Twin Cities JACL

Asian Americans in Office: A Discussion with Midwest Elected Officials
2023-04-15 14:00 - 15:30 (America/Chicago) | JASC (Japanese American Service Committee), 4427 N. Clark Street, Chicago, IL, 60640, United States
Join the JACL Midwest District Council (MDC) Youth Summit for a hybrid event hosted on Zoom and in Chicago, IL. The event will be a hybrid panel with four distinguished Asian American elected officials making change in their respective communities!
Panelists

Senator Stephanie Chang, Michigan Senate
Commissioner Josina Morita, Cook County, Illinois
Representative Samantha Sencer-Mura, Minnesota House Representative
Gene Wu, Texas House

After the panel will be a mixer event to debrief, discuss, and connect with youth from across the Midwest.
Participants do NOT have to be a JACL member in order to attend and anyone of any age is welcome to join us! The event will be fully hybrid but limited travel support is available for those interested in attending in Chicago.
Contact Ayako (mdcyouth@jacl.org) with any questions!
Please RSVP at bit.ly/MDCCHI.

JSA (Japan Student Association) Mental Health Awareness Banquet
2023-04-07 17:00 - 20:30 | Weisman Art Museum, 333 E River Road, Minneapolis, MN, 55455, United States
In Japan, the blossoming of Cherry Blossoms represents renewal and happiness. We wanted to incorporate this beautiful symbolism into our event to celebrate each and every one of you. Mental health is a topic that is hard to talk about in many communities. Our goal is to create a safe space for everyone to share their experiences and feel supported.
We are honored to have two special speakers at the event, including the National Alliance of Mental Illness (NAMI) and a University of Minnesota Professor from our Japanese Department. NAMI is a renowned organization that provides resources and support. Our event will also feature performances from TaikoArts, UMNTraditionalKaratedo, and Sentimental Sounds!
We are thrilled to host this event and look forward to welcoming you all. Catering will be provided by D’Amico & Sons. Don’t miss out on this amazing opportunity to come together and support one another.

Twin Cities JACL Day of Remembrance
2023-02-18 15:00 - 17:00 | MN
Twin Cities JACL Day of Remembrance:
81 Years Since Executive Order 9066
In person on or on Zoom

Eighty-one years ago, on February 19, 1942, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9066, which led to the incarceration of more than 120,000 Japanese Americans. Women, men, and children were imprisoned without trial as “enemy aliens,” even though most were U.S. citizens.
Forty years later, congress would condemn these events as a “grave injustice” caused by “race prejudice, war hysteria, and a failure of political leadership.” Since those causes are still present in 2023 America, we observe a day of remembrance so that what happened then is never allowed to happen again.
This year, we will hear from New York Times best-selling author Bruce Henderson about his new book, Bridge to the Sun, on the thousands of Nisei who were trained in the Military Intelligence Service Language School in Minnesota as interpreters and interrogators whose actions shortened the war by two years. Afterward, we will have a multigenerational and multiethnic discussion on the significance of the Japanese American incarceration experience today.
3:00 – 3:10 Welcome and Introductions
3:10 – 3:40 Presentation by Bruce Henderson
3:40 – 3:50 Q & A with Bruce Henderson
3:50 – 5:00 Panel Discussion with Audience Q & A

