AAPI leaders mourn passing of Congressman John Lewis

SCREEN CAPTURE / YOUTUBE

Rep. John Lewis, center, wore a lei in a commemorative crossing of the Edmund Pettis Bridge in Selma, Alabama.

By Louis Chan
ASAM NEWS

Asian Americans reacted with both sadness and admiration to the death of Congressman John Lewis, a civil rights icon who made fighting for immigrants one of his priorities.

Lewis served in Congress from 1987 until his death yesterday from cancer at the age of 80. He helped to organize the 1963 March on Washington with five other civil rights leaders including Martin Luther King, James Farmer, A Philip Randolph, Roy Wilkins and Whitney Young. With Lewis’ passing, all of the Big six have now died.

He is also one of the 13 original Freedom Riders, a group of seven Whites and six Blacks, who rode from Washington, DC to New Orleans in 1961 to protest segregation.

In 1965, Lewis lead 600 marchers across the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama. It would be a day that would become known as Bloody Sunday. Troopers moved in with tear gas as the group stopped and prayed. Lewis’ head would end up bloodied and fractured.

“I thought I saw death,” he said just this past August at the convention of the Asian American Journalists Association while recalling Bloody Sunday. “I thought I was going to die.”

A movement had begun several months ago to rename the Edmund Pettus Bridge in honor of Lewis.

Vanita Gupta, an Indian American and president of the  Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, said naming the bridge is one way to honor Lewis. She says, however, the bigger fight is to restore the Voting Rights Act.

It was a direct message to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY)

“Do not utter a word about Cong. Lewis so long as you hold hostage HR4, the bill which passed the House in December that restores the Voting Rights Act,” Gupta tweeted to McConnell.

In a 2015 guest post on AsAmNews, Rep Mark Takano (D-CA), recalled on the 50th anniversary of Bloody Sunday a little known chapter of the civil rights movement.

“I was delighted to see that Senator Mazie Hirono and Congressman Mark Takai from Hawaii brought a reminder of our commitment to the civil rights movement – lei’s,” wrote Takano. “These lei’s served as an important reminder of our community’s solidarity with the civil rights movement, much like the lei’s that Martin Luther King Jr. and John Lewis wore during the third march to Montgomery in late March 1965. A little known fact is that the lei’s that were provided that day were actually a gift from Reverend Abraham Akaka, a close friend of Martin Luther King Jr.’s, and the brother of future United States Senator Daniel Akaka.”

During his Q&A at the AAJA convention, Lewis repeated a phrase he said was uttered to him by both Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King.

He said both “encouraged me to get into good trouble, necessary trouble. I’ve been getting into trouble ever since.”

“Thank you for showing the world what good trouble looks like,” tweeted Sen. Kamala Harris last night in response to Lewis' death.

“We learned from civil rights giant Congressman John Lewis that we have “a moral obligation, a mission and a mandate, to speak up, speak out and get in good trouble. In honor of his legacy, we will continue on this path of good trouble,” said Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-MI, one of two Muslim American women ever elected in Congress.

In 2013, the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund awarded Lewis its Justice in Action Award.

Lewis has never forgotten the Asian American community and other immigrant communities.

In 2013, he took part in a pro-immigration reform rally which ended with the arrest of 200 protesters.

Asian Americans are often forgotten in the struggle for civil rights, but Lewis was not among them.

“John Lewis was a giant. A civil rights legend. A leader in the halls of Congress. And a moral voice for the whole nation.””Having the opportunity to serve with him was one of the great honors of my life,” said Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN), one of two Muslim American women serving in Congress.

MLK's monument's Chinese designer: 'King's vision is still living, in our minds; ..., we still need him'"

DC CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

The likeness of Martin Luther King emerges out of the Stone of Hope

Like the Vietnam War Memorial designed by Maya Lin, the sculpture at the centerpiece of the memorial to civil rights leader Martin Luther King was sculpted by an Asian artist.

Today (Jan. 21) we remember the assassinated American hero who inspired a movement that changed the course of the United States tand benefited all Americans but chiefly ensured the rights of people of color and immigrants. His inspiration broke the boundaries of intolerance and even national borders, as he became a symbol, recognized worldwide of the quest for civil rights of the world's citizens.

The winning MLK monument design is by Master Lei Yixin, a citizen of China. His sculture, chosen from an international competition, was inspired by the line from King's "I Have a Dream" speech, "Out of the mountain of despair, a stone of hope."

Visitors walk through two massive white granite halves of the "Mountain of Despair" to reach the "Stone of Hope," from which the sculpture of King emerges. 

