Webinars
Listen to our speakers as they speak on panels across the country.
Panel Discussion on Documentary Not Your Model Minority
November 3, 2021
Not Your Model Minority explores the origins of the stereotype and the intersections with past and present anti-Asian violence. This documentary film also examines the harm created by this divisive narrative as well as opportunities to build power and make progress toward addressing systemic racism in America.
View trailer here: https://vimeo.com/639323188
Panelists:
Mike Ishii, Co-Founder & Organizer, Tsuru for Solidarity
Jon Osaki, Filmmaker of “Not Your Model Minority”
Ellen Wu, Associate Professor, Indiana University Department of History; Author of “The Color of Success: Asian Americans and the Origins of the Model Minority”; and Founding Member of NAPAWF Indiana Chapter
Moderator: Heaven Chee, Associate, Yetter Coleman and Stop Repeating History
Juneteenth Reparations Panel with the National Urban League, Advancement Project, and Race Forward
June 15, 2021
This short film screening of "Reparations" is followed by a subsequent panel with our nation's foremost Black and Asian American leaders on how Asian Americans can stand in solidarity and allyship with the Black community to move our country forward with reparations.
Panelists:
Marc Morial, President, National Urban League
Judith Browne Dianis, Executive Director, The Advancement Project
Glenn Harris, President, Race Forward
Don Tamaki, California Reparations Task Force Member*
Jon Osaki, Filmmaker of "Reparations"
Moderator: Mary Smith, VP and Managing Director of Programs, APIAHF
*Don Tamaki is speaking on the behalf of himself and not the Task Force
Dartmouth APA Alumni Association: Anti-Asian Hate and Systemic Racism: Are we at an inflection point for change?
May 25, 2021
Introduction by Hoyt Zia
Moderated by: Michelle Ye Hee Lee, The Washington Post journalist and president of the Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA)
Panelists:
Helen Zia, Activist, author, journalist, key figure in the Asian American civil rights movement.
Amb. Gary Locke, the first Chinese American governor in U.S. history, former U.S. Secretary of Commerce, and former Ambassador to China during the Obama administration.
Neal Katyal, Former Acting Solicitor General of the United States, who has argued more Supreme Court cases in U.S. history than has any attorney of color.
American Bar Association: History & the Law: Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in Context
May 7, 2021
The rise in violence against the AAPI community, largely ignited by racist and xenophobic rhetoric amid COVID-19 and punctuated by the Atlanta massacre, has placed the issue of anti-Asian violence at the forefront. But the issue of anti-Asian hate is not new. Since the first Asian immigrants arrived on American shores in the late eighteenth century, Asians in America have contributed to the fabric of America, while also surviving repeated oppositions to citizenship and legalized violence. This program explores the history of Asian progress in America, including the creation of “Asian” as a racial construct, the history of scapegoating Asian communities, and the legal approaches used to justify exclusion and violence.
Moderated by Paul M. Igasaki, Former Chair, ABA Section of Civil Rights and Social Justice
Panelists:
Lorraine Bannai, Director, Fred T. Korematsu Center for Law and Equality, Seattle University School of Law; Professor of Lawyering Skills, Seattle University School of Law
Deepa Iyer, Strategic Advisor, Building Movement Project; Director, Solidarity Is
Tim Ma, Co-Founder, Chefs Stopping AAPI Hate; Chef, Lucky Danger
John C. Yang, President and Executive Director, Asian Americans Advancing Justice
American Immigration Lawyers Association
April 7, 2021
“Immigration Attorneys on the Frontlines in Defending Democracy” will feature inspiring and motivating legal scholars, advocates, and practitioners as they reflect on our current critical moment in history, and the themes of nativism, xenophobia, racism, isolationism, and hostility towards others that have occurred throughout history.