TCJACL & Minnesota Humanities Center- Armed With Language: Film Talk
2022-10-20 18:00 - 20:00 | Historic Fort Snelling, 200 Tower Avenue, St. Paul, MN, 55111, United States
In the height of WWII, Historic Ft. Snelling was home to a little-known Military Intelligence Service Language School (MISLS). Thousands of Nisei men and women (second generation Japanese Americans) were trained as linguists and translators and played a crucial role in helping the U.S. to end the war. They served in the U.S. military despite the fact that tens of thousands of Americans of Japanese descent were being imprisoned in concentration camps for the supposed security risk they posed to the country.
Their story is shared in the 2021 TPT documentary, Armed With Language. Join producer Katie O’Rourke as she engages the film’s writer David Mura, and Karen Tanaka Lucas who is featured in the film, in a reflective conversation, a year on from its debut. Along with viewing some of the film footage, Katie, David and Karen will explore why this history has remained so hidden from public knowledge, their personal stories and connections with MISLS, and the complicated histories that intertwine at the site of Historic Ft. Snelling. The conversation will end with a Q&A session with audience members.
Hosted by Historic Ft. Snelling, in partnership with the Minnesota Historical Society, TPT Twin Cities, and the Twin Cities Chapter of the Japanese American Citizens League (JACL). This is a free event.
Registration
Doors of the Plank Museum and Visitors Center at Historic Fort Snelling will open at 5:15 p.m.; the event will begin at 6:00 p.m.in the Event Space on the second floor; audience members are invited to bring their curiosity and questions to share with the speakers.
REGISTER NOW

TCJACL- Twin Cities JACL 75th Anniversary Celebration
2022-10-08 | Historic Fort Snelling, 200 Tower Avenue, St. Paul, MN, 55111, United States
RSVP HERE

Please mark your calendars and join us at the Twin Cities JACL 75th Anniversary Celebration
Saturday, October 8, 2022 at the Historic Fort Snelling new Visitor Center

2:00 pm Frank Abe, noted author of the graphic novel, We Hereby Refuse, will give a presentation, “Resistance to the Japanese American Incarceration in WWII.”

Free and open to the public

4:00 pm 75th Anniversary Celebration check-in begins.

Newly Renovated Visitor Center exhibit areas open for exploring

4:30 pm Boutique Sale begins – proceeds to benefit the Social Justice Committee

Book signing by Frank Abe

5:30 pm Bento Box dinner
6:00 pm Program – includes:

Guest appearance by Frank Abe
Acknowledgments of past presidents and other special guests
Preview of the play, Fire in the New World, the third installment of Rick Shiomi’s hit noir-style detective comedies featuring Sam Shikaze

Cost: Free for Nisei TCJACL members, $15 per person for TCJACL members, and $20 for non-members.
Bento Boxes: Choose between Saba Shioyaki (grilled mackerel), Chicken Teriyaki, or Vegetarian
RSVP by: Thursday, September 15 (Early deadline requested by restaurant J K’s Table to ensure that they have ordered enough food.)

Frank Abe is co-author of the new graphic novel on Japanese American resistance to wartime incarceration, We Hereby Refuse (Chin Music Press: A Wing Lake Museum book). He won an American Book Award for John Okada: The Life & Rediscovered Work [Okada is the author of No-No Boy (University of Washington Press)], and made the award-winning PBS documentary, Conscience and the Constitution, on the largest organized camp resistance. Frank is currently co-editing an anthology for penguin Classics on The Literature of Japanese American Incarceration.

CAAL (Coalition of Asian American Leaders)- Conference
2022-09-17 08:00 - 17:00 | University of Minnesota, Humphrey School of Public Affairs, 301 19th Ave S, Minneapolis, MN, 55455, United States
Register Today!
Saturday September 17, 2022
CAAL’s 2022 Leadership Summit: Creating Community Constellations will convene Asian Minnesotans across sectors, generations, regions and communities to connect, learn and act together. Leaders from around the state will have opportunities to meet other Asian Minnesotans, learn new skills, gain knowledge about key issues impacting the community, and kick off civic engagement efforts ahead of the November 2022 elections. In the face of invisibility, erasure and violence, we will come together as a community to share space, deepen relationships and grow our collective power for a future where we can all thrive.

TCJACL- Obon Festival
2022-08-21 15:00 - 21:00 | Como Park, 1225 Estabrook Dr, St. Paul, MN, 55103, United States
On August 21st, you can find us at Como Park for the first Obon Festival since the start of the pandemic! We’ll be looking for volunteers!
NEW in 2022 we will be selling ONLY ADVANCED TICKETS. Click HERE to purchase your tickets today! We will not be able to take cash at the gate for admission. If you arrive without your advanced ticket, we will have QR codes at the gate for you to scan with your phone that will lead you through the ticketing purchase process. You will need a credit card for this process.

