Internees' experiences spotlighted
Advertiser Staff
In conjunction with its new exhibit, "Dark Clouds Over Paradise: The Hawai'i Internees Story," the Japanese Cultural Center of Hawai'i is presenting a series of events that share the experiences of World War II internees and reflects the theme, "A Challenge to Civil Rights":
June 19, 10 to 11:30 a.m., "My Interned Youth at Arkansas and Arizona," Historical Gallery Theater. Patricia Kirita Nomura will present a slide show about her and other internees from the Big Island who were taken to Jerome, Ark., and Gila River, Ariz.
June 26, 10 to 11:30 a.m., Internment Camp Songs and Stories, Historical Gallery Theater. The Taisho Boys — Harry Urata, Shozo Takahashi and Chojiro Kageura — will share their experiences and the role music played in their lives while interned in Hawai'i and the Mainland. Other entertainers will perform songs written by former Hawai'i internees who have passed away. Simultaneous English translations, Japanese and Romanized Japanese lyrics will be available for those who want to follow along or sing.
July 3, 9 a.m. to noon, Challenges to Civil Rights in Threatening Times, Teruya Courtyard. A panel will share background on the Hawai'i and Mainland internment experience during World War II and California's response to the denial of civil rights. Panel members include Brian Niiya, editor of the "Encyclopedia of Japanese American History: An A-to-Z Reference from 1868 to the Present"; co-chairmen of the All Camps Conference in Arkansas this September; Gerry Takano, a California architect and preservationist of historical sites — such as Building 640 in the Presidio in San Francisco; and Diane Matsuda, executive director of the California Cultural and Historical Endowment. Students from various Hawai'i high schools and middle schools will present their displays and projects related to civil rights and internment.
July 17, 12:30 to 2:30 p.m., "Ganbare!" fifth-floor lounge. Patsy Sumie Saiki will present the little-known stories of other Japanese-American internees and Japanese prisoners of war. Saiki also will be signing her reprinted and re-released book on internment, "Ganbare! An Example of Japanese Spirit."
July 22, 6 to 8 p.m., "From Sand Island to Santa Fe," Historical Gallery Theater. Gail Y. Okawa, Ph.D., a professor of English at Youngstown State University in Ohio, will share the experiences of her grandfather and others from Hawai'i who were imprisoned on the Mainland by the Department of Justice.
Based on Japanese Cultural Center of Hawai'i-conducted interviews of former internees, "Dark Clouds Over Paradise" depicts life in Hawai'i internment camps and shows how these internees passed their time behind barbed wire.
Each event is free. The Japanese Cultural Center of Hawai'i is located at 2454 S. Beretania St., Mo'ili'ili. For more information, call 945-7633, e-mail info@jcch.com, or go to www.jcch.com.
