Seattle College District will explore the community impact of Japanese American imprisonment during World War II, its echoes today, and contemporary anti-xenophobic activism. Panelists include Tom Ikeda, Densho, Paul Kurose, North Seattle College, Hamdi Mohamed, King County Office of Equity & Social Justice, Anna Hasegawa.

Thursday, February 18 at 5PM PDT
Sign up to be notified of future Education Workshops

This digital teach-in will deepen your understanding of American xenophobia and racism, using Japanese American WWII incarceration and the current crisis of immigrant detention as case studies. This interactive learning experience is designed for teachers, high school or college students, community leaders, and individuals simply looking to expand their knowledge and deepen their commitment to action. The teach-in will use a combination of short films and oral histories, as well as creative learning routines and dialogue. Educators will come away with activities and curriculum that can be directly applied to the classroom; professional development credit is available through OSPI.

The Xenophobia teach-in is presented by Densho and the Japanese Cultural and Community Center of Washington, and made possible through funding from the Kip Tokuda Memorial Civil Liberties Public Education Program.

Sunday, February 21 at 1PM PDT
See photos from the day here

Join Tsuru for Solidarity, La Resistencia, the Minidoka Pilgrimage Planning Committee, Seattle JACL, and Puyallup Valley JACL for a car caravan from the Puyallup Fairgrounds to Northwest Detention Center, February 21st starting at 1:00pm. 

The Day of Remembrance commemorates the anniversary of Executive Order 9066, which led to the incarceration of over 125,000 Japanese Americans during WWII. In 1978, Seattle organizers held the first Day of Remembrance in the country, leading a caravan from Seattle to the Puyallup Fairgrounds, where 7,400 Japanese Americans were imprisoned in 1942. Join us as we return to Puyallup to remember the past, then take the caravan to Tacoma to demand freedom and justice for immigrants imprisoned at NWDC today. 

Puyallup image courtesy of MOHAI 1986.5.6681.3. Artwork by Erin Shigaki and Eugene Tagawa.