Japan Society Features Prominent U.S. Peace Scholars to Discuss Non-Violence Strategies for Social Change

For Immediate Release

Reflections on Citizen Movements:

Peace and Politics in the U.S. and Japan

Tuesday, May 27, 6:30 pm

New York, NY – Japan Society's Lectures Program presents Reflections on Citizen Movements: Peace and Politics in the U.S. and Japan as part of The Satya Graha Forum, a collaboration of leading New York cultural, arts, environmental, educational and spiritual institutions. The discussion features the renowned U.S. pacifist Tom Hayden, a leading American social activist and former California State Senator and James Orr, Chair of the Department of East Asian Studies at Bucknell University and author (The Victim as Hero: Ideologies of Peace and National Identity in Postwar Japan, 2001). Moderated by Amy Goodman, co-founder, executive producer and host of Democracy Now!, the program takes place Tuesday, May 27 at 6:30 pm and is followed by a reception.

Non-violent citizen movements for peace, environmental change, and social justice such as national movements against nuclear weapons or for environmental awareness in Japan or against the Vietnam War in the U.S. have caused social and political change in the two nations. These changes have ranged from changes in the number and regulation of troops in Okinawa in response to citizen action there to wholesale legislation to promote racial equality in the United States.

In Reflections on Citizen Movements: Peace and Politics in the U.S. and Japan, Hayden and Orr explain the divergent courses citizens movements have taken in Japan and the U.S. in recent years. The discussion focuses on how citizens of both countries have utilized strategies of non-violence to effect social change, and how these methods have influenced citizen response to the current wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

About Tom Hayden
Tom Hayden after forty years of activism, politics and writing is still is a leading voice for ending the war in Iraq, erasing sweatshops, saving the environment, and reforming politics through greater citizen participation. Currently he is writing and advocating for US Congressional hearings on exiting Iraq. This year he drafted and lobbied successfully for Los Angeles and San Francisco ordinances to end all taxpayer subsidies for sweatshops. He recently has taught at Pitzer College, Occidental College, and Harvard's Institute of Politics. Hayden has written eyewitness accounts for The Nation, where he serves on the editorial board, about the global justice movements in Brazil, Chile, Bolivia, Chiapas, and India. He is the author or editor of thirteen books, including: Reunion (Random House, 1988), reissued as Rebel (2002); The Lost Gospel of the Earth (Sierra Club, 1996, reissue 2006); and The Port Huron Statement (Thunders Mouth, 2005).

About James Orr
James Orr specializes in remembrance of World War II in the formation of Japanese national identity, with particular interest in the overlap between politics and culture. He is the author of The Victim as Hero: Ideologies of Peace and National Identity in Postwar Japan (University of Hawaii Press, 2001), a study of how "victim consciousness" came to dominate the politics of war remembrance and support the popular image of Japan as a demilitarized, peace state. In the short term, Professor Orr has been researching gender and civic subjectivity in the postwar peace movement, postcolonial sensibilities in the different treatment given ethnic Korean and Taiwanese imperial servicemen by the postwar state and by Yasukuni Shrine, and the use of popular music in politicizing and mobilizing students and workers in war and in peace. As associate professor and Chair of the Department of East Asian Studies at Bucknell University, Professor Orr teaches a broad range of courses on Japanese history, East Asian civilization, international relations, and war in East Asia.

About The Satya Graha Forum #1
The Satya Graha Forum is a citywide, open dialogue on social transformation through nonviolence. It creates a global dialogue on Satya Graha, Mahatma Gandhi’s movement of social change through nonviolence. On the occasion of the Philip Glass opera Satyagraha (premiered at the Metropolitan Opera on April 11, 2008), The Satya Graha Forum has promoted events, lectures, and performances throughout the month of April and May that discuss various approaches to Satya Graha and its relevance today. Topics include environmental consciousness, nonviolent paradigms, social transformation and sacred activism. Participating institutions have included the Asia Society, Japan Society, The Nation Institute, Columbia University Teachers’ College, The Garrison Institute and Rubin Museum of Art. More information can be found at www.Satya-Graha.org.

About Japan Society
Founded in 1907 by prominent New York City business people and philanthropists, Japan Society has evolved over 100 years into an internationally recognized nonprofit organization presenting a full range of programs within arts and culture, business, education, family, and public policy. Through over 100 events annually, the Society creates rich encounters and exchanges that offer opportunities to experience Japanese culture; foster sustained and open dialogue on issues important to the U.S., Japan, and East Asia; and improve access to information on Japan.

Tickets and Information
Reflections on Citizen Movements: Peace and Politics in the U.S and Japan takes place Thursday, May 27 at 6:30pm. Tickets are $20/$18 Japan Society Members/$15 seniors & students. Japan Society is located at 333 East 47th Street between First and Second avenues (accessible by the 4/5/6 at 42nd Street-Grand Central Station or the E and V at Lexington Avenue and 53rd St.) For reservations, call the box office at 212-715-1258. For further information call 212-832-1155 or visit www.japansociety.org.

As part of The Satya Graha Forum, Reflections on Citizen Movements: Peace and Politics in the U.S and Japan is organized by Helen Tworkov, founder and president of Tricycle: The Buddhist Review, and inspired by Philip Glass’s opera Satyagraha, which opened at Lincoln Center's Metropolitan Opera House on April 11th. For information on The Satya Graha Forum please visit www.satya-graha.org.

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For further information, images and interview requests, please refer to:

Aya Akeura
Japan Society
T: (212) 715-1292
F: (212) 715-1262
E: aakeura@japansociety.org

Kuniko Shiobara
Japan Society
T: 212-715-1249
F: (212) 715-1262
E: kshiobara@japansociety.org