Sansei: On Being Japanese American in a Time of Crisis

[In April 2017 I was asked to speak on what my Japanese American identity means to me, and how that informs my values of social justice, particularly in relation to my being “third generation ” (Sansei). This was shortly after the second attempt at a Muslim Ban was blocked by the courts but before the third attempt was upheld. It was also a year prior to the “zero tolerance” policy adopted by the Justice Department that precipitated the crisis of family separation, mass imprisonment of children, and denial of lawful asylum claims at the southern border. Sadly, my updated response is ...