Sean Hamamoto

As the 2013 Nikkei Community Intern, I will be working for the Japanese American Bar Association (JABA) and the Japanese American National Museum (JANM) this summer. My work at JANM consists primarily of contributing articles, events, and albums to the Discover Nikkei website; my work with JABA involves the JABA Legacy project which serves to preserve and promote the fabled legends of prominent Nikkei jurists.

Updated July 2013

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The Present: A Gift from the Past to the Future*

By Sean Hamamoto
7 Aug 2013

When all is said and done, and as dust begins to settle over the past eight weeks of a profound educational journey, I realize how beneficial this Nikkei Community Internship has been. To be brief, this has been an amazing learning experience. But to be brief would be to do injustice to all that was absorbed by my mind and heart through this program. And so it begins. Prior to this internship, like many people, I absolutely dreaded Mondays. However, for the past eight weeks, I actually looked forward to the weekend passing so I would be able to go on my Monday office visits to law firms and …

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The JABA Legacy Project: Legal Legends in the Nikkei Community

Janice Fukai: Justice for All

By Sean Hamamoto
5 Aug 2013

As her title suggests, Los Angeles County Alternate Public Defender Janice Y. Fukai defends members of the public in court who have been accused of criminal acts. As the Alternate Public Defender, Ms. Fukai heads a county office comprised of 300 employees, including over 200 attorneys who represent criminal defendants that the county’s Public Defender is unable to defend due to conflicts of interest or other reasons. But what is truly respectable and remarkable about her position is that she and her staff help those who need legal assistance but who are unable to afford an attor…

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The JABA Legacy Project: Legal Legends in the Nikkei Community

Rose Ochi: On Selfless Service

By Sean Hamamoto
29 Jul 2013

“You need to, as an organization or as an individual, find ways to support individuals in the community.” This was one of the final remarks made by Rose Ochi, a distinguished attorney and prominent civil rights activist, in this year’s first JABA Legacy Project interview. This profound message was marked with a sense of finality after all that was said before. But to fully understand the meaning of this advice, it is important to learn more about her personal history and career accomplishments. Ms. Ochi’s early life includes memories of the sorrowful internment exp…

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Nikkei Chronicles #2—Nikkei+: Stories of Mixed Language, Traditions, Generations & Race

4-Sei What? That’s Mixed Up

By Sean Hamamoto
19 Jul 2013

At home, I speak Japanese. At school, I speak English. And at times, I speak both. The two languages are thrown in a verbal potpourri few can understand. I am a bilingual, fourth generation Japanese-American. But English is my favorite subject. As you can probably tell, my English and Japanese are often まざってる.1 いつも、 same sentenceで I use both languages.2 Upon typing the previous two sentences, I realized how confusing this concoction can be. It’s easy to hear, but definitely hard to read. Therefore, やるのを I’ll stop.3 By now, most are probably wondering how I am even fluent in spe…

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JABA Legal Clinic: Cures and Connections

By Sean Hamamoto
15 Jul 2013

As the Nikkei Community Intern for the Japanese American Bar Association (JABA) and the Japanese American National Museum (JANM), I was given the opportunity to volunteer at JABA’s free legal clinic on Saturday, June 29, 2013. Throughout the year, JABA periodically hosts legal clinics throughout the Los Angeles area; the particular event I went to was fortuitously held at the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles (LAFLA) in the Crenshaw District. I had long marveled at this society of Japanese American attorneys and judges and was excited at the opportunity to volunteer at this event. …

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Discover Nikkei

Japanese migrants and their descendants

Sean Hamamoto

The JABA Legacy Project: Legal Legends in the Nikkei Community

The JABA Legacy Project: Legal Legends in the Nikkei Community

Nikkei Chronicles #2—Nikkei+: Stories of Mixed Language, Traditions, Generations & Race

Series this author contributes to

Who is Nikkei? A Conversation with the President of The Association of Nikkei & Japanese Abroad, Mr. Katsuyuki Tanaka

Two Worlds: The Life and Photography of Wakaji Matsumoto

Wakaji Matsumoto: An Artist in Two Worlds

Telma Shiraishi Gives a Unique Flavor to Japanese Cuisine with Brazilian Ingredients

