J-Sei’s Family Festival 2023

J-Sei’s Family Festival 2023

by | Aug 3, 2023 | Classes & Events, Other News

J-Sei’s Family Festival

Sunday, September 24, 12-3 pm

J-Sei, 1285 66th Street, Emeryville (btwn Hollis St & San Pablo Av)

Each year we celebrate “Keiro no Hi” respect for the aged day, a time to honor our elders and celebrate with our multigenerational families.

Pre-0rdersare now closed.  The menu items will be available for walk-up sales at the festival.

Festival Schedule

11 am – Book Reading with Mystery Writer Naomi Hirahara on “Evergreen”

12 pm – Berkeley Buddhist Temple Taiko

12:30 pm – Cal Hawaii Club

1 pm – Book Signing with Naomi Hirahara, Eastwind Books booth

1 pm – Daruma no Gakko and J-Sei Intergen Choir

1:30 – Taiso Experience

1:45 – Let’s Groove

2:00 – Community Ukulele

 

Booths & Activities

Daruma no Gakko, Eastwind Books, Setsunai Snacks

Shared Cultures, Summer Scarves by Koko

Watercolor Meditations, paintings by Gerry Furuzawa, Karen Allen, and Wendy Kiniris (Gallery)

Senior Cuts by JR Studios and Chiha Hair (2nd floor) – by appointment

 

 

Festival Menu

Taco rice $16 – ground beef , lettuce, cheese, fresh salsa and avocado crema over koshihikari rice

Salmon Batayaki $18 – salmon marinated in butter hawaiian marinade, with sauteed mushrooms, onions with rice and mac salad

Katsu Dog $18 –  pork katsu with savoy cabbage, tonkatsu aioli & pickled red onions in an Acme bun w/ a side of baby smashed potatoes

Korroke Dog $15 – vegetable croquette with savoy cabbage, tonkatsu aioli & pickled red onions in an Acme bun w/ a side of baby smashed potatoes

Vegetable Curry Rice $10

Kids bento $8 – chicken teri, broccoli and rice

Pre-Order now closed!
FF 2023 Pay Online

Pre-order is now closed.

The above menu items will be available for walk-up sales. First come, first served.  We look forward to seeing you at the festival.

Parking will be available (from 10 am-4 pm) at the Fratellanza Club, located 1/2 block up, next to McDonald’s.  Look for the J-Sei Parking sign on the cyclone fence.

Featured Book Event with Naomi Hirahara

Evergreen, A Japantown Mystery

Sunday, September 24, 11 am (in-person & online)

With great anticipation, Evergreen, A Japantown Mystery continues the post-war resettlement story of Aki Ito who returns with her family from Manzanar to Chicago to Los Angeles. Meet dynamic mystery writer Naomi Hirahara as she shares her latest book that follows the award-winning Clark and Division. Come early and join us in the Atrium for the book talk.

RSVP via Eventbrite

“Hirahara humanizes the struggles of Japanese Americans rebuilding their lives from scratch. Her evocation of Little Tokyo haunts will bring a flood of memories for some Angelenos while introducing a new generation of readers to a pivotal period in L.A. history.” —Paula Woods, The Los Angeles Times

About the Book

A Japanese American nurse’s aide navigates the dangers of post-WWII and post-Manzanar life as she attempts to find justice for a broken family in this follow-up to the Mary Higgins Clark Award–winning Clark and Division.

About the Author

Naomi Hirahara is an Edgar Award-winning author of multiple traditional mystery series and noir short stories.

Nichi Bei Review: “Murder and Emotions Unravel in Post-War Little Tokyo Mystery”

Photo by Rafu Shimpo.

Evergreen, A Japantown Mystery

Evergreen, A Japantown Mystery

by | Aug 3, 2023 | Classes & Events, Other News

Evergreen, A Japantown Mystery

A Book Talk & Signing with Naomi Hirahara

Sunday, September 24, 11 am (in-person & online)

With great anticipation, Evergreen, A Japantown Mystery continues the post-war resettlement story of Aki Ito who returns with her family from Manzanar to Chicago to Los Angeles. Meet dynamic mystery writer Naomi Hirahara as she shares her latest book that follows the award-winning Clark and Division.

