"In Search of NO-NO BOY:" a new documentary

IN SEARCH OF NO-NO BOY
Classroom Edition

A new film exploring the life of John Okada and the world of his landmark American novel, No-No Boy

“In Search of No-No Boy: Classroom Edition” is a special 23-minute documentary and online Classroom Guide now available without charge to secondary and community college teachers in Washington State only, under a grant from the Washington Civil Liberities Public Education Program. The Classroom Guide includes middle and high school lessons aligned with the Civics: Constitutional Issues Classroom-Based Assessments for Washington state. To obtain a copy, contact us.

Update: Sunday, September 21, 2008
Congratulations to Amy Gracia of Bridgewater, Massachusetts, for winning her school's Shea Scholar award for her thesis on John Okada, drawing upon some of the work in our Classroom Guide and script. Here's how she describes her thesis:

"I am looking at the way that Okada uses a traditional Victorian literary function to introduce his modern protagonist's internal and external struggles. I explore Okada's use of topography in addition to the directional structure to define the psychology behind Ichiro's choices before and after internment. Beyond the surface story of Ichiro, Freddie, and Kenji, and their individual struggles as Japanese Americans during this difficult time of social inequality, Okada's work is a psychological study of many other Japanese Americans and the moral dilemmas they confronted."

If you're near Massachusetts, Amy is inviting you to hear the presentation.

Shea Scholar Presentation
"Streets of Despair, Blocks of Hope: The Form and Function of Directional Props in John Okada's No-No Boy"
Maxwell Library, Heritage Room
Bridgewater State College, Bridgewater, MA
September 25th, 2008
Reception at 3:30, Presentation at 4:00

Update: Monday, October 22, 2007
Thanks to the 40 teachers and librarians who came to our recent workshops in Yakima and Edmonds and picked up a copy of our DVD and Classroom Guide. If you're checking back, please write to us with stories of how you are using the film in your classes.

For those who asked about lessons that connect the story of the WW2 Nisei draft resisters with the contemporary story of Army Lt. and Iraq war dissenter Ehren Watada, here is a link to the teacher's guide for the Washington Civil Liberties project from the Bainbridge Island Japanese American Community, Civil Liberties in a Time of War. The film connects the Constitutional stand of Heart Mountain Fair Play Committee leader Frank Emi with the current legal challenge to the Iraq war by Lt. Watada, presented in a civil liberties context with a teacher's guide to Classroom-Based Assessment activities. Like our project, teachers in Washington State can obtain the film as a free DVD. Write to us and we will forward your request to the Bainbridge Island distributors.

Another free resource linking Frank Emi to Ehren Watada is the recent film Watada, Resister, produced by filmmaker Curtis Choy. Watch it online on YouTube.

If you're near Seattle, the novel No-No Boy will be the subject of a book club talk at the Columbia Branch library in South Seattle. Sponsored by SouthEast Effective Development (SEED) as part of its Arts Gumbo Book Club, the discussion will be led by producer Frank Abe. Come out Thursday evening, Nov. 8, at 6:45 p.m. to the Columbia Library, 4721 Rainier Avenue S. in Seattle.

Pursue the mystery behind the writing of the first and most influential Japanese American novel, No-No Boy, and the tragedy surrounding the premature death of the author, Seattle native John Okada. Okada captured the authentic voice of Japanese Americans struggling to find their place in the world after returning from the trauma of mass incarceration and the violation of their civil liberties. He died in obscurity, believing America had rejected his work. The film features interviews with Okada’s family, commentary from scholars, and excerpts from the novel. The film is also a work-in-progress for public television.

For more information, or to request a copy of the film on DVD (teachers at accredited schools in Washington State only please), please contact us in Seattle via e-mail.

“In Search of No-No Boy” is produced with support from the Washington Civil Liberties Public Education Program and the Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs, City of Seattle. It was developed in association with the Independent Television Service (ITVS) with funding provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Special thanks to the Ford Foundation.