Moderated by Olivia Lee, Chair, Diversity and Inclusion Committee, AILA
Panelists:
Allen Orr, AILA President-Elect and founder, Orr Immigration Law Firm PC
Wendy Feliz, Director, Center for Inclusion and Belonging, American Immigration Council
Bill Ong Hing, Professor and Director of the Immigration and Deportation Defense Clinic and Dean’s Circle Scholar, University of San Francisco School of Law
Learn more about the roundtable HERE.
American Constitution Society: The Soul of America
February 26, 2021
The program will be centered around the HBO documentary (The Soul of America) of Jon Meacham's book The Soul of America- The Battle for Our Better Angels and the events of January 6 at the nation's Capitol. The book and documentary are Meacham's analysis of the country's recent legal and political crises in light of many previous instances of division (including women's suffrage, Ku Klux Klan, Jim Crow, McCarthyism, Japanese American incarceration, among others).
The panel discussion with respected legal scholars and practitioners will include the role that the law (and lawyers) played in past crises and division and how they can pave the way for "better angels" to prevail to build a more antiracist society and an America that lives up to its ideals.
Remarks From: Hon. Colin Allred, U.S. Representative, 32nd Congressional District of Texas
Moderated by: Heaven Chee, Associate, Yetter Coleman LLP
Panelists:
Angela Onwuachi-Willig, Dean and Professor of Law, Boston University School of Law
Nadine Strossen, John Marshall Harlan II Professor of Law, Emerita, New York Law School; former President of the American Civil Liberties Union
Don Tamaki, Partner, Minami Tamaki LLP; former attorney to Fred Korematsu
Stephen Vladeck, Charles Alan Wright Chair In Federal Courts, University of Texas School of Law; Member, ACS Board of Academic Advisors
Austin Inn of Court Keynote: Overview of the History of Korematsu v. United States
January 19, 2021
Don Tamaki gives a keynote to the Austin Inn of Court on the history of Korematsu v. United States, his family’s history with Japanese American incarceration, and his work on the coram nobis team.
2020 NAPABA Convention: Redress, Reparations and Reconciliation in the Black Community: The Role AAPIs Play in Allyship
November 7, 2020
The killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and countless other Black victims have laid bare the culture of systemic racism, which is supported by a persistent and sizeable percent of our nation harboring bigoted and intolerant views. Consequently, past wrongs and inequalities have entered the mainstream consciousness and there is heightened public awareness and activism to create an opportunity for social change not seen since the days of the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s. As the nation addresses the historic injustices against communities of color—particularly against Black communities— AAPIs can play an important role in allyship with the Black community in changing hearts and minds to address systemic racism.This panel will address why and how members of the AAPI legal community can and need to contribute their voices, time, and resources to the national conversation on race and, in particular, the need to address a culture that perpetuates injustice against Black lives.
The common history shared by communities of color in this country, including how their dehumanization, disenfranchisement, and social and economic isolation have and, in many ways, continue to be embedded in the culture, the law, and legal institutions;
What our community has learned about intergenerational trauma caused by past injustices;
The ways in which Asian Pacific Americans have benefited from the civil rights gains achieved by Black civil rights leaders; and
How Asian Pacific Americans can best ally with the Black community in their quest for reparations.
Moderator: Heaven Chee, Associate, Yetter Coleman LLP
Panelists:
Debo P. Adegbile, Partner, Co-Chair Anti-Discrimination Practice, WilmerHale and Commissioner, U.S. Commission on Civil Rights
Lori Bannai, Director, Fred T. Korematsu Center for Law and Equality and Professor of Lawyering Skills, Seattle University Law School
Tracy Jan, Reporter on Race and the Economy, The Washington Post
Eric Yamamoto, Fred T. Korematsu Professor of Law and Social Justice, University of Hawaii Richardson School of Law
Japanese American Bar Association and OCAABA
August 20, 2020
Free screening of award-winning documentary feature film, ALTERNATIVE Facts: The Lies of Executive Order 9066, and panel discussion about the film’s relevance to combatting racist rhetoric, prejudice and injustice today.