RSVP via Eventbrite

“Hirahara humanizes the struggles of Japanese Americans rebuilding their lives from scratch. Her evocation of Little Tokyo haunts will bring a flood of memories for some Angelenos while introducing a new generation of readers to a pivotal period in L.A. history.” —Paula Woods, The Los Angeles Times

About the Book

A Japanese American nurse’s aide navigates the dangers of post-WWII and post-Manzanar life as she attempts to find justice for a broken family in this follow-up to the Mary Higgins Clark Award–winning Clark and Division.

It’s been two years since Aki Ito and her family were released from Manzanar detention center and resettled in Chicago with other Japanese Americans. Now the Itos have finally been allowed to return home to California—but nothing is as they left it. The entire Japanese American community is starting from scratch, with thousands of people living in dismal refugee camps while they struggle to find new houses and jobs in over-crowded Los Angeles.

Aki is working as a nurse’s aide at the Japanese Hospital in Boyle Heights when an elderly Issei man is admitted with suspicious injuries. When she seeks out his son, she is shocked to recognize her husband’s best friend, Babe Watanabe. Could Babe be guilty of elder abuse?

Only a few days later, Little Tokyo is rocked by a murder at the low-income hotel where the Watanabes have been staying. When the cops start sniffing around Aki’s home, she begins to worry that the violence tearing through her community might threaten her family. What secrets have the Watanabes been hiding, and can Aki protect her husband from getting tangled up in a murder investigation?

About the Author

Naomi Hirahara is an Edgar Award-winning author of multiple traditional mystery series and noir short stories. Her Mas Arai mysteries, which have been published in Japanese, Korean and French, feature a Los Angeles gardener and Hiroshima survivor who solves crimes. Her first historical mystery, Clark and Division, which won a Mary Higgins Clark Award, follows a Japanese American family’s move to Chicago in 1944 after being released from a California wartime detention center. A former journalist with The Rafu Shimpo newspaper, Naomi has also written numerous non-fiction history books and curated exhibitions.

Nichi Bei Review: “Murder and Emotions Unravel in Post-War Little Tokyo Mystery”

Photo by Rafu Shimpo.

Lung Cancer in the AAPI Community

Lung Cancer in the AAPI Community

by | Aug 3, 2023 | Classes & Events

J-Sei’s Healthy Aging
Lung Cancer in the AAPI Community
Thursday, September 28, 2 pm (Hybrid)

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death among Asian Americans according to the American Lung Association. Why are Asian American women who are non-smokers at an increased risk for getting lung cancer? What are precautions or preventative measures we can take? What are indicators and risk factors we should take into consideration?

Hear from Dr. Jeffrey Velotta, a thoracic surgeon at Kaiser Permanente Oakland Medical Center, who is raising awareness on lung cancer and the need for pre-cancer screening in the AAPI community. In addition to his clinical duties, he is a clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Surgery at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) School of Medicine.

Join us in-person at J-Sei or online via ZOOM. RSVP to jill@j-sei.org with “Lung Cancer” in the subject line.

SHAKA, A Story of Aloha

SHAKA, A Story of Aloha

by | Aug 1, 2023 | Classes & Events

Sneak Peek Film Screening

SHAKA: A Story of Aloha

Saturday, October 7th, 1 pm

“Shaka, A Story of Aloha” started as a passing curiosity when a friend introduced filmmaker Steve Sue to Kupuna (elders) in La‘ie who had a story on the origin of the Shaka gesture. It turns out that the Kupuna have kept the depths of the story secret for 3/4 of a century as they didn’t want it inappropriately commercialized. But given advancing age and a world in need, they asked him to share their story.

Once in production, multiple alternative gesture and word origin stories were revealed. As documentarians, they plan to share all the credible findings and let audiences decide for themselves on what theories they prefer. With this welcoming spirit, the film crew ventures to spread the meaning behind the shaka.

