Resolution No. 82-12A1, In Support of the San Francisco Bay Area Day of Remembrance Consortiums 2008 Day of Remembrance Program; Generations of Activism.pdf (60 KB)
Resolution of Commendation
Subject: Resolution No.
In Support of the San Francisco Bay Area Day of Remembrance
Consortium’s 2008 Day of Remembrance Program: GENERATIONS OF
ACTIVISM — Commemorating the 20" Anniversary of the Civil Liberties
Act of 1988 and the Struggle for Redress and Reparations
– Commissioners Eric Mar and Mark Sanchez
WHEREAS: On February 19, 1942, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066
which set into motion the exclusion of 120,000 Japanese Americans from the West coast of the United
States and the internment of United States citizens and legal permanent residents of Japanese ancestry in
internment camps during World War II; and
WHEREAS: Hundreds of San Francisco students, parents, social justice and community activists worked
with local public officials, including school board members, State and Congressional Representatives
around the nation to build the Redress and Reparations Movement and successfully urged Congress to pass
the Civil Liberties Act of 1988, in which it apologized on behalf of the Nation for “fundamental violations
of the basic civil liberties and constitutional rights of these individuals of Japanese ancestry” and authorized
partial monetary compensation for the suffering endured; and
WHEREAS: For over 25 years the Bay Area Day of Remembrance Consortium or its predecessor member
organizations have presented an annual "Day of Remembrance" program, pursuing the following broad
goals:
– To honor and remember the courage and perseverance of those who experienced this grave injustice:
~ To educate the public around the injustices and lessons of the mass incarceration of Japanese
Americans; and raise awareness of related injustices suffered by other communities (i.e. Japanese Latin
Americans, German and Italian Americans) during World War I;
– To acknowledge the significance of the redress movement and those who made it possible; and
reaffirm our commitment to the unfinished issues of redress.
– To do all we can to prevent and/or speak out against similar injustices experienced by other
communities, such as Arab and Muslim American communities currently; and to build cultural bridges
and mutual understanding; and
WHEREAS: The Consortium today consists of the following organizations: Asian Improv aRts, Japanese
American Religious Federation, Japanese Cultural & Community Center of Northern CA, Japanese
Peruvian Oral History Project, Campaign for Justice – Redress Now for Japanese Latin Americans, Center
for Asian American Media (formerly NAATA), National Coalition for Redress/Reparations [NCRR], Tule
Lake Committee, and SF JACL (partial list); and
WHEREAS: The annual Day of Remembrance programs provide our schools and communities a valuable
teaching moment of opportunity for students, parents, teachers and all people to reflect on the importance
of social justice and civil liberties, especially in times of war and crisis; and
WHEREAS: The DAY OF REMEMBRANCE 2008 – Carrying the Light for Justice, GENERATIONS OF
ACTIVISM – commemorates the 20th Anniversary of the Civil Liberties Act of 1988; the program will
take place Sunday, February 17, 2008 2 p.m., at the Japanese Cultural & Community Center of Northen
California, 1840 Sutter Street (nr. Webster) SF Japantown.
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED: That the Board of Education of the San Francisco Unified School
District commends the Bay Area Day of Remembrance Consortium for its work to highlight the history of
the internment camps and our generations of activism within the Redress and Reparations Movement, and
to advocate for multiracial justice and multicultural understanding; and
FURTHER BE IT RESOLVED: That the San Francisco Board of Education looks forward to working in
partnership with the Consortium.
2/12/08