Moderator Catherine Endo Chuck, President, JABA
Panelists:
Don Tamaki, Managing Partner, Minami Tamaki
Manjusha P. Kulkarni, Executive Director, Asian Pacific Policy and Planning Council (A3PCON)
Jody D. Armour, Professor, USC Gould School of Law
Rachel Brown, Founder and Executive Director, Over Zero
Japanese American Memorial Pilgrimages Tadaima Virtual Pilgrimage
August 8, 2020
Panel during the Tadaima Virtual Pilgrimage titled Stop Repeating History: WWII Incarceration and the Parallels to today.
Moderator: Wendy Tokuda
Panelists:
Lorraine Bannai, Professor, Seattle University School of Law
Jon Osaki, Director, Alternative Facts: The Lies of Executive Order 9066
Karen Korematsu, Executive Director, Fred T. Korematsu Institute
OCA National Summit
July 29, 2020
A series of 3 panels at OCA’s National Summit
Welcome Remarks by U.S. Congresswoman Judy Chu
Panel 1: Perpetual Foreigners: Strangers in Our Own Land
After over 170 years since first immigrating to the U.S., we still get asked "what country are you from?" What spurs people to use phrases such as "China virus" or "Kung Flu"? Historians and advocates who have played key roles in defining and defending APA history will speak on what we need to do to stop repeating history.
Panelists:
Donald Tamaki, Managing Partner of Minami Tamaki
Prof. Erika Lee, Professor, University of Minnesota
Roland Hwang, Vice President of Public Affairs, OCA
Panel 2: Clear and Present Dangers to Democracy
Appeals to prejudice that have pervaded history continue to shape policies that impact APAs today. Why must we remain vigilant against systemic racism, manifested through current incidents of hate and violence, attacks on immigrants, and other forms of racial targeting?
Panelists:
Dale Minami, Senior Counsel of Minami Tamaki
Prof. Bill Ong Hing, Professor, University of San Francisco School of Law
Eva Paterson, President and Co-Founder, Equal Justice Society
Panel 3: Pathways to Racial Justice and Inclusion
Activists and leaders join us to speak on ways to achieve racial justice and inclusion at this dawn of a new civil rights era, one in which we cannot simply be bystanders in history.
Panelists:
Helen Zia, Author
Konrad Ng, Executive Director, Shangri La Museum of Islamic Art, Culture & Design
Paula Madison, Chairman & CEO, Madison Media Management, LLC
Georgia Asian Pacific American Bar Association (GABAPA)
July 27, 2020
In the panel Asian Americans: From Allies to Accomplices, in Solidarity with Black Lives, co-hosted by GAPABA, NAPABA, and Stop Repeating History, the Panelists discussed representing Fred Korematsu in the fight to challenge Japanese incarceration during WWII, the effects of the Muslim Ban on immigrant communities, mobilizing Atlanta and protests following the deaths of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and Rayshard Brooks, the role of academia in the fight for Black and Native American lives, and the rise of anti-Asian violence amidst COVID-19.
Speakers shared their takeaways of how we all can get into #GoodTrouble, honoring Congressman Lewis' Legacy. The Panelists also discussed the award-winning documentary Alternative Facts: The Lies of Executive Order 9066, which exposes the false information and political influences leading to the incarceration of Japanese Americans during WWII.
Speakers:
Christopher Bruce, Political Director, ACLU Georgia
Azadeh Shahshahani, Legal & Advocacy Director, Project South
Prof. Natsu Saito, GSU College of Law
Donald Tamaki, Managing Partner of Minami Tamaki
American Constitution Society Ohio
July 14, 2020
Panelists shared reflections on the documentary ALTERNATIVE FACTS: The Lies of Executive Order 9066 and connected the lessons of Korematsu to the present. Judge Chen was appointed by President Obama to the federal bench in May 2011 after an illustrious career, including work as a staff attorney at the ACLU, where he specialized in language discrimination cases. Among many other impactful accomplishments, Don Tamaki served on the legal team that reopened the 1944 Korematsu case, overturning Fred Korematsu’s criminal conviction for defying the removal of Japanese Americans. Finally, Dahlia Lithwick speaks frequently on criminal justice reform, reproductive freedom, and religion in the courts, and her columns and podcast untangle the most complex legal issues of our time.