Oyate Hotanin- Flower Power
2022-08-06 06:00 - 20:00 | Mounds Park, St. Paul, MN, United States
On August 6th, you can find us at Mounds Park in St. Paul for Flower Power hosted by Oyate Hotanin. The event will feature several artistic expressions for peace, including folding origami cranes in remembrance of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, 77 years ago on the same date. Volunteers welcome!

National JACL- 2022 JACL National Convention
2022-08-03 - 2022-08-08 | Las Vegas
“Strengthening Our Community Through Action”
Hybrid in Las Vegas and Online – August 3rd through 7th, 2022

TC JACL- Nikkei with Disabilities
2022-07-26 19:00 - 21:00 | Webinar
Join us for another virtual event in partnership with the East Side Freedom Library as we hear from local scholar Selena Moon and invited panelists about the experience of disabled Japanese Americans during WW2 incarceration and their fight for Redress, disability, and civil rights.

TC JACL- Minnesota Connections: The WWII Military Intelligence Service Language School and the Building of a Japanese American Community
2022-06-18 13:30 - 14:30 | Minnesota History Center, 345 W. Kellogg Blvd., St. Paul, MN, 55102, United States
In 1942, the Military Intelligence Service Language School (MISLS) was moved to Minnesota. The school trained soldiers as Japanese linguists to support the US military in World War II. A unique institution, it became point of pride for Japanese Americans who faced discrimination before and in wartime and had a strong impact on the war’s outcome. Additionally, the MISLS contributed to the building of the Japanese American community that thrives in Minnesota today.
Due to the classified nature of their work, many of these stories are only now being told thanks to the descendants of these brave Minnesotans.
Join Kimmy Tanaka, Program Supervisor at Historic Fort Snelling at Bdote, for an in-person panel discussion with Matt Abe (Toshio William “Bill” Abe), Peggy Doi (Saburo Bill Doi), and Karen Tanaka Lucas (Walter Tanaka) – descendants of some of the graduates of the MISLS. What was it like for their parents during World War II? What was it like at the MISLS? Why did they choose Minnesota?
Attend this program in-person at the Minnesota History Center. Included with the price of admission.
Support for this program has been provided by the Marney and Conley Brooks Fund.

JACL Detroit- Vincent Chin 40th Remembrance and Rededication
2022-06-16 - 2022-06-19 | Detroit, MI, United States
In June 1982, a Chinese American man by the name of Vincent Chin was targeted and brutally attacked in Highland Park, Michigan. Witnesses reported hearing his attackers shout, “It’s because of you we’re out of work!”–a reference to the economic downturn in the 1970s and 80s that hit the Motor City hard, coupled with competition from up-and-coming Japanese auto manufacturers. He died several days later. This led to the formation of American Citizens for Justice, a pan-ethnic organization committed to seeking justice for Vincent Chin, and to fighting racial violence broadly writ. Vincent Chin’s killing is a major flashpoint in the history of Asian America, particular for those of us living in the Midwest. It hits close to home, and also reminds us that an attack on one is an attack on all; and no one is safe until we all are safe. Ever since the 1908s, the Detroit Chapter has had a long-standing relationship with ACJ, and many overlapping members. For the 40-year anniversary of Chin’s death, ACJ and other organizations are putting together a massive program of remembrance and rededication through art, education, and community dialogue. This is history in memoriam and history in the making. For more information, visit https://www.vincentchin.org.

TC JACL- A History of Mixed Race Nikkei
2022-06-12 | Webinar
Join us for a virtual event in partnership with the East Side Freedom Library as we hear from local scholar Selena Moon and invited panelists on the history of mixed race Japanese Americans. Time TBD, stay tuned!

