New England JACL Archived News and Events News: 07.11.08 Mari Oye Receives National JACL Scholarship Congratulations to Mari Oye, a freshman at Yale University and one of the 2008 National JACL Undergraduate Scholarship winners. Mari was awarded the $5000 Kenji Kajiwara Memorial Scholarship. She is the daughter of long-time NE JACLers Willa Michener and Ken Oye, chapter co-chair. Last year Mari was awarded a National JACL Freshman Scholarship. Two additional scholarship winners are attending schools in the New England area. Aya Michaels, of Connecticut, is a graduate student at Harvard, and Elizabeth Leake, of Colorado, is an undergraduate at Yale. Event: 08.08.08-08.16.08 New Japanese Cinema Series at the Museum of Fine Arts A five-film series of recent Japanese cinema will be featured at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts from August 8th to the 16th. It will include showings of Sakuran directed by Mika Ninagawa (2006), The Mourning Forest directed by Naomi Kawase (2007), Filmful Life: Kon Ichikawa directed by Shinji Aoyama (2006), Near Equal, Yayoi Kasama, I Adore Myself directed by Takako Natsumoto (2008), Gumi Chocolate Pine (2006) Keralino Sandorovich directs Ken Otsuki’s film, and Murder of the Inugami Clan directed by Kon Ichikawa (2006). For tickets call 617.369.3306 or send an email to webticketing@mfa.org. For showing times and more information go to: www.mfa.org. Event: 08.10.08 [Event Flyer] Bento and Baseball The New England JACL will be hosting an event involving the showing of the film American Pastime, about the role of baseball in the Topaz Internment Camp, followed by a Lowell Spinners minor league baseball game. The film will be shown at Middlesex Community College in Lowell at 10 a.m. followed by a pot-luck lunch, (please bring one dish per person) and then a Lowell Spinners game at 1:30 p.m. Please see the Event Flyer for details and reply form. Please e-mail Steve Nishino at nishino@nejacl.org for questions or more information. Event: 08.01.08-08.03.08 Ukulele Virtuoso Comes to New England Jake Shimabukuro of Honolulu, fast becoming one of the world’s top ukulele musicians, will be performing in the New England area. Check him out in person at: August 1st at the Iron Horse Music Hall in Northampton, August 2nd at the Regattabar at the Charles Hotel, and August 3rd at the Newport Folk Festival. Event: 07.26.08 Obon Festival at the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, MA Taiko Drumming & Obon in Amory Park, across from Museum’s main entrance from 2-3:45 pm. Featuring Odaiko New England and obon dancing with middle school students from Ota, Salem’s sister city in Tokyo Japan. This coincides with PEM exhibits include Stage Idols, Japanese Kabuki Theater (through 01.25.09) as well as Chinese, Korean, Indian, and Native American art. For more information www.pem.org/events or call toll free 866.745.1876 or 978.745.9500. Event: 05.03.08-07.20.08 Art Exhibit at the Fuller Craft Museum in Brockton, MA Folded Light, Folded Shadow Paper Relief by Nishimura Yuko. A showcase of a young contemporary artist’s complex art of folding paper. For information call 508.588.6000 or www.fullercraft.org. Event: 07.17.08-07.20.08 Black Ships Festival in Newport, RI Festivities will include sumo wrestling, Japanese films, tea tastings, a Japanese Anime Festival, sushi demonstrations, and a taiko drum concert. Featured on Saturday will be an Arts & Crafts Fair with scheduled demonstrations and workshops on aikido, calligraphy, origami, kite & pinwheel making, koto & shamisen player, kimono demonstration and many other Japanese arts, crafts and healing practices. A Japanese Market will be featured on Sunday. For tickets and information on locations, times and dates of all events call 401.846.2720 or www.BlackShipsFestival.com. Event: 05.17.08 The First Asian American Pacific Islander Presidential Town Hall Meeting Asian Pacific Islander American Vote (APIAVote) will telecast a town hall meeting from the Bren Events Center, University of California at Irvine. APIAVote has invited Senator Hillary Clinton, Senator Barack Obama, and Senator John McCain to attend and discuss issues and policies important to AAPI communities. The Institute for Asian American Studies will broadcast this event live: Location: UMass Boston, Campus Center, 3/F, Room 3540 Time: May 17th, 2008 from 7 pm to 10 pm Event: 05.02.08 APA Month to Be Celebrated At the State House Asian Pacific American Heritage Month will be celebrated at the State House in Boston from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. The event will feature information on community groups and free gourmet Asian food. This year's theme is "Engaging Asian Pacific American in the Presidential Campaign and Election." RSVP to Trisiawati Bantacut at tbantacut@asiancdc.org or (617) 482-2380 ext 207 no later than April 24. Event: 04.17.08-04.25.08 Ipswich Reads... One Book! This April, the Ipswich Public Library is hosting events related to Japanese Internment, including a book discussion of Julie Otsuka novel When the Emperor Was Divine. For more