In 1942 San Francisco, photojournalist Dorothea Lange captured an era-defining portrait: A Japanese American woman cranes her neck, concern etched across her brow, as she waits in line to register her family for forced removal. She was one of the 125,000 people of Japanese ancestry that the U.S. forcibly displaced and incarcerated after declaring war on Japan in WWII. The woman at the center of this evocative image was Shizuko Ina, and The Poet and the Silk Girl: A Memoir of Love, Imprisonment, and Protest is the story of the unimaginable future that came next for her and her family ..read more

“We have known that the Northwest Detention Center is egregious in its violation of human rights and its horrific treatment of human beings. It is now deadly.”   – Stan Shikuma, Co-chair of Child and Family Detention Campaign, Tsuru for Solidarity This March, Tsuru for Solidarity organized our largest and longest direct action as part of a shutdown fight to close the Northwest Detention Center in Tacoma, Washington. We have deepened our 5 year partnership with La Resistencia to co-lead this fight in response to the tragic death of Charles Leo Daniel inside the Northwest Detention Cen ..read more

We want to honor Nisei Jean and Jim Kawano, Tule Lake Survivors, who reached a milestone last year by folding 25,000 origami cranes. They along with hundreds of origami crane makers contributed to Tsuru for Solidarity’s mission to stand with today’s migrants, especially with young  Angie,Yorlei, Jonathan, Angel, Jakelin, Carlos, Juan, and Felipe who died crossing the border and all the detained children we haven’t met, with those who fear deportation, and the thousands abandoned in detention facilities. James died on February 9, 2023. Jean continues today to fold cranes of hope. Design: S ..read more

Tsuru for Solidarity’s campaign leaders gather at the Bainbridge Island Exclusion Memorial as part of our fall planning retreat.Upper Image: Immigrants rights activists carry a paper flower wreath at our Mother’s Day protest in Greensboro, NC. Lower Image: Three Tsuru members meet with Congressional staffers in DC to discuss immigration issues. A delegation from Tsuru for Solidarity visit Sacramento to visit with CA State Senators to discuss the HOME Act. Tsuru for Solidarity joined Nikkei Progressives/NCRR and several JACL Chapters to co-host a reparations happy hour after Don Tamaki’s presen ..read more

Sharing Solidarity and Kinships Between Japanese Americans and Palestinians On Thursday, 12/8, Tsuru for Solidarity hosted a Teach-In on Gaza. Hundreds registered, hundreds attended, and hundreds stayed to learn and teach. Thank you. Thanks to our staff and volunteers. Special appreciation to our speakers, Adam Mansra and Rev. Michael Yoshii. Thanks also to our cosponsors, @vigilantlove , @denshoproject, and @18millionrising . As Japanese Americans, we must use our voices and stand against genocide! We will continue to demand a permanent ceasefire in Gaza! If fol ..read more

Tsuru 4 Palestine Tsuru for Solidarity, an intergenerational organization including Japanese American WWII concentration camp survivors and their descendants, demands that the Biden Administration protect the Palestinian people by calling for a permanent cease-fire and an end to ongoing military aid to Israel. Palestinians are calling on the international community to speak out against Israel’s ongoing occupation, ethnic cleansing, and genocide. Tsuru for Solidarity firmly states our solidarity with Palestinians in calling for the right to self-determination, safe return to their homeland, a ..read more

The post BIDEN OPENS NEW CHILD DETENTION FACILITY IN CARRIZO SPRINGS, TX appeared first on Tsuru for Solidarity ..read more

Wing Luke Incident Yesterday, September 14th, Tsuru for Solidarity joyfully invited our organizational leaders and community members to the Wing Luke Museum to tour Resisters: A Legacy Of Movement From The Japanese American Incarceration. This wonderful exhibit highlights decades of resistance and political activism in our community, including Tsuru for Solidarity and our members, and it was going to be the celebratory kick-off for an organizational retreat. Just as our tours started, we were interrupted by loud noises and saw a man using a sledgehammer to smash windows at the museum and ye ..read more

Lobby Day at the California State Capitol with Tsuru for Solidarity On Wednesday, August 30, 2023, I participated with some members of Tsuru for Solidarity and others in lobbying some of the California State Senators on the HOME Act (AB1306).  The HOME Act (Harmonizing Our Measures for Equality) was authored by Assemblywoman Wendy Carrillo (East Los Angeles). It was a welcoming experience to see dedicated young people and to hear from individuals telling their stories upon their release from incarceration.  Many came to Sacramento from Southern California, Central Valley, and the ..read more

Statement on Judge Gee's order to release detained children by July 17 due to Covid-19 Tsuru for Solidarity applauds the federal court ruling by U.S. District Court Judge Dolly Gee finding that the Trump administration has failed to protect children and their families from the COVID-19 pandemic in immigration detention, and ordering the release of all children from ICE custody by July 17. As Judge Gee stated in her order, the COVID-19 epidemic is “on fire” in these detention centers, and “there is no more time for half measures.” We are gravely concerned, however, that ICE will use this orde ..read more