Posts Tagged ‘civil rights’

Jesse Jackson Coming to UC Berkeley for Fred Korematsu Day – Sunday, January 30, 2011

Tuesday, January 25th, 2011

InsideBayArea has the deets.

Korematsu vs. United States

“Fred Korematsu Day in Berkeley

Come celebrate the first Fred Korematsu Day on January 30, 2011, at UC Berkeley’s Wheeler Auditorium. The program includes keynote speaker Reverend Jesse Jackson and spoken word artist Beau Sia, as well as tributes from Karen Korematsu and California Assembly Members Warren Furutani and Marty Block. There will also be a screening of the film, Of Civil Wrongs and Rights: The Fred Korematsu Story.

Fred T. Korematsu was a national civil rights hero. In 1942, at the age of 23, he refused to go to the government’s incarceration camps for Japanese Americans. After he was arrested and convicted of defying the government’s order, he appealed his case all the way to the Supreme Court. In 1944, the Supreme Court ruled against him, arguing that the incarceration was justified due to military necessity.

In 1983, Dr. Peter Irons, a legal historian, discovered key documents that government intelligence agencies had hidden from the Supreme Court in 1944. The documents consistently showed that Japanese Americans had committed no acts of treason to justify mass incarceration. With this new evidence, a legal team of mostly Japanese American attorneys re-opened Korematsu’s 40 year-old case on the basis of government misconduct. On November 10, 1983, Korematsu’s conviction was overturned in a federal court in San Francisco. It was a pivotal moment in civil rights history.

Korematsu remained an activist throughout his life. In 1998, he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor, from President Bill Clinton. Korematsu’s growing legacy continues to inspire activists of all backgrounds and demonstrates the importance of speaking up to fight injustice.”

http://korematsuinstitute.org/korematsu-day/celebration/

(For a list of other Fred Korematsu Day events throughout the state, click here)

Join the Korematsu Institute in celebrating the first Fred Korematsu Day!

DATE & TIME
Sunday Jan. 30, 2011x
1:00pm-2:00pm: VIP reception
2:00-3:00pm: Main Program
3:00-4:00pm: General reception
4:00-5:00pm: Screening of the Emmy Award-winning film
Of Civil Wrongs and Rights: the Fred Korematsu Story (60 min)

LOCATION
Wheeler auditorium
UC Berkeley campus
Berkeley, CA

PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION
Wheeler auditorium is a 15-minute walk from the Downtown Berkeley Bart station. Click here for walking directions.

PARKING
Cal Performances does not offer parking validation for this event, but street parking is free in Berkeley on Sundays. For a list of parking lots near the UC Berkeley campus, click here. For more information about parking on campus, please click here.

SPECIAL NEEDS
Wheeler Auditorium is accessible to people with disabilities. The closest drop off point near Wheeler is the alongside South Hall (see campus map). From there, it’s a short walk up the ramp and into Wheeler.

TICKETS
$100 VIP tickets include: VIP reception + Program (and seating in VIP section) + General Reception + Film Screening
$25 Full Price tickets include: Program + General Reception + Film Screening
$15 Discount tickets for Teachers/Non-profit employees/Senior Citizens (65+) include: Program + General Reception + Film Screening
$5 Student tickets include: Program + General Reception + Film Screening

Tickets on sale now! Tickets available for purchase online, by phone, by mail and fax, and in person from Cal Performances. Tickets can be mailed to buyers or held at Will Call and picked up at Wheeler auditorium (not Zellerbach Hall) on January 30. Please buy your tickets before January 30. Though last-minute tickets will be available on the day of the event, purchases can only be made in cash.

Seating: VIP ticket holders will be able to sit in a VIP section of the auditorium. All other ticket holders are eligible for general seating, so please arrive early to find the best available seats!

Cal Performances
tickets.berkeley.edu
Phone: (510) 642-9988
Fax: (510) 643-2359
The Cal Performances Ticket Office is located at the northeast corner of Zellerbach Hall on the UC Berkeley campus.

Event web site: fredkorematsuday.org
Facebook event page: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=117833281622710&num_event_invites=0
For questions, email info@korematsuinstitute.org or call (415) 848-7727

PROGRAM

Rev. Jesse Jackson

 A keynote speech by the Reverend Jesse Jackson. The founder and president of the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, Rev. Jackson is one of America’s foremost civil rights, religious and political figures. Over the past forty years, he has played a pivotal role in virtually every movement for empowerment, peace, civil rights, gender equality, and economic and social justice. In 2000, President Bill Clinton awarded Reverend Jackson the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor. Rev. Jackson has been called the “Conscience of the Nation” and “the Great Unifier,” challenging America to be inclusive and to establish just and humane priorities for the benefit of all. He is known for bringing people together on common ground across lines of race, culture, class, gender and belief. In 1999, Fred Korematsu was honored at the Rainbow PUSH Coalition’s annual awards dinner.

