A J-Town Celebration for Jeff Adachi: A Gathering of Community and Friends
Saturday, April 27, 2019
2 to 4 p.m.
Japanese Cultural and Community Center of Northern California Gymnasium
1840 Sutter Street, San Francisco’s Japantown
Featuring…
• Live performance of “The Ballad of Chol Soo Lee” by Robert Kikuchi-Yngojo
• Remembrances
• Tribute Video
• Reception
• Emceed by former Deputy Public Defender Daro Inouye
VISIT THE FACEBOOIK EVENT PAGE HERE
A community event, entitled “A J-Town Celebration for Jeff Adachi: A Gathering of Community and Friends,” will be held Saturday, April 27, 2019, 2 to 4 p.m., at the Japanese Cultural and Community Center of Northern California Gymnasium, 1840 Sutter St. in San Francisco’s Japantown.
The event, to be emceed by former San Francisco Deputy Public Defender Daro Inouye, will feature performances, remembrances, and a short video in tribute to the late elected public defender, social justice advocate and filmmaker, who passed away suddenly on Feb. 22, 2019 at the age of 59.
“This will not be a memorial service, but a gathering of friends and community,” said a statement from organizers, who also disclosed a Godzilla theme, as Adachi was a collector of memorabilia of the iconic Japanese monster.
The Sacramento, Calif. native was elected to be San Francisco’s public defender in 2002. He was also a longtime community activist, inspired by the first national pan-Asian movement to exonerate Korean immigrant Chol Soo Lee, who was wrongly accused of murder. In order to raise funds for the movement to free Chol Soo Lee, Adachi had written a song, titled “The Ballad of Chol Soo Lee.” Robert Kikuchi-Yngojo, who helped with the production of the song and sang lead vocals, will be on hand to perform it in tribute to Adachi.
Adachi would establish the Asian American Arts Foundation in the 1990s in order to recognize established Asian Americans in the arts while raising funds to support emerging artists. He would serve on the boards of other nonprofit community organizations such as the Asian American Theater Company and the San Francisco chapter of the Japanese American Citizens League, as well as the Advisory Council of the Nichi Bei Foundation.
He would go on to become an accomplished filmmaker, creating films such as “The Slanted Screen” (2006), “You Don’t Know Jack: The Jack Soo Story” (2009), “America Needs a Racial Facial” (2016) and “Defender” (2017).
“You know, we all have to be public defenders now. We gotta make sure that we defend our constitution, we gotta make sure we defend our brothers and sisters who are in harm’s way, and we have to make sure that we defend our own humanity, because that’s what’s at stake in this country.”
— San Francisco Public Defender
Jeff Adachi, at the “United For Compassion” Japantown vigil against post-election hate, Nov. 22, 2016
Presented by the Friends of Jeff Adachi
Sponsored by:
Japanese Cultural and Community Center of Northern California • Japanese Community Youth Council • San Francisco Japanese American Citizens League • Nichi Bei Foundation • Nihonmachi Little Friends • API Legal Outreach
(partial list)
SEE ALSO: S.F. Public Defender Jeff Adachi, tireless social justice advocate and filmmaker, dies
SEE ALSO: “In defense of the public: Jeff Adachi”
SEE ALSO: “From law to film, activism by S.F. Public Defender Jeff Adachi”