Join us in sharing this message of empowering love. Filmmaker Steve Sue will be joining us for Q&A.  Please reserve your tickets soon as space is limited. This is a free screening, all donations will support the finishing and outreach of the film.

 

Our hearts go out to the people in Maui after the devastating fire, loss of lives, homes, businesses, and community heritage sites. Please join the Hawaii Chamber of Commerce of Northern California in their support of Maui Strong and Maui Food Bank.  Now, more than ever, we are in need of the message of Aloha that this documentary uplifts.

 

   
1) Shooting interviews at kuleana lands, La’ie, Oahu. Kekela Miller, Joel “Baldy” Apuakehau & Harold Pukahi.
2) Interview of George Tanabe at Tanabe Lotus Farm, Wailuku, Hawai’i.
3) Interview of Fred Hemmings, world-champion surfer, surf event founder, retired Hawai’i State Senator.
Wadi Foquin: A Microcosm of the Critical Moment for Palestine

Wadi Foquin: A Microcosm of the Critical Moment for Palestine

by | Jul 29, 2023 | Classes & Events

Wadi Foquin: A Microcosm of the Critical Moment for Palestine

Tuesday, August 15th
11:00 a.m. to 1p.m.

J-Sei, 1285 66th Street, Emeryville, CA

Lunch will be available by pre-order. RSVP to Jill Shiraki at jill@j-sei.org and receive menu choices

Ata & Adam Manasra are father and son from the Palestinian village of Wadi Foquin located in the Bethlehem District of the West Bank. They will speak about their life under the military occupation of Israel and their partnership with Friends of Wadi Foquin which supports community development projects,  annual pilgrimages to the Holy Land/Palestine, and international advocacy for the village.

Ata has been the liaison to the Friends of Wadi Foquin for over 10 years serving as tour guide for annual trips. For the past 3 years, Adam Manasra has led a young adult leadership team in Wadi Foquin providing online presentations about the challenges facing the people of his village.   At the age of 25, he provides perspective from a new generation of Palestinians during this tumultuous time in the region.

Event Co-Sponsors: Friends of Wadi Foquin, Berkeley JACL, Contra Costa JACL, J-Sei

Friends of Wadi Foquin was initiated by Buena Vista United Methodist Church in Alameda, Calif., with help from Janet Lahr Lewis, then UMC Liaison to Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories. Trinity United Methodist Church, Berkeley Methodist United Church, other San Francisco Bay Area churches, and community members have joined the partnership since then, and a new project has been added every year. Friends of Wadi Foquin has worked to provide financial assistance for projects supporting the economic survival of the village, made annual visits to Wadi Foquin, and—as the village has come under increasing threat from settlement expansion—advocated for its survival on Capitol Hill.

 

KING OF KABAB

We will be ordering from KING OF KABAB, a local favorite restaurant. Pre-orders are available or bring your own bag lunch.

PLATE LUNCH $15 – Choose from the following options:

Kefta Kabab Plate – Ground lamb & Beef mixed, with parsley, red onion, served with hummus, lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, rice and pita bread.

Chicken Shish Kabab Plate – Grilled skewer of marinated chicken cubes, served with hummus, lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, rice and pita bread.

Stuffed Falafel Plate – Grilled onions, sesame served with hummus, lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, rice and pita bread.

Lamb and Beef Gyro – Grilled onions, sesame served with hummus, lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, rice and pita bread.

Chicken Shawarma Plate – Chicken, lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, tahini, rice and pita bread.

 

OR SALAD $13 – Choose protein side.

Chicken Shawrma, Lamb & Beef Gyro, Kefta Kabab, OR Falafel Salad

Served on Lettuce, with tomatoes, onions, cucumbers, hummus & Italian dressing.

The pre-ordering for lunch is now closed. 

J-Sei at the Movies: Panel Discussion on AAPI Films

J-Sei at the Movies: Panel Discussion on AAPI Films

by | Jul 18, 2023 | Classes & Events

J-Sei Movie Night: What Is Asian American Cinema?