information: Ipswich Public Library The following dates feature New England JACL Board Members: 04.17.08 (7 p.m.) Internment in Our Time: A Legal Perspective with Carl Takei 04.23.08 (7 p.m.) Nisei Americans Who Fought in World War II with Susumu Ito 04.25.08 (2 p.m.) Women in Camps: A Panel Discussion with Margie Yamamoto and May Takayanagi Event: 04.21.08 Taiko Drumming There will be performance the Odaiko New England taiko drumming group at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library in Boston on Patriots Day. The New England JACL has a limited number of tickets for members to be distributed on a first come basis. Please contact Ken Oye at oye@nejacl.org for tickets. This event will be followed by an informal lunch at the museum cafe and tour of the JFK Library. Event: 03.29.08 Tamagawa University Dance and Taiko Group at the Peabody Essex Museum A traditional Japanese dance and Taiko group will be performing from 1-4 p.m. at the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Massachusetts. For more information: Peabody Essex Museum News: 03.22.08 The New England JACL Board met on March 22, 2008 and several upcoming events have been added. Event: 02.24.08 [Event Flyer] Internment Art Visit to the Internment Art Exhibit @ The University of Connecticut "Art of Gaman" Art and Crafts from the Internment Camps (1942 - 1946) William Benton Museum of Art 245 Glenbrook Road, Unit 2140 Storrs, CT (Art exhibit runs from 01.22.08-03.30.08) The NEJACL is planning a group visit to this exhibit on 02.24.08. The group will depart Boston at 10 am. If interested please contact Margie Yamamoto: yamamoto@nejacl.org or call 781.259.9444. News: 02.27.08 The New England JACL recently held the annual Day of Remembrance, as well as an event at the Gaman Art Exhibit (Internment Art) at the University of Connecticut. Pictures and a write up soon to follow on the Gallery page. Event: 02.19.08 [Event Website] Tufts University Day of Remembrance “The Japanese American Internment: A Granddaughter’s Perspective” 4:30-6:30 p.m., Sophia Gordon Multipurpose Room Amy Lee-Tai, author of the children’s book A Place Where Sunflowers Grow, will speak about her book, which is based on her mother and grandparents’ experiences at the Topaz internment camp, where her grandparents taught art classes. Dinner provided. Event: 02.09.08 [Event Flyer] Day of Remembrance 2008 The annual NEJACL Day of Remembrance will be held on February 9, 2008 at 3 PM in MIT BldgE38 (292 Main St., Cambridge, MA), 6th Floor Conference Room. This location is accessible via the Kendall Square Red Line T Stop. Refreshments will be served. Click here for directions. The film "Lost Village of Terminal Island" will be shown, which tells the story of a pre-war Japanese fishing village's forced evacuation and internment and their return after the war. The Day of Remembrance marks the signing of Executive Order 9066 in 1942 which forcibly incarcerated more than 120,000 people of Japanese ancestry into U.S. concentration camps during World War II. News: 01.26.08 The NEJACL Board met on January 22, 2008 and several upcoming events have been listed below. Click here for the February 2008 NEJACL newsletter. News: 01.22.08 Next New England JACL Board Meeting Tuesday, January 22, 2008 at 7 p.m. News: 01.10.08 Japanese American Association of New York Scholarship: Available to graduate students attending a university in the NY area for the 2008-2009 school year. For complete info on this, please look at our scholarships at: Students Page. News: 10.23.07 Japanese American Veterans Association Scholarship: Terry Shima, Executive Director of the Japanese American Veterans Association (JAVA), has asked for JACL's assistance in spreading the word about scholarships which are now available through JAVA. For complete info on this, please look at our scholarships at: Students Page. News: 09.16.07 NEJACL member Mari Oye personally challenged President Bush on his violation of civil rights and use of torture. While visiting the White House to receive the Presidential Scholars medal in June, she and others drafted and handed to the president a letter calling on him to reject torture and treat terrorism suspects humanely. Their endevor was reported in the New York Times, Boston Globe, and several other news outlets. For complete info on this, please look at our Gallery Page. Event: 10.13.07 Boston Asian Students Intercollegiate Conference (BASIC) at Harvard University During the fifth annual network fair, college students from around New England will be able to learn more about groups, including the JACL, that promote greater awareness of Asian Pacific American issues. New England JACL will have a booth to raise awareness about our organization. For more information, go to: BASIC's Website News: 08.19.07 Welcome to the new website for the New England chapter of the Japanese American Citizen's League (JACL). The JACL is America's oldest and largest Asian civil rights organization. More information on events and board meetings coming soon. For more information please e-mail: newengland@jacl.org