Alameda County Law Library Witkin Symposium: Fred Korematsu Speaks Up

In May 1942, one of the assembly centers for Japanese internment camps was the 1117 Oak Street, next door to what is now the law library. The Korematsu family lived in Oakland and may have reported to this address before being transported to the Tanforan detention facility.

Fred Korematsu challenged the mass incarceration of Japanese Americans when few others did. A new children?s book, Fred Korematsu Speaks Up, explores this civil rights hero?s life and its relevance today. The 19th Annual Witkin Lecture features authors Laura Atkins and Stan Yogi discussing their treatment of Fred?s lifelong fight for justice. They will read excerpts from the book, address the larger historical context, and discuss what people can do today to speak up for justice.

Come experience the power of story to inspire and persuade. Be reminded of the role of attorneys in assuring that "equal justice for all" is not an empty phrase, but a bedrock value nurtured by the efforts and the professional responsibility of attorneys.

About the authors:

Laura Atkins is an author, teacher, and independent children?s book editor. She worked at Children?s Book Press, Orchard Books, and Lee and Low Books, helping to produce winners of the Coretta Scott King Award and American Library Association Notable Book selections, among others. Passionate about diversity and equity in children?s books, Laura lives with her daughter in Berkeley, California. Find out more at www.lauraatkins.com.

Stan Yogi is the coauthor, with Elaine Elinson, of Wherever There?s a Fight: How Runaway Slaves, Suffragists, Immigrants, Strikers, and Poets Shaped Civil Liberties in California and has managed development programs for the ACLU of Northern California for 14 years. His work has appeared in the San Francisco Chronicle, MELUS, Los Angeles Daily Journal, and several anthologies. He and his husband live in Los Angeles.