Happenings | Feb. 17 edition
Published 1:30 am Wednesday, February 16, 2022
Day of Remembrance at Mukai features author talk
Mukai Farm & Garden will commemorate the 80th anniversary of the Day of Remembrance with an online discussion with Frank Abe and Tamiko Nimura, authors of the graphic novel, “We Hereby Refuse: Japanese American Resistance to Wartime Incarceration,” at 4 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 19.
The history is deeply relevant to Vashon Island. In 1942, 111 people were given two days’ notice to show up at Ober Park, where they were herded onto trucks and sent to an assembly center in California. Many ended up in one of the camps at the heart of the graphic novel — Tule Lake, in north-central California — infamous because it was reclassified in 1943 as a high-security “segregation center” used to punish thousands of people who resisted incarceration.
Tina Shattuck, executive director of Mukai Farm & Garden, said the organization invited Abe and Nimura to speak in part because of their book’s far-reaching meaning — the way people have been “othered” for centuries.
“We want to acknowledge and recognize the anniversary of this very important day,” she said. “It’s also an opportunity to … make sure it never happens again.”
Register for the talk at tinyurl.com/bdfd4uvc and find out more about it at mukaifarmandgarden.org. The event is free, with donations accepted.
Talk on the Rock with Scientist Emily Pinckney
Emily Pinckney, executive director of 500 Women Scientists, and a commissioner of the Sustainable Tacoma Commission, will speak about environmental justice and equity in this talk presented in partnership with Vashon Nature Center and Vashon Center for the Arts.
Communities of color and low-income communities carry much of the burden of environmental injustice, yet they are often excluded from the conversation. Pinckney will speak on her advocacy for equitable environmental action and ways to navigate around systemic barriers to involve those most impacted. The event takes place at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 23 at VCA. Get tickets at vashoncenterforthearts.org.
King County Survey on Composting
King County, with the support of Zero Waste Vashon, is considering building a facility on Vashon to process local food and yard waste into high-quality compost. Give important feedback on this idea by taking a survey at /cutt.ly/VashonSurvey or by following the link and/or QR code on postcards recently mailed to islanders, by the county, detailing the survey. Please note the survey may only be taken once per household.
Pumping Program Continues
In 2021, King County Local Services ran a pilot program for low-income Vashon RV residents to have their tanks pumped out for free. The county has agreed to continue to fund this program for all of 2022, in partnership with Vashon Interfaith Council to Prevent Homelessness. If you know someone who is living in a trailer or RV or similar with a holding tank, help them get that emptied, once a month on Wednesdays, by contacting Hilary Emmer at hilonvashon@yahoo.com or 206-463-7277.