Grammy-Nominated Musician Masa Takumi and His Move to the U.S. in 2018

Masaki Gaja, el sansei del equilibrio

A Vision Takes Root: The Legacy of Judy Nishimoto Ota and the San Pedro Firm Building

Aloha, France — Part 2

Aloha, France — Part 1

Finding Forgiveness: Director Stafford Arima on Bringing the Award-Winning Memoir to the Stage

書評：和泉真澄『日系カナダ人の移動と運動―知られざる日本人の越境生活史』

1992年渡米、目標は「アカデミー賞」— 俳優の井上英治さん

Kizuna 2020: Nikkei Kindness and Solidarity During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Tiempos pandémicos: teletrabajo y koden digital

Kizuna 2020: Nikkei Kindness and Solidarity During the COVID-19 Pandemic

COVID-19 e os heróis anônimos

香川県海外移民の父：今雪真一の情熱と功績

第３部：金子正則知事の南米訪問とその主な見解

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A Vision Takes Root: The Legacy of Judy Nishimoto Ota and the San Pedro Firm Building

Aloha, France — Part 2

Aloha, France — Part 1

Finding Forgiveness: Director Stafford Arima on Bringing the Award-Winning Memoir to the Stage

Ancestry and Toxicity: Breaking Free From Old Patterns and Toxic Relationships

A Letter to My Community Urging Protection of Minidoka

Journal Entry #At Least 4500 Years Old: "Infinite Bands..."

When We Enable Racism

Surrender

Thomas Takashi Nakahara

Pacific Bridges' Innovative Approach to Financial Services

Journal Entry #1 Supplier: "A Company Making Everything..."

Seiichi Higashide — A Man With Three Homelands

Futon, Shoyu, and More: Japanese Words Incorporated into the Vocabulary of Brazil

Remembering Them—Tsuchiya Family Honors Elders Through Ireichō

Yoshie Fujiwara and Japanese Americans I: A Night at the Opera

Setsuko Moriya — Part 3

Redress: A film about the Office of Redress Administration

Journal Entry #2/14/23: "The Most Dangerous Day..."

Manzanar, Diverted: An Appreciation

Narumi Ogusuku—Ubiquitous Nikkei Artist

Mercedes Luna: Thriving Within Her Rich Heritage - Part 1

Postwar Japanese Emigration to the Dominican Republic — Part 2: The Japanese American Response

In Remembrance of the Tohoku Earthquake & Tsunami: An Interview with The Hidden Japan’s Derek Yamashita—Part 1

Dutch Leonard - The Ballplayer who challenged Fresno's racism

Toronto Japanese Canadian Duo Releases Groundbreaking EP

Yasuko Aratani—She Never Stopped Dreaming

Tokita Tales—Only in America

Journal Entry #My Top 6: "Holy Crappy Cartoon, Batman!"

Being Blasian

Bill Mauldin – An Artist with a Cause

70th Anniversary of Fukuoka Kenjinkai Mexico

Staff Sergeant Higuchi

Remembering Roger Daniels

Postwar Japanese Emigration to the Dominican Republic — Part 1: A Tragic Tale

Barbed Wire, Guard Tower, Tar Paper Barracks, Roll Call

Lessons Realized

American Dream

Journal Entry #Only 2 Choices: "Do or Not Do..."

Our Man on the Hill: Sidney Yates — Part 2

OBITUARY - Juan Pollo Restaurant Founder Albert Okura, 71

Ask a Historian: How Did Alaska Natives Wind Up Inside Japanese American Concentration Camps?

Celebrating a Century: Nisei War Veteran and Esteemed Journalist Frank Moritsugu Turns 100

Setsuko Moriya — Part 1

The Morgenthau Diaries and FDR's Troubling Views of Minorities

In Remembrance of the Tohoku Earthquake & Tsunami: An Interview with The Hidden Japan’s Derek Yamashita—Part 2

Tea with my Ancestors

Journal Entry #15th C. Prose: "Weapons are Bad for Me..."

Maia Harima – Distinctive Fashion Designer

Yoshie Fujiwara and Japanese Americans II: A Day at the (Olympic) Races