Welcome Remarks: Anna Sanyal, Member, ACS Columbus Lawyer Chapter Board of Directors and Immediate Past President, Asian Pacific American Bar Association of Central Ohio
Moderator: Dahlia Lithwick, Senior Editor and Legal Correspondent, Slate: Host, Amicus Podcast; Recipient, 2018 ACS Progressive Champion Award
Speakers:
The Honorable Edward M. Chen, District Judge, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California
Donald Tamaki, Managing Partner, Minami Tamaki
American Bar Association
July 1, 2020
"Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free." | A Discussion on Racial Justice in America
This webinar was an open and honest discussion on Racial Justice in America in light of the events since the murder of George Floyd. The panel will provide perspectives from the African American, Muslim, Asian American, Hispanic, and Native American communities.
Welcome Remarks: Judy Perry Martinez, President, American Bar Association; Of Counsel, Simon, Peragine, Smith & Redfearn
Moderator: Richard Pena, President and CEO, Law Offices of Richard Pena, P.C.
Speakers:
Nimra Azmi, Staff Attorney, Muslim Advocates
Patricia Ferguson, Clinical Professor of Law, Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law
Donald Tamaki, Managing Partner, Minami Tamaki LLP
Thomas A. Saenz, President and General Counsel, MALDEF
Lisa Tatum, President and Managing Partner - LM Tatum, PLLC
California APABA
June 16, 2020
Perspectives on allyship including the brief history of allyship and division between Asian and Black communities in the United States.
Introduction: Dale Minami, Senior Counsel, Minami Tamaki LLP
Moderator: Kristy Young Coleman, Board Member, Cal-APABA
Speakers:
Prof. Bill Ong Hing, Professor, University of San Francisco School of Law
Prof. Daniel Widener, Professor, University of California, San Diego
HAAPIFest 2020 presented by OCA Greater Houston
June 7, 2020
TEA Talks - Impaired Vision: Lifting the Blindfold of Injustice
Moderator: Hoyt Zia
Speakers:
Jon Osaki, Director, Alternative Facts: The Lies of Executive Order 9066
Donald Tamaki, Managing Partner, Minami Tamaki LLP
Heaven Chee, Associate, Yetter Coleman LLP
American Bar Association Section of Civil Rights and Social Justice
April 13, 2020
The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in a violent upsurge of discriminatory, racist, and xenophobic attacks, both physical and verbal, against Asian Americans. The situation has been exacerbated by the President, his administration, and other high profile individuals, who have insisted on calling COVID-19 the “Chinese virus” “Wuhan virus,” or “Kung Flu” to racialize the pandemic. Racial scapegoating is not a new phenomenon. Chinese Americans were blamed for the bubonic plague, Japanese Americans were incarcerated by labeling them an “enemy race”, and more recently Mexicans have been characterized as “rapists” and Muslims as “terrorists.” This use of race as a tool to divide and divert attention from shortcomings, together with the disregard of facts and science, has threatened our democracy, and now threatens our safety. In this panel, panelists discuss our nation’s history of racial scapegoating; the consequences when alternative facts are substituted for evidence and scientifically supported data; the role of the media; and how we, as a country, can stand together to simultaneously defeat COVID-19 and preserve democracy.
Welcome Remarks: Judy Perry Martinez, President, American Bar Association; Of Counsel, Simon, Peragine, Smith & Redfearn
Moderator: Karen K. Narasaki, Former Commissioner, U.S. Commission on Civil Rights
Speakers:
Matt Stevens, Reporter, The New York Times
Donald Tamaki, Managing Partner, Minami Tamaki LLP
Helen Zia, Author