TC JACL- Manzanar Diverted Film Screening
2022-06-04 14:00 - 16:00 | Minnesota History Center, 345 W. Kellogg Blvd., St. Paul, MN, 55102, United States
Join us at the Minnesota History Center from 2-4PM for a screening and discussion of “Manzanar Diverted,” a documentary in which intergenerational women from Native American, Japanese American and rancher communities form an unexpected alliance to defend their land and water.

San Diego JACL- The ART of Inclusive Communication (Part B)
2022-06-01 18:00 - 20:00 | Webinar
The San Diego Chapter of JACL is hosting a free, virtual dialogue–focused workshop on inclusive communication provided by the National Conflict Resolution Center.
Part A is May 25 from 6–8 p.m. Part Bis on June 1 from 6–8 p.m. Both are on Zoom Online Workshop.
The interactive workshop involves small group discussion, facilitated dialogue, and self–reflective activities. Participants will look at their own personal and cultural identities and then how their identities are related todifferent styles of communication, especially through intercultural awareness.
Contact JACL at sandiegojacl@gmail.com or Dania Brett at dbrett@ncrconline.com for more information.

AMAJ- Concert: NO-NO BOY with Alicia Thao
2022-05-25 19:30 | The Cedar Cultural Center, 416 Cedar Avenue South, Minneapolis, Minnesota, 55454
ABOUT THIS SHOW
No-No Boy is the musical project of Vietnamese American singer and scholar Julian Saporiti. On his Smithsonian Folkways debut 1975, named after the year Saigon fell, Saporiti investigates his own family heritage as well as life in WWII Japanese internment camps, immigrant detention centers and refugee camps in 2020, and other stories of immigration that illustrate the complexities of becoming American. His songs are the epitome of folk storytelling in the modern era, as he interweaves histories with field recordings from the sites of collective trauma and fragments of Asian American musical tradition, from jazz to rock, to choral music). With his plaintive, direct voice, No-No Boy will take us on a deeply human journey through the Asian American experience in the US.
Alicia Thao, one of the Cedar Commissions Artists featured here in February 2022, opens this special night.

San Diego JACL- The ART of Inclusive Communication (Part A)
2022-05-25 18:00 - 20:00 | Webinar

Minnesota History Center & TC JACL - Echoes of History: The Japanese American Imprisonment Resounds Today
2022-05-21 11:00 - 12:00 | Minnesota History Center, 345 W. Kellogg Blvd., St. Paul, MN, 55102, United States
Join Dale Minami for a recounting of how a fraud on the United States Supreme Court resulted in the upholding of the conviction of Fred Korematsu and the incarceration program of Japanese Americans during World War II. Forty years later, a group of young attorneys were able to overturn the conviction but history is repeating itself today.
Dale Minami is an attorney at Minami and Tamaki in San Francisco. He graduated from law school at UC Berkeley (1971). He has been recognized as a Super Lawyer in Northern California for 18 straight years. Minami has litigated significant civil rights cases for Asian Pacific Americans including overturning Fred Korematsu’s landmark 40 year-old conviction. He co-founded the country’s first APA public interest law firm (Asian Law Caucus) and the first Asian American Bar Association in the country. Minami received the American Bar Association’s highest award, the ABA Medal, and the ABA’s Thurgood Marshall and Spirit of Excellence Awards.
This program is presented in partnership with the Twin Cities Chapter of the Japanese American Citizens League.