Karen Korematsu
 Karen Korematsu, daughter of Fred Korematsu and co-founder of the Fred T. Korematsu Institute for Civil Rights and Education. Karen shares her father’s passion for social justice and continues to advance his legacy by helping the Institute with its development and outreach efforts and speaking at events around the country.

Beau Sia

 A performance by spoken word artist Beau Sia. Oklahoma-born Sia was one of the original cast members in Russell Simmon’s Def Poetry Jam, which won a Tony Award in 2003. He has also appeared in It’s Showtime at the Apollo, HBO’s Def Poetry Jam, and the film Slam. He has published a book of poetry, A Night Without Armor II: The Revenge, and released two spoken word CDs, Attack! Attack! Go!and Dope and Wack.

Rep. Keith Ellison

 A video message from Minnesota Congressman Keith Ellison. Rep. Ellison is the first Muslim ever elected to U.S. Congress. He has represented the Fifth Congressional District of Minnesota in the U.S. House of Representatives since taking office on January 4, 2007.

Keith’s philosophy is one of “generosity and inclusiveness.” His roots as a community activist and his message of inclusivity through democratic participation resonates throughout the Fifth District. His priorities in Congress are: promoting peace, prosperity for working families, environmental sustainability, and civil and human rights.

Asm. Warren Furutani

 California Assemblymember Warren Furutani, co-sponsor of the Fred Korematsu Day bill. Asm. Furutani was re-elected to the 55th District in 2010 for his second two-year term. Warren has over 40 years of experience and involvement in education and public service. He is also the chair of the Asian Pacific Islander American Legislative Caucus, which has ten members. In 2008, he authored Assembly Bill 37, which granted honorary college degrees to Japanese Americans whose education was disrupted due to their wrongful incarceration during World War II.

Asm. Marty Block

 California Assemblymember Marty Block, co-sponsor of the Fred Korematsu Day bill. Asm. Block was elected in November 2008 to represent the 78th District, one of the most diverse districts in the county of San Diego. He is a former dean and retired professor at San Diego State University (SDSU). His passion on education issues, both at the K-12 levels and collegiate levels shows a strong regard for those who have little or no voice in the political process.

Sydnie Kohara

 Emcee Sydnie Kohara is an award-winning journalist and co-anchor of the CBS 5 Eyewitness News Early Edition. She has served as an international correspondent and anchor for CNBC in London and Singapore. Kohara is no stranger to public service and community outreach. She was a political appointee under California Governor George Deukmejian, serving as Chief of Communications for the California Department of Alcohol and Drug Programs. Kohara also helped found Camp CEO, a Girl Scout-sponsored retreat for at-risk teenage girls.

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Senator Leland Yee Throws Down: Declares Himself a Candidate to Media Scrum – Time for SF’s First Asian-Am. Mayor?

Wednesday, November 10th, 2010

Here’s the scene this morning just after Senator Leland Yee signed some papers to indicate that he’d be willing serve as Mayor of San Francisco:

Click to expand

It was pandemonium inside Room 48 today:

All right, who’s next?

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Leland Yee Announces Exploratory Committee for Mayor

SAN FRANCISCO – Today, State Senator Leland Yee (D-San Francisco) pulled papers to officially explore a run for mayor of San Francisco.

“I am honored by the support and encouragement I have received from my family and the residents of San Francisco to consider a run for mayor,” said Yee.  “Today, we begin the process of asking San Franciscans what they want of their city government and their next mayor.”

“As someone who grew up in San Francisco, attended public schools, raised a family, and has been serving this city for over 20 years, I am excited about starting this new discussion,” said Yee.  “I look forward to talking with voters from throughout the city about my record of getting things done and fighting for kids, working families, and greater government transparency.”

“We need experienced leadership that can bring us together as one community,” said Yee.  “I want to see the Mayor work with, and not against the Board of Supervisors. The next mayor should partner with the school board, parents and teachers to improve our public schools.  It is time we get back to basics, fix Muni, create jobs and continue to lead on important issues like the environment and human rights.”

For the past eight years, Yee has served San Francisco in the State Assembly and State Senate, where he has one of the best legislative track records.  Among the 100 laws he has authored, Yee has brought greater transparency and accountability to government and has focused on issues surrounding children and schools, working families, the environment, mental health, domestic violence, civil rights, and consumers.  He has also opposed all budget cuts to education and critical health and social services.

Prior to the State Legislature, Yee served on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors where he created the largest rainy-day fund in the city’s history and passed the best government transparency and public access ordinance in the country.  As a member of the San Francisco Board of Education, Yee reduced class sizes, increased access to school services, streamlined bureaucracy, and brought higher curriculum standards.

Yee immigrated to San Francisco at the age of 3.  His father, a veteran, served in the US Army and the Merchant Marine. Yee is a graduate of the University of California – Berkeley, San Francisco State University, and City College of San Francisco, and holds a Ph.D. in Child Psychology.  He and his wife, Maxine, have raised four children who all attended San Francisco public schools.

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