We’re in the theater!
On Ensemble members, Yukie Sensei, and the theater crew are all here and set to go. If you’re in the Los Angeles area, please come to the Japan America Theater in Little Tokyo tomorrow night, 8pm! See above for details.
Kelvin, Maz, Yukie Sensei, Kris, Shoji, Eileen
Even if you are going to vote for the other guy, please vote. Seriously.
One of the most powerful experiences I’ve had was being able to visit Nelson Mandela’s cell on Robbin Island on the 10th Anniversary of the end of apartheid. Ten years is not a long time and the cell and prison looked as if someone had occupied it yesterday. I intellectually understood apartheid and how it ended but actually standing in that cell was a very emotional experience. It becomes a little more real and that slight taste of what it might have been like was very sobering.
The inner courtyard was filled with tiny black rock shards. Our tour guide explained that the guards would force the prisoners break down large rocks brought from a nearby quarry with a hammer in order to break their will. I picked up one of those small shards as a reminder of all those who fought and sacrificed so much for the right to vote and promised myself that I would never miss another election.
I know you’re probably sick and tired of election ads, calls, mailings and blogs telling you how to vote and I’m aware that if you have an opinion on Prop. 8 most likely it’s a strong one. There are a ton of articles out there debunking the yes on 8 scare tactics, most recently from the Los Angeles Times which endorsed a NO on 8 position so I won’t get into all of that here. I’m also aware that reading some random taiko playing artist’s opinion on the matter probably won’t change your mind but here goes anyways…
Personally it’s really hard for me to understand why people get so upset about gay marriage. I just don’t get how letting same sex couples get married affects my marriage in a negative way. If anything I feel that the institution of marriage will be marred if Prop. 8 passes. I wouldn’t join a club that had discriminatory practices, or go to a college that only let Asians attend (like UCLA), or go to a restaurant that didn’t serve Caucasians and it would suck to find myself enjoying the benefits of an institution that discriminates on the basis of sexual orientation.
Please vote No on 8.
A big thank you goes out to our newest FoundatiOn Team members: Jacob Gorelik, Donna Jumoto and Jen Baik! Our fund raising record continues to climb!