"Dr. King's vision is still living, in our minds; we still miss him, we still need him," said Yixin through a translator, calling the sculpture the most important of his life, technically and emotionally. "I am trying to present Dr. King as ready to step out ... this is King's spirit, to judge people from their character, not race, color or background." 

Lei's selection in an international competition was not without controversy. The Chinese sculptor's monumental works in China caught the eye of Ed Jackson, the executive architect of the Martin Luther King Foundation, who named Lei the head sculptor for the "Stone of Hope" monument in 2007.

PINTEREST

Lei Yixin sculpts a large size model that expresses thoughtful hope.

African American sculptor Ed Dwight was quoted by the Washington Post at the time as arguing that because Lei is not black, "he doesn't know how black people walk, how they stand, how their shoulders slope." In May 2008, the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts called the artist's design "too confrontational," and recommended that the monument be rethought.

Lei has clearly sought to sensitively portray his subject. Lei said that "you can see the hope" in King's face, according to the Tribune Chronicle. "But his serious demeanor also indicated that he's thinking."

The 30-foot sculpture, which was done in China and shipped to the U.S., depicts the civil rights leader emerging from a block of white granite. Standing stiffly to attention with arms crossed and a serious expression on his face, King is depicted as stern and authoritative.

Lei intends the visitor to walk through the mountain of despair to the stone of hope. The memorial’s stone of hope appears to be quarried (hewed) from a larger stone, a slow a laborious process, much like the process to end racial segregation and discrimination in the U.S. The stone has been pushed forward, symbolizing the forward progress in the achievement of civil rights in America.

The unfinished likeness of King is intentional ; just as his life was tragically cut short at just 39 years of age, and just as the movement for civil rights he helped lead is unfinished today. King is looking south toward the horizon, paper, possibly a speech or sermon in hand, in a defiant pose, symbolizing his defiance of injustice.

The ROMA Design Group, the San Francisco architecture firm that designed the project before Lei was picked as sculptor. The monument's official address is 1964 Independence Avenue SW, in honor of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the landmark legislation in which King played an important role.

The dedication had been planned for Aug. 28, 2011, the 48th anniversary of King's "I Have a Dream" speech. But it was delayed by Hurricane Irene, which swept through Washington with high winds and rain. It was finally unveiled in October 16, 2011 by President Barack Obama, the country's first black President.

The MLK Memorial opens to the National Mall Tidal Basin.

The following quotations are engraved on the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial:

Statue

"Out of the mountain of despair, a stone of hope."
From the "I Have A Dream" speech in Washington, D.C. on August 28, 1963. The quotation serves as the theme of the overall design of the memorial, which realizes the metaphorical mountain and stone.

South Wall

"We shall overcome because the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice."
Washington National Cathedral, March 31, 1968.

"Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that."
Strength to Love, 1963.

"I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality. This is why right, temporarily defeated, is stronger than evil triumphant."
Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech, Oslo, Norway, 1964.

"Make a career of humanity. Commit yourself to the noble struggle for equal rights. You will make a better person of yourself, a greater nation of your country, and a finer world to live in."
March for Integrated Schools, April 18, 1959.

DIOKNO

Martin Luther King's words are an inspiration for all Americans.

"I oppose the war in Vietnam because I love America. I speak out against it not in anger but with anxiety and sorrow in my heart, and above all with a passionate desire to see our beloved country stand as a moral example of the world."
Anti-War Conference, Los Angeles, California, February 26, 1967.

"If we are to have peace on earth, our loyalties must become ecumenical rather than sectional. Our loyalties must transcend our race, our tribe, our class, and our nation; and this means we must develop a world perspective."
Christmas sermon, Atlanta, Georgia, 1967.

North Wall

"Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly."
Letter from Birmingham, Alabama jail, April 16, 1963.

"I have the audacity to believe that peoples everywhere can have three meals a day for their bodies, education and culture for their minds, and dignity, equality, and freedom for their spirits."
Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech, Oslo, Norway, 1964

"It is not enough to say 'We must not wage war.' It is necessary to love peace and sacrifice for it. We must concentrate not merely on the negative expulsion of war, but the positive affirmation of peace."
Anti-War Conference, Los Angeles, California, February 25, 1967.

"The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of convenience and comfort, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy."
Strength to Love, 1963.

"Every nation must now develop an overriding loyalty to mankind as a whole in order to preserve the best in their individual societies."
New York City, April 4, 1967.

"We are determined here in Montgomery to work and fight until justice runs 'down like water, and righteousness like a mighty stream.'"
Montgomery, Alabama, December 5, 1955. Here, King borrows a verse from the Bible, the Book of Amos, which he frequently reused in speeches.

