Virtual Social Justice Book Club
**Events may have been canceled or postponed. Please contact the venue to confirm the event.
Date & Time
Thu, Feb 25 5:45 PM - 6:45 PM
Address (map)
Virtual
Throughout the year the Social Justice Book Club will read books that will have us examine different social injustices, stereotypes, and prejudices that exist in our current world. Whether it be an inspiring coming-of-age novel in the civil rights south, a true story of adversity challenging unjust laws, a beautiful picture book embracing all families, or a book of essays and prose from civil rights activists, this book club will explore all the facets of our shared humanity.
This discussion will be around George Takei’s They Called Us Enemy and is part of programming the Library is doing around Day of Remembrance. Please register to receive the Zoom link for the virtual event.
About the book:
“A beautifully heart-wrenching graphic-novel adaptation of actor and activist Takei’s childhood experience of incarceration in a World War II camp for Japanese Americans.
Takei had not yet started school when he, his parents, and his younger siblings were forced to leave their home and report to the Santa Anita Racetrack for “processing and removal” due to President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Executive Order 9066. The creators smoothly and cleverly embed the historical context within which Takei’s family’s story takes place, allowing readers to simultaneously experience the daily humiliations that they suffered in the camps while providing readers with a broader understanding of the federal legislation, lawsuits, and actions which led to and maintained this injustice. The heroes who fought against this and provided support to and within the Japanese American community, such as Fred Korematsu, the 442nd Regiment, Herbert Nicholson, and the ACLU’s Wayne Collins, are also highlighted, but the focus always remains on the many sacrifices that Takei’s parents made to ensure the safety and survival of their family while shielding their children from knowing the depths of the hatred they faced and danger they were in. The creators also highlight the dangerous parallels between the hate speech, stereotyping, and legislation used against Japanese Americans and the trajectory of current events. Delicate grayscale illustrations effectively convey the intense emotions and the stark living conditions.
A powerful reminder of a history that is all too timely today.”
– Kirkus Reviews