Friday, July 21, 2022 – 6:30 pm (on Zoom)

During the pandemic and the necessary shift to online Zooming, J-Sei Movie Night has been so fortunate to be joined by talented individuals in the film and TV industry who have so generously shared their time and expertise with us via Zoom. These professionals represent a range of media know-how and artistic creativity — directors, producers, cinematographers, actors, activists, and critics — working or commenting on feature-length films, shorts, documentaries, and TV series, and they have logged on from locations near and far, including Southern California, the East Coast, Hawaii, and Japan! This month’s Movie Night will be another great addition to that lineup.
 
On Friday, July 21, J-Sei Goes to the Movies to learn about Asian American Cinema past and present, as well as the challenges that lie ahead. We’ll hear from experts — scholars and programmers who are bringing Asian American cinema to a wide audience through film festivals, media, and written pieces on AAPI films and popular culture. Our panelists — Aram Siu Wai Collier, Brian Hu, and Oliver Wang — will engage in an informal discussion about a wide range of topics, such as: What exactly is Asian American Cinema? Are there trends emerging in the next generation of films? How is a film festival put together?
 
This is an exciting opportunity to learn more about the Asian American shows and movies we love to watch. Please join us for a fun and enlightening evening!
 

RSVP with “July Movie Night” in the subject line.
We will send Zoom information prior to the July 21 event.

 

Meet Our Panelists

Aram Siu Wai Collier is a filmmaker, educator, and film festival programmer. He is currently the Artistic Director at the Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival. His feature, documentary, and experimental films have played festivals across North America and internationally. Aram is a mixed-race Asian Canadian/American (Chinese and English/Dutch/German) originally from San Francisco native and is now based in Toronto, Canada.
 
Brian Hu is Associate Professor and Area Head in Television, Film, and New Media at San Diego State University. He’s also the Artistic Director of Pacific Arts Movement, producers of the San Diego Asian Film Festival. Beyond SDAFF, he has curated film programs for the Criterion Channel and the UCLA Film and Television Film Archive, and is the Asian film programmer for the Palm Springs International Film Festival. Along with Ada Tseng, he co-produces and co-hosts the Asian American film history podcast Saturday School.
 
Oliver Wang is a writer and scholar of Asian American popular culture. He’s a professor of sociology at CSU Long Beach and has written on everything from Filipino American DJ culture to Korean American food trucks to Chinese American cinema. He’s currently curator of the forthcoming JANM exhibit: Cruising J-Town: Japanese American Car Culture in Southern California. [Photograph by Joseph Philipson]

J-Sei Movie Night Bento – July 21

For movie night, you can order specially made obento from My Friend Yuji for pickup on Friday, July 21 in conjunction with Movie Night. Here are Chef Yuji’s mouth-watering offerings:

  • Pico de gallo hiyashi chuka: Cold ramen in a chicken/fish dashi with fresh summer tomatoes, herbs and shallots $18
  • Tekka don: Sliced cured tuna over sushi rice with wasabi and ginger $26
  • Fried kama set: Fried hamachi & salmon kama, salad and rice with a chili ponzu $40

Click on the button below to place your order. Pick up your meal at the selected pick-up time at J-Sei on Friday, July 21st. Please observe safety protocols when picking up your bento at J-Sei. Thank you!

MY FRIEND YUJI

To order: When you click on the button above, it will take you directly to a pop-up order form on the My Friend Yuji webpage, where you first select a pickup time. In the next window, click a bento and select the number you want to order; repeat with other bento if desired. Click the “View order” bar at the bottom to confirm your order and click “Continue to payment” to sign in and pay for your order. 

Support J-Sei At the Movies

Thanks to you, J-Sei At the Movies is in its Sixth Year! We look forward to more creative programming with educational and inspiring Japanese and Japanese American films. We are especially grateful for the up close and personal chats with filmmakers and experts as we learn so much from the exchange.

We love having a growing and enthusiastic audience. We welcome any donations to help us offset costs for Movie Night. Thanks for considering this.