"We must come to see that the end we seek is a society at peace with itself, a society that can live with its conscience."
Montgomery, Alabama, March 25, 1965.

"True peace is not merely the absence of tension; it is the presence of justice."
Stride Toward Freedom, 1958

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AAPI perspective, follow me on Twitter @DioknoEd

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New Mexico to erect a sculpture comemmorating historic case of Yee Shun

BERNALILLO COUNTY

A scale model of the sculpture 'View From Gold Mountain.'

Commissioners of New Mexico's Bernalillo County have approved the purchase of a public art sculpture that will recognize a landmark Chinese/American civil rights case.

The commissioners voted unanimously, 4-0, March 27 in support of a motion authorizing the county manager to approve the purchase of a monument commemorating the Yee Shun case of 1882, which resulted in Chinese/Americans being granted the right to testify in court and have their testimony accepted.

“The sculpture will inform the public about the contributions that Asian Americans have made to advance civil rights through use of the judicial system,” says Commissioner Maggie Hart Stebbins, sponsor of the measure. “This Asian American Monument will honor of the landmark civil rights ruling from Territory of New Mexico versus Yee Shun (1882) which granted Chinese Americans the right to testify in court and have their testimony accepted.”

Funded with a combination of local and state sources, the project has been in the works for a few years.

Dr. Siu Wong initiated the project and raised $275,000: $100,000 from in legislative appropriations in 2015, $155,000 in 2016 and $20,000 from the City of Albuquerque.From a national call for artists by the Asian American Monument Committee of New Mexico, the design by Leo-Gwin and Wong was chosen.

Leo-Gwin and Wong are the creators of "View from Gold Mountain." The sculpture will be installed near the state district courthouse in downtown Albuquerque.

Through the selection process, artists’ team Cheryll Leo-Gwin and Stewart Wong were selected for their design “View from Gold Mountain” The project uses symbols and metaphors that refer to not only Chinese culture and honor the Territory of New Mexico v Yee Shun case but are also universally understood by cultures around the globe.

"As a visual artist, I use narrative imagery to bring forgotten history to the forefront. The histories I am interested in have to do with issues of social justice and celebration of the human spirit,” says artist Leo-Gwin.

Who was Yee Shun?

Yee Shun was not a civil rights hero fighting for justice but it was his name attached to a precedent-setting case that recognized Asian/Americans as human beings whose testimony was equal to the testimony of white people.

John Wunder of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln wrote an article about the details of the historic case. Shun was accused of killing John Lee, owner of a Chinatown laundry in Las Vegas, New Mexico.

Among the witnesses was Jo Chinaman (Sorry, but that was his name in court documents!), who identified Shun as the killer. His testimony led to Shun's conviction despite the testimony of two other Chinese witnesses contradicting Chinaman's testimony.

As Wunder's review of the transcript and other evidence makes clear, the trial was a classic case of poor man's justice and Shun was convicted.

Shun was convicted of second-degree murder and given a life sentence. 

In his appeal, Shun's attorney tried to disqualify Chinaman's testimony because up he said Chinaman was "of the Chinese religion," he could not take an oath acceptable to a U.S. court, and thus could not testify against Shun.

The territorial Supreme Court ruled that Chinaman's testimony was admissible and Shun lost his appeal. In so ruling, the courts set a precedent allowing Asian/Americans' testimony in the judicial system.

Tragically, when informed of the verdict denying his appeal, Shun hung himself in 1884 using bed linens in his jail cell in Leavenworth (Kansas) prison.

In subsequent years, the case, Territory of New Mexico vs. Yee Shun, was used to allow Asian/Americans full participation in the justice system.
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Civil rights will suffer under Trump; we'll miss Vanita Gupta

Vanita Gupta, head of the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice, will be leaving the post.

ONE OF the hallmark's of President Obama's administration has been the rebirth of the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice.

Under the leadership of Attorneys General Eric Holder and Loretta Lynch, the division has been the tip of the spear in its aggressive defense of civil rights and pursuit of justice.
"For the past eight years, this Civil Rights Division has answered that same call to make the promise of justice real for every person in every community," said Vanita Gupta, head of the Civil Rights Division, during the division's awards ceremonies today (Dec. 7). 

The Obama administration has pursued a record number of investigations of police departments, taken a more aggressive stance on enforcement of other civil rights laws and fighting for equal rights of LGBTQ people, immigrants, people of color, the disabled, women and children.

