Please join us as we honor the legacy of Japanese American women at UC Berkeley and recognize the accomplishments of our undergraduate and graduate scholarship recipients -- Sheena Horiki , Riley Odom, Keila Cone-Uemura, and Madeline Zimring -- as well as our Outstanding Alumna of the year, Chizu Omori. We will also hear from our Keynote Speaker, Sherry Hirota. 

Outstanding Alumna of the Year

Chizu Omori is a self-described political activist. Attending Berkeley in the 1950’s, she became active in the civil rights movement and has never quit. Old enough to remember her family’s incarceration at Poston, Arizona, she was involved in the redress movement and was a named plaintiff in the William Hohri class action suit that went to the Supreme Court. She co-produced with her sister Emiko the documentary, Rabbit in The Moon. Currently, Chizu is a columnist for the Nichi Bei Weekly and active in Tsuru for Solidarity. Every Friday, she and her sister hold a vigil where she holds a sign that says, “Yellow Power for Black Lives Matter.” She declares, “I’m a political activist, and I always will be.” Her life-long activism was featured in O, The Oprah Magazine in November 2020. In February 2020, Omori was presented the Dr. Clifford I. Uyeda Peace and Humanitarian Award at the Bay Area Day of Remembrance in San Francisco.

Keynote Speaker: Sherry Hirota

“Leadership, Advocacy, and AAPI Health Access in a time of Covid-19 and Racism”

For more than 40 years, Sherry Hirota has championed underserved communities and has made an impact fighting for health care as a right, not a privilege. She is a leader of movements to lift the voice of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, expand health access, educate and advocate for linguistic and cultural competency. Sherry pioneered the understanding of immigrants’ beneficial role in insurance pools and coverage and advocated for the first-ever quality data collection and analysis within the community. Sherry forges coalitions and partnerships with multi-ethnic, multi-racial, disabled, and LGBTQ advocates to build unity around each other’s common agendas and strengthen impact for the greater good.

JAWAUCB Board of Directors

Lisa Hirai Tsuchitani (Chair), Nancy Arata-Fong, Nina Ichikawa, Ruth Ichinaga, Adena Ishii, Betty Kano, Barbara Kawamoto, Stacy Kono, Grace Morizawa, Lynn Nakada, Julie Nishihara, Joyce Takahashi, Carol Tateishi, Leslie Tsukamoto, and Kay Yatabe.