Saint Paul Civic Symphony- May 8 2022: Music of Home & Hope (Annual Mother’s Day Concert)
2022-05-08 13:00 - 14:30 | Landmark Center, 75 W 5th St, St. Paul, MN, 55102, United States
Heitzeg: Green Hope after Black Rain
Grieg: Piano Concerto in A Minor, Op. 16
Dvorak: Symphony No. 9 (“From the New World”)

Featuring the world premiere of Saint Paul composer Steve Heitzeg’s Green Hope after Black Rain (SPCS’s 75th anniversary commission), with Grieg’s Piano Concerto, performed by Jacob Taggart, and Dvorak’s New World Symphony.
Pianist Jacob Taggart will be the featured soloist at the Saint Paul Civic Symphony’s Annual Mother’s Day Concert at 1 p.m. Sunday, May 8, at the Landmark Center.
Just 15 years old, the 11th-grader at Saint Agnes School in Saint Paul has already gained acclaim in the world of classical music, having traveled internationally, including to Spain, Italy and Russia, for competitions.
He has twice been featured on National Public Radio’s “From the Top,” America’s largest national platform celebrating young, classically trained musicians, and remains one of the youngest grand-prize winners of the preteen and teen divisions of the Minnesota State Fair Amateur Talent Competition.
He has also opened for the rock band Goo Goo Dolls and was featured at Paisley Park and at Orchestra Hall with Grammy-nominated singer Sheila E., Prince’s former drummer.
Jacob also performs with sister Emma as the Taggart Squared duo, including six concerts performing Saint-Saens’ “Carnival of the Animals” with the Minnesota Orchestra.
Jacob studied with Reid Smith from age 4 until Smith’s passing in 2021. He now studies with Paul Wirth at the Wirth Center for the Performing Arts.
Jacob will be performing Edvard Grieg’s only piano concerto with the Saint Paul Civic Symphony.

King County Law Library- Remembering Japanese Incarceration and the Lies of Executive Order 9066
2022-04-29 16:00 - 18:30 | Webinar
Filmmaker Jon Osaki’s documentary, “Alternative Facts: The Lies of Executive Order 9066” takes an in-depth look at the legal rationale and evidence that undergirded the issuance of Executive Order 9066, which led to the wartime incarceration of almost 120,000 persons of Japanese ancestry, and Korematsu v. United States (1944), the subsequent U.S. Supreme Court Case which upheld its constitutionality. Using historical footage, documents, and interviews, Alternative Facts covers the forces and players that brought E.O. 9066 into being, the work of researchers who uncovered evidence unmasking the manipulated record submitted to the Supreme Court in Korematsu, and the work of the attorneys pursuing coram nobis cases to vacate the convictions of Fred Korematsu, Gordon Hirabayashi, and Minoru Yasui.
After a screening of Alternative Facts, Serin Ngai, of Sound Family Solutions, PLLC, will lead a panel discussion with filmmaker Jon Osaki, King County Superior Court Presiding Judge Patrick Oishi, and Lori Bannai, Professor Emeritus, Seattle University School of Law, and Director Emeritus of the law school’s Korematsu Center. Professor Bannai was also an attorney on the legal team that won vacation of Mr. Korematsu’s wartime conviction. The panel will discuss the role of attorneys and the judiciary in Korematsu case, how these issues continue to impact the current legal and political climate, and how lawyers and judges can respond.
Cost: FREE!

JASM- ”Tattoo History" with Emi Nijiya (Online)
2022-04-28 18:00 - 19:00 | Webinar
JASM is very excited to announce a webinar:
“Tattoo History” by Tattoo artist, Emi Nijiya on Thursday, April 28, 2022 at 6 p.m.
Tattoo History: A talk about the connections between Japanese and Western tattooing and the growth to today’s tattoo industry
How did tattooing originate in Japan and how did it become popular in the United States? We will look at the history behind Japanese tattoos and tools, compared to what the industry uses today. Tattoos are still considered taboo by many but have become more mainstream over the years. This talk will give you a brief look at how Japanese and Western tattooing are intertwined and have influenced each other and have grown to the flourishing industry of today.
Emi (they/them) is a half-Japanese and transgender tattoo artist who owns Jackalope Tattoo in Minneapolis, MN. Their shop, founded in 2013, employs 11 female, trans, or queer-identifying tattoo artists with various specialties. Emi has been tattooing for 11 years and specializes in black and grey portraiture, realism, gender affirming tattoos, 3D nipple tattooing (sometimes requested following breast reconstruction) and scar coverup tattoos. Over the years they have worked hard to create a tattoo shop that is a safe space for BIPOC, LGBTQIA+ people, women, and folks from all walks of life.
$8: Non-Member
$0: JASM Members
Fee is not refundable but is transferable. Please become a member to support JASM.