It wasn't always that way. During the George W. Bush administration, DOJ attorneys were shifted away from the civil rights work to other divisions thereby weakening its effectiveness in fighting for the rights of, and ensuring equitable justice, for all Americans. It was a shadow of it's former prominence that it enjoyed under President Bill Clinton.

Gupta, an Indian/American attorney who was appointed to her post two years ago, will be replaced when the Trump administration takes over on Jan. 20 of next year. 

RELATED: Vanita Gupta - The criminalization of poverty

"The cause of justice is never static. It is always searching for the next barrier to dismantle, for the next right to vindicate and for the next freedom to secure," said Gupta in what sounded like her farewell speech to the lawyers in her division. 

"You are civil rights leaders in our day; you are trailblazers," said Deputy Attorney General Sally Q. Yates, who was also giving her last speech in front of the career lawyers and staff of the division. 

"You open minds and change hearts through your unshakable commitment to fairness and justice, to opportunity and equality. That commitment is contagious - and your voice as the protectors of our fundamental rights is every bit as potent now and in the years to come as it has been over the years that have passed."

President-elect Donald Trump has nominated Jeff Sessions for his new Attorney General and you can be sure he won't pursue the same policies or have the same priorities as Holder or Lynch.

If Sessions becomes AG, he will most likely provide legal justification for some of the questionable promises that he made during his campaign including the rights, or lack of rights, of undocumented immigrants; the ban of Muslim immigration under the banner of homeland security; overturning the Affordable Care Act; and rationalizing the use of torture.

If Trump and Sessions follows the pattern of past Republican administrations, the Civil Rights Division will see its people transferred elsewhere, its budget cut drastically and the bright lights it enjoyed under Obama will be dimmed to obscurity.

Sensing the gloomy future of the division in a Trump administration, Gupta continued, "This work is never easy ... Congress didn’t create the Civil Rights Division in 1957 to solve the easy problems. Congress created this division to tackle the toughest issues, to serve as an independent and forceful agency of justice and hope. You cannot be an agent of change without a deep reservoir of hope. 

"It’s the hope that men and women today can build a more just, more inclusive and more free future for the children of tomorrow. It’s the hope that thanks to all of you in the Civil Rights Division, people will reap the benefits of this work for generations to come – in safer streets, in desegregated schools, in fair markets and in stronger communities. 

"It’s the hope that despite the zigs and the zags of our nation’s history, you will continue to ensure that America marches forward, imperfectly yet inexorably. Hope fuels the struggle and the struggle fills us with hope," she concluded.

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The significance of the Great Port Chicago Explosion

A little bit of important history took place almost next door 70 years ago. Historians are starting to recognize that the desegregation of the U.S. Armed Forces began in a small unknown base in Port Chicago, just a few miles from where I live.

The deadliest home front disaster occurred in 1944 and took the lives of 322 sailors, 220 of them African American. The Port Chicago Weapons Magazine, later to be known as the Concord Naval Weapons Station, was the main munitions supply depot for the war in the Pacific Theater during WWII and during the Korean War.

The black sailors who volunteered to fight the enemy were instead assigned the unglamorous job of loading ammunition aboard ships. It was dangerous work and the sailors - without any proper training -- were encouraged to speed up their already unsafe work. When the sailors refused to work under dangerous conditions, they were threatened with court martial. Most of them returned to work but 50 remained steadfast in their refusal. Those 50 were placed in the brig and eventually court martialed, 

Years later, 49 of the 50 sailors were pardoned (but, not exonerated.) The one holdout maintained that what they did was not treasonous and refused the pardon.

The blast leveled the surrounding area in a mile radius and could be heard as far away as Vallejo, a distance of about 25 miles. (Unsubstantiated rumors say there was a nuclear device involved because that was about the time the U.S. began testing the nuclear bomb drop out in the Pacific.)

The explosion and the aftermath fought to the forefront the segregation that existed in the U.S. military through World War II. (That's why we had the Tuskegee Airmen, the famed 442nd Regiment made up of second-generation Japanese American,  and the 1st Filipino Regiment.

The Navy was the first branch of the U.S. military to desegregate which led to President Truman's order to desegregate all the Armed Forces. Many of the black soldiers, sailors and airmen who fought for our country came back home to a country that deprived them of the rights they fought for. They  came to realize the gap between the military opportunities and the way they were treated in civilian life. As part of the Greatest Generation, they helped fuel the Civil Rights Movement.

Here's a great column about the Port Chicago explosion by Tom Barnidge of the Contra Costa Times: http://www.contracostatimes.com/barnidge/ci_26179065/barnidge-civil-rights-lessons-port-chicago-disaster-still