Tag Archives: San Francisco

Government

San Francisco to Vote on “Comfort Women” Memorial

7 Comments

On Tuesday, July 21st, the Board of Supervisors (city council) of the City and County of San Francisco will vote on a resolution establishing a memorial for the victims and survivors of Japanese military’s WWII-era “comfort women” system. (Click for the text of the resolution.)

Japanese right-wing activists are waging a mass email campaign in opposition to the resolution. They are also seeking their supporters in the area to show up and voice their opposition at the meeting. Unfortunately for them, they forgot to include Mayor Lee’s contact information when they circulated a list of email addresses to email bomb.

Japan-U.S. Feminist Network for Decolonization (FeND) applauds and supports San Francisco’s leadership in acknowledging and remembering the victims and survivors of “comfort women” system. We sent a letter to the Supervisors and the Mayor in support of the resolution, and are working with our friends in the Bay Area to spread the word about the meeting on Tuesday.

If you are planning to attend the Board meeting, please read Debunking the Japanese “Comfort Women” Denier Talking Points so you know how the right-wing protesters are going to lie… and play the denier bingo! (Seriously, we’d like to hear what happens at the meeting, so if you attend it, do let us know!)

Events

Feminist Network Endorses the Protest Against Japanese “Comfort Women” Denialist Events in California

Leave a comment

Japan-U.S. Feminist Network for Decolonization (FeND) endorses the protest against seminars in California organized by Japanese far-right nationalist groups this weekend.

The protest is organized or endorsed by a number of other peace and human rights groups, including Eclipse Rising, Veterans For Peace, No Nukes Action Committee, United Public Workers For Action, and Bay Area Code Pink.

FeND is a network of U.S.-based individuals who have roots in Japan, and those who support our goals. We are activists, teachers, researchers, and other community members who came together in order to counteract the rise of antagonistic nationalism and historical revisionism in some corners of Japan and within (mostly recent migrant) Japanese communities in the U.S.

As individuals with roots in Japan, we want to make it clear that these antagonistic nationalists and historical revisionists do not speak for us.

The main speaker for the seminars being held in Redwood City and Torrance this weekend is Yumiko Yamamoto, the president of “comfort women” denialist group Nadeshiko Action and the former vice president and secretary general of notoriously racist Zaitokukai, which has been investigated and prosecuted multiple times during her leadership for its violent anti-Korean “demonstrations.”

Yamamoto will be joined by other Japanese far-right nationalists, including (for the Torrance event) the leader of the organization that is suing to remove a memorial in Glendale, California dedicated to the victims of the enforced military prostitution known as “comfort women.”

The seminars will be held at Redwood City Community Center on December 13th, and at DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Torrance on December 14th. The rally and press conference against the far-right nationalists will be held in front of Redwood City Community Center, 1400 Roosevelt Ave in Redwood City, California on the 13th at 5pm.

For more information, please see the event page on facebook or contact us.