Day of Remembrance

Duncan Ryūken Williams discusses his book, American Sutra: A Story of Faith and Freedom in the Second World War. Williams reveals the little-known story of how, in the darkest hours of World War II when Japanese Americans were stripped of their homes and imprisoned in camps, a community of Buddhists launched one of the most inspiring defenses of religious freedom in our nation’s history, insisting that they could be both Buddhist and American.

Reverend Williams has taken part in Tsuru For Solidarity, a non-violent direct action protest lead by Japanese Americans formerly incarcerated in WWII internment camps and descendents to demand the closure of the inhumane immigrant families and children internment sites on the border today.