The Art of Activism

57 mins

In THE ART OF ACTIVISM, ordinary citizens’ extraordinary deeds come to life. We follow the movement to create a stamp to honor the Nisei soldiers of World War II, led by three Nisei women, as well as a movement to honor the former inmates by a Santa Clara County judge. Using art to interpret the wartime eviction from Bainbridge Island, artists develop an art exhibit on the very walkway that led to their wartime exile, while an animated film brings to life a graphic novel on fellow Americans who stepped up to help Japanese Americans. Included films:

Stamp Our Story (2022, 19 min.)
Honor, Recognition and Respect (2022, 10 min.)
Point of Departure (2022, 10 min.)
Those Who Helped Us (2022, 18 min.)

ADVANCE ONLINE TICKET SALES TO IN-PERSON SCREENINGS END FRIDAY, FEB. 24, 2023 AT 5 P.M. PT.
Individual ticket sales will be available at $12 per program ($25 for Untold Story in SF) on the day of the event.

In this program

Stamp Our Story

Directed by Kaia Rose, Robert Horsting

An extraordinary story of how a grassroots movement led by three elderly Nisei (second generation) women overcomes all odds to successfully campaign for a Go For Broke stamp.

Honor, Recognition and Respect

Directed by George Wada

Armed with a 48-star American flag, a Santa Clara judge embarks on a journey to honor the remaining Japanese American survivors of wrongful imprisonment during WWII.

Point of Departure

Directed by Katie Jennings

Newly installed artwork at the Bainbridge Island Japanese American Exclusion Memorial recalls the day of March 30, 1942; 227 Bainbridge Islanders of Japanese descent, most American citizens, departed from this site for wartime exile.

Those Who Helped Us

Directed by Randy Eng

“Those Who Helped Us” is a graphic novel about allies who helped Japanese Americans during the WWII incarceration. Basketball-loving Sumiko Tanaka, then 11, narrates this graphic novel about the World War II incarceration of Japanese Americans.