Yesterday's "Democracy Now" tv/radio show featured a repeat of a year-old interview with Yuri Kochiyama. (It's the 43rd anniversary of his death, which she witnessed.)You can read, see, or hear the interview by going to
http://www.democracynow.org/2008/2/20/civil_rights_activist_yuri_kochiyama_remembers
She talks about her father being taken away by the FBI in WWII, the scene of Malcolm X's assassination, and remembrances of Malcolm's interactions and travels.
(This reminds me that I ought to have some soundbites of her late husband, Bill, on a cassette, somewhere. I think I ran into them, one time, in L.A. at a JA community event. I'd brought along my tape recorder and microphone. At the time, I was doing my Asian American radio show, and always on the lookout for material.)
Today, I ran across an Seattle PI newspaper article by Brad Wong about the Seattle Chinatown gate that’ll be unveiled this Sat., Feb. 9.
Reminds me that I attended a tour last weekend around DC Chinatown and vicinity that was conducted by the Goethe Institut and included multilingual (English-German-Chinese) poetry recitations.
The tour ended with a reception at the Chinatown community cultural center. There, I told the tour leader, that I had some snapshots of the construction of the DC Chinatown gate (circa 1986 or 7).
Eventually, I’d like to scan and post them. (That'll have to wait until my home desktop computer is fixed.) Perhaps I might even want to create a simple website for them.
Meanwhile, the Chinese New Year parade in DC Chinatown is this Sunday, 10 Feb 08 from 2pm to5.
The following are talks given at Millennium stage at the Kennedy Center this coming week:
Karakuri Doll Lecture and Demonstration
Professor Yoshikazu Suematsu speaks about and demonstrates Karakuri dolls. Developed in the 17th century, these precursors to modern robots are controlled by mechanisms inspired by the Swiss clock.
Feb. 9 at 11 a.m.
"Robots in Japanese Science Fiction"
Tim Hornyak and Fred Schodt, the author of the forthcoming Astro Boy Essays, speak about the role of robots in Japanese science fiction.
Feb. 9 at 3 p.m.
"Being a Robot Creator and the Role of Robots as Entertainers"
This lecture features the world's most well-known character-type robot creator, ROBO-Garage founder Tomotaka Takahashi and Dr. Takanori Shibata, the creator of Paro, the seal-like therapeutic robot.
Feb. 10 at 11 a.m.
"The Value of Creating Androids: The Role of Android Science and Prospects for Androids in Society"
Dr. Hiroshi Ishiguro, a leading researcher in human robots (androids) with an expertise for making them move and interact, speaks about the future role of androids in society.
Feb. 10 at 3 p.m.