We want to give a special thanks to all those who helped make this program come together so that we may take a moment to really reflect and learn from the past.
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We are humbled to have this opportunity to share Hibakusha, (Hiroshima atomic bomb survivor), Jack Dairiki’s story and allow others to participate in a Q&A session with him. Jack in a member of both Friends of Hibakusha (FOH) and the Committee on A-Bomb Survivors in the U.S. In this photo Jack Dairiki drew his memory of what he witnessed at 14 years old, when the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima.
Thank you Jack, for you time and willingness to share so that other’s may glean wisdom from your experience. We also thank your wife Jun for her support in your participation.
We send a big thank you to koto artist, June Kuramoto of the Hiroshima band for allowing us to use the beautiful ”1000 Cranes” song that she composed with Derek Nakamoto. This song was re-imagined by Shirley Kazuyo Muramoto for our Peace Day event, but originally produced as a popular hit song covered by the band Hiroshima.
We thank Akemi & Kiyoshi Ina and Tsuru for Solidarity for allowing us to feature your beautiful and large Tsuru displays during our production of this event. Tsuru for Solidarity is actively engaged in advocacy work against mass detention centers in the US, and stands in solidarity with immigrants and people of color against repeating cycles of racial injustice. To learn more please visit their website.
http://www.tsuruforsolidarity.org
Thank you to Jun Hamamoto for demonstrating how to fold an origami Tsuru, sharing about your origami folding class at San Quentin, and coordinating with students to share more of their art in our Peace Day event. To learn more about her students efforts to fold for justice, please visit: https://www.facebook.com/folding4justice
This photo of Jun features the work of her former student and inmate of San Quentin, Omid Morik. Omid Mokri is a classically trained artist who fled from Iran with his family during the revolution in 1979. He attended the Rhode Island School of Design and the California College of Art and Crafts and has worked privately with master art restorers. To learn more about him please visit his website. https://omidmokri.com/
Thank you to Chanthon Bun who has generously allowed us to use his painting depicting the tragic atomic bombings of Hiroshima & Nagasaki. Bun was a part of San Quentin’s origami folding class led by Jun Hamamoto. He has participated in multiple folding and art projects to stand in solidarity with efforts that promote peace and address immigration rights and injustices.
Bun was born in Cambodia, and was admitted to the U.S. as a refugee when he was a child. He lost his immigration status when he committed a crime as a teenager more than 20 years ago. He now potentially faces deportation to a country that has become foreign to him. To learn more about Bun please visit these site: