<Begin Segment 3>

EK: Heading directly into some dense questions. I will go slow with how I ask them, but Ruthann, I know, upon doing research on you, I found really interesting your philosophy that you -- philosophies and values that you held surrounding the redress movement and government giving redress for the injustice done to Japanese Americans during World War II, and also just the values and beliefs you had towards the younger generation activists and activism surrounding such injustice. So my question to you, I guess, is what advice would you give to future leaders about what actions are most effective in the work for social justice and community activism from your experiences?

RK: I think the first thing is just to show up.

PK: I showed up.

MR: [Laughs] We planned this.

PK: Wait a minute. Can you hear that noise?

JSG: Yes. Where are you?

PK: I'm sorry, I'm at the gym.

JSG: Basketball. I told you he'd be playing basketball. That's what I thought.

PK: I'm sorry. Just a minute, I'll be right there. I'm listening.

JSG: Okay.

RK: I can't believe he forgot and then he calls for something else he was calling me earlier.

JSG: Okay. That was perfect, Ruthann, when you said the most important thing is to show up and then...

PK: See, when my big sister speaks, I listen.

RK: And I think... and to figure out what's important to you. And you can contribute, I think, that people sometimes think that they have to do something really significant, but a lot of the, especially civil rights and social justice activities that have been the most successful have been movements that build and are continuous and they don't necessarily have a formula, you contribute in different ways. And that is... particularly when I look at -- it dates me. I'm a product of the sixties, and you think about the student demonstrations, you showed up, and the crowds built numbers and pretty soon you had thousands of students blocking the freeway, protesting against the war or else convening in the ID and marching down to the stadium to protest the Kingdome. And it's that I think, I don't think there's any one way other than that consistency is important and knowing that if you care about something, whatever you do to act upon it is valid. I mean, there's no one right way.

EK: Yeah, thank you, Ruthann. I think that one thing, I mean, beginning with just to show up is really important. I think that, like you said, there's really no right or wrong way. So as someone who also tries to be part of a social justice community and fight for social justice, I think that there's always this pressure of what's right or what's wrong, what one needs to do to, I guess, reach social justice. But at the end of the day, it's really about, like you said, if you care about it, that's what should drive you. So thank you for all that. And Paul, are you by chance able to talk and add to this conversation at this moment?

PK: Yeah, I'm just about to step out the door right now.

EK: Okay, you're fine.

PK: Okay. Hold on one second. Okay. I did that so you'd have something to tell Aaron. [Laughs]

EK: [Laughs] I will definitely be telling Aaron.

RK: Now, I would say that grandma, that mom would disapprove, but you're the bocchan and you get away with things.

PK: [Laughs] That's true.

EK: Alright. Paul, is this an okay time now?

PK: Yeah.

EK: Okay, perfect.

<End Segment 3> - Copyright © 2022 Seattle Chapter JACL. All Rights Reserved.