Save the Dates! Upcoming Friends of Minidoka Programming
DECEMBER 8, 2019
Screening of Minidoka: An American Concentration Camp at the Hollywood Theatre, Portland, OR, 5:30-7:30pm. $10 admission.
Join us at The Hollywood Theatre in Portland for a screening of Minidoka: An American Concentration Camp, produced by North Shore Productions for the National Park Service. In addition to the 30-minute documentary, we will also show excerpts from the upcoming independent, long format version of the documentary. A Q & A with camp survivors and the filmmakers will follow the screening and we will be accepting donations to help complete post production of the film. Friends of Minidoka is excited to partner with North Shore Productions to make this project a reality. Thanks to Oregon Nikkei Legacy Center for being an event sponsor!
Minidoka tells the story of Japanese Americans, most of them American citizens, who were forcibly removed from their Pacific Northwest homes during World War II. They were held in squalid conditions in temporary detention centers, and then put on trains to a concentration camp in the desert of southern Idaho. Innocent of any crime, many of them would remain imprisoned at Minidoka for over three years. In the compelling voices of survivors of the camp, the film explores the unconstitutional suspension of the civil rights of these Americans and the long-lasting impact of the incarceration on their community. Minidoka examines what happens when a group of Americans are imprisoned solely on the basis of race and the relevance of this story today.
In addition to the long format documentary film for national public television, we are also producing a 7th-12th grade educational curriculum. The curriculum is based on four short companion films that bring a deeper awareness and understanding of this critical story to a new generation. Both the television documentary and the short educational films will be told primarily in the voices of survivors of the camps and their descendants.
The film trailer, additional information, and a platform for online donations can be found at www.minidokafilm.com. Tickets can be purchased at www.hollywoodtheatre.org.
DECEMBER 9, 2019 Screening of Minidoka: An American Concentration Camp at the High Desert Museum, Bend, OR, 6:00–7:30pm, doors at 5:00 pm. $7 admission.
Produced for Minidoka National Historic Site, this film tells the story of a group of Americans and their incarceration by the U.S. government in the High Desert of southern Idaho, purely on the basis of race. Minidoka: An American Concentration Camp explores the lasting impact of incarceration on Japanese Americans, through decades of shame and silence, before the community took a stand for redress, and examines the relevance of their story for civil rights today. Explore the exhibit about World War II imprisonment Witness to Wartime: The Painted Diary of Takuichi Fujii beforehand and hear from Friends of Minidoka Executive Director Mia Russell afterward about making the film. https://highdesertmuseum.org/events/minidoka-film
FEBRUARY 5, 2020 Minidoka Civil Liberties Symposium at The Community Library, Ketchum, ID 6:00-7:30pm. Free admission.
For the first time, we are partnering with The Community Library in Ketchum, ID to bring our civil liberties programming to the Wood River Valley! The 14th Minidoka Civil Liberties Symposium will feature Jessica Asai speaking about the legacy of Minoru Yasui’s Supreme Court case challenging the incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II. Jessica Asai is yonsei, a fourth generation Japanese American; who was raised in Hood River, Oregon where her family has farmed for four generations. Jessica is a founding board member of the Oregon Asian Pacific American Bar Association and contributed to the team effort that successfully nominated Minoru Yasui for a 2015 Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor.
FEBRUARY 6, 2020 Minidoka Civil Liberties Symposium at Boise City Hall, Boise, ID 6:00-7:30pm. Free admission.
We are also partnering with the Boise City Department of Arts and History for the first time to bring our civil liberties programming to the Fettuccine Forum, a series which invites the public to interact with politicians, artists, historians, activists, advocates and professionals in an effort to promote good citizenship and responsible growth through education.
Join us in Boise for an encore presentation by Jessica Asai on the legacy of attorney, activist, and Minidoka incarceree Minoru Yasui and his Supreme Court case challenging the wartime incarceration of Japanese Americans. This event is also in partnership with the National Park Service, Boise State University, and ACLU Idaho.
FEBRUARY 17, 2020 Day of Remembrance Proclamation Signing Ceremony, Idaho Statehouse, Governor’s Ceremonial Office, Boise, ID, 2:00pm.
Join us at the annual observance of Day of Remembrance at the Idaho Statehouse. 2020 will mark the 78th anniversary of Executive Order 9066. Every year since 2002, the Idaho Governor’s office has been most gracious as incarcerees, students, educators and lawmakers have observed and participated in the ceremony. This event is organized by the Boise Valley Japanese American Citizens League. Please RSVP to Robert Hirai at robert.hirai@gmail.com.
FEBRUARY 21, 2020 Friends of Minidoka meet and greet at Rudy’s: A Cook’s Paradise, Twin Falls, ID, 5:00-7:00pm
Join our staff and board for wine and appetizer pairings at Rudy’s gourmet cooking store in downtown Twin Falls as we promote and celebrate the grand opening of the Minidoka Visitor Center and provide information about Friends of Minidoka.
FEBRUARY 22, 2020 Visitor Center Grand Opening, Minidoka National Historic Site, Jerome, ID. Time and details to be announced.
Save the date and look out for additional details if you’d like to join us for the public grand opening of the new National Park Service Visitor Center. The former warehouse #5, which served as an automotive repair shop at the incarceration site during WWII, has been renovated into a state of the art facility to house the Visitor Center for Minidoka National Historic Site. The space includes a ranger information desk, bookstore and retail space, theater, and exhibition space, including the newly dedicated exhibit The Issei: A Legacy of Courage installed by the Friends of Minidoka.