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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 15, 2017)
S moke S ignals NOVEMBER 15, 2017 13 Camas harvest Photos by Danielle Frost Local student got their hands dirty and learned more about culturally significant plants on Thursday, Nov. 2. Preschool through third-graders harvested camas bulbs at the Natural Resources Department off Hebo Road as part of an educational opportunity. Above, Grace Macon and Riker Bailey dig with pencils while Violet Zimbrick and Bryson Redd inspect their bulbs. The harvested bulbs were outplanted at the Herbert Farm natural area south of Corvallis by Natural Resources and Institute of Applied Ecology staff members and volunteers as part of the Plants for People Phase II. The purpose is to restore prairie, oak and riparian habitat within five sites in the Willamette Valley and establish partnerships between Tribes, the agricultural community and public land managers. Photo courtesy of Chris Cherry Gage Hernandez looks at the traveling exhibit “Architecture of Internment: The Buildup to Wartime Incarceration,” which documents the life of Japanese-Americans during World War II, that was part of a viewing of the Minoru Yasui Film Project in the Tribal gym on Thursday, Oct. 26. Community Fund sponsors Yasui film presentation Area residents learn about Japanese-American incarceration during World War II By Angela Sears Community Fund program coordinator ‘Are you feeling right about keeping that belonging?’ HISTORY continued from page 10 as a teaching tool, while keeping it age appropriate and accurate,” Holsclaw said. Tribal Environmental Resources Specialist Meagan Flier discussed her experiences coordinating with Tribes up and down the West Coast to engage in marine planning. “Basically, we are designating who gets to use what and when,” she said. “It is a voluntary program, not regulatory. It is people, agen- cies and Tribes coming together, and sharing data and resources.” During the historic preserva- tion session, Edwards discussed resource protection and how the Historic Preservation Office devel- ops tools for efficiently recording, monitoring and coordinating efforts so that future generations have access. He also sat on a breakout ses- sion panel on repatriation, which involves the process of returning an asset or item of symbolic value to its owner or place of origin or citizenship. Repatriation can be a long, time-consuming process. Tribal Cultural Collections Coordinator Veronica Montano cited an example of how the Tribe was recently given objects from the Fort Vancouver National Historic Site. “It took two years, and that was because no other Tribe had a claim on these items,” she said. “Mu- seums are hindered from actions through processes (they must go through).” Edwards said that convincing a private collector or museum to return an item sometimes involves what he calls a “gut check” ques- tion. “I ask them, ‘Are you feeling right about keeping that belonging?’ If the answer is ‘no,’ then we have a commonality, we have options. It still may be an arduous process, but sometimes it is about finding the first-person connection.” Tribal and community members and members of the Japanese An- cestral Society of Portland gathered in the Grand Ronde gym on Thurs- day, Oct. 26, to view the Minoru Yasui Film Project. Spirit Mountain Community Fund awarded a $35,000 grant to the Ancestral Society in May to complete the film. The film, “Never Give Up! Minoru Yasui and the Fight for Justice,” is a documentary about the life of a Japanese-American who fought for the freedom of more than 110,000 Japanese-Americans who were imprisoned in internment camps during World War II. Yasui, who was born and raised in Hood River, was the first Japa- nese-American attorney in Oregon. He is known for challenging the dis- crimination that Japanese-Amer- icans faced, such as opposing the curfew imposed on them. On the first night of the curfew, he walked the streets of Portland and eventu- ally marched into a police station, demanding to be arrested. He took his plight to the Supreme Court, but was unsuccessful. After serving his sentence, he was sent back to an internment camp, where he stayed until the end of World War II. Once released, he moved to Den- ver and continued to practice law, advocating for justice of not only Japanese-Americans, but for all Americans. He dedicated the last years of his life to seeking an of- ficial apology and reparations for Japanese-Americans imprisoned during World War II. He passed away in November 1986 while his case was being heard in the U.S. Court of Appeals. On Aug. 10, 1988, President Ronald Reagan signed the Civil Liber- ties Act, granting reparations of $20,000 per person and an official apology to all Japanese-Americans held during World War II. On March 28, 2016, Gov. Kate Brown declared March 28 Mino- ru Yasui Day and more than 200 people joined a march for justice in Portland, retracing Yasui’s footsteps during his walk from his law office to police headquarters in 1942. After the film was shown, Hol- ly Yasui, director and Minoru’s daughter, answered questions and audience members shared their memories of living in Oregon as children during World War II. Before the film was shown, Anne Galisky of Graham Street Produc- tions set up a traveling exhibit “Architecture of Internment: The Buildup to Wartime Incarcer- ation,” which documents life of Japanese-Americans during World War II. “This is not primarily about the Japanese-American experience before, during and after incarcer- ation,” Galisky said. “Rather, it is the story of how individuals, organizations, businesses and elected officials advocated for the incarceration of Oregonians of Jap- anese ancestry or stood by while it happened. Those who did stand up before, during and after incarcera- tion, in small and large acts, were especially brave.” Galisky said her favorite moment of the event was when two Grand Ronde afterschool students read the captions of the entire exhibit out loud to each other and discussed each panel. “I listened in to some of their discussion and was absolutely de- lighted that they got it,” she said. “It was our hope to make the exhibit accessible to a wide range of ages and education levels. Their inter- est, comprehension and outrage has been one of the most gratifying moments of the project for me this year.” For more information about how to view the documentary, visit www.minoruyasuifilm.org and for dates and locations of the traveling exhibit, visit www.grahamstreet- productions.com/exhibit.