Minnesota History Center & TC JACL -Righting A Wrong: Japanese Americans and World War II Exhibit Opening
2022-04-23 11:00 - 15:00 | Minnesota History Center, 345 W. Kellogg Blvd., St. Paul, MN, 55102, United States
Minnesota History Center Presents “Righting A Wrong: Japanese Americans and World War II”
April 23 – July 3, 2022
EXHIBIT OPENING PROGRAM
FILM SCREENING AND CULTURAL PROGRAMS
Saturday, April 23, 2022, 11 am – 3pm
Minnesota History Center, 3M Auditorium
Exhibit viewing for Minnesota Historical Society Members is free. Non-members will need to purchase museum admission to view exhibit.
Eighty years ago, Executive Order 9066 paved the way to the violation of constitutional rights that resulted in the forced incarceration of 120,000 Japanese Americans. The film And Then They Came for Us  features Japanese American activists such as actor George Takei and other incarcerees who bring history into the present to ensure that mistakes of the past are not repeated.
A limited number of complimentary parking passes will be provided by TCJACL to our membership as supply lasts. To request parking, email Carolyn Nayematsu at nayem001@umn.edu
“Righting a Wrong: Japanese Americans and World War II”
This new traveling exhibition from the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History includes engaging personal stories, documents, photographs, and interactives. Embracing themes that are as relevant today as they were years ago, the exhibition takes a deep look at immigration, prejudice, civil rights, heroism, and what it means to be an American.

Funny Asian Women Kollective- The FAWK Super Show…AGAIN!
2022-04-16 19:30 - 21:00 | The Ordway Center for Performing Arts, 345 Washington Street, St. Paul, MN, 55102, United States
The Funny Asian Women Kollective (FAWK), is a comedy group that uses comedy to combat the invisibility and dehumanization of Asian women. For the first time since 2019, FAWK will be performing a live comedy show indoors FOR ONE NIGHT ONLY. The lineup includes Naomi Ko, May Lee-Yang, Saymoukda Duangphouxay Vongsay, Tsuab Yang, Patti Kameya, Houa Moua, and Jamie Schumacher with special guest star Robin Tran. The show will include stand-up, sketches, and videos that center Asian women’s stories.
What: The FAWK Super Show…AGAIN!
When: Saturday, April 16 at 7:30 PM – 9:00 PM
Where: The Ordway Center for Performing Arts, 345 Washington Street, St. Paul, MN 55102

Haddassah Minneapolis St. Paul presents "Sachiko: The True Story of a Child Survivor of the Bombing of Nagasaki"
2022-04-03 10:30 - 12:00 | MN
Haddassah Minneapolis St. Paul presents “Sachiko: The True Story of a Child Survivor of the Bombing of Nagasaki”.
How many Americans know what happened to innocent civilian survivors of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki during World War II? Stories of the hibakusha, the Japanese word for atomic bomb survivors, are important for us to know, just as we must know and never forget the stories of Holocaust survivors. The Anne Frank rose bush that grows in the shadow of the Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum symbolizes journeys of horror and survival to resilience and peace.

Minneapolis author Caren Stelson will share her relationship with Sachiko Yasui, who survived the atomic bombing of Nagasaki as a six-year-old child, and her journey from cataclysmic trauma to a pathway to peace. What happened to Sachiko and the history that wraps around her story have universal implications for us today and can inspire our own actions for peace for the future.

JACL National Youth Student Council- MDC Youth Summit
2022-04-02 13:30 - 16:00 | America’s Black Holocaust Museum, Milwaukee, WI, United States
Learn about the mission and work of the American Black Holocaust Museum sponsored by the JACL National Youth Student Council.
