We are honored to be presenting The Journal of Ben Uchida: Citizen 13559 as part of our 2017-18 season at the Seattle Children’s Theatre.
The play explores Ben Uchida’s struggle as he attempts to understand a society that allows mass discrimination and injustice against humanity. The incarceration of hundreds of thousands of Japanese Americans during World War II focuses the spotlight on an unjust and shameful episode in American history, and poses questions as urgent today as they were in the past.
As theatre makers for young audiences, it is our responsibility to provide a safe space to examine a scary world. The Journal of Ben Uchida: Citizen 13559 contains sensitive material including racial profiling against Japanese Americans, offensive racial slurs, and suicide of a parent.
We strive to teach our young people to be kind, empathetic, and fair. In the play, they will see examples of offensive racial slurs and racial profiling, making them uncomfortable. Those scenes are representations of the horrific reality of how unfair and damaging racial discrimination can be, and with your assistance, we hope to guide our young audience to understand that this kind of behavior is never acceptable – not then, not now. In the play, after several months of imprisonment, Mr. Uchida, Ben’s father, is changed. After prolonged abuse and desperation within the camp, Mr. Uchida dies by suicide. The creative team is approaching this moment with extreme care and attention. This part of the play is theatricalized through shadow imagery. The moment is potent but not graphic. We want to advise, even with the thoughtful curating of the creative team, this moment, like the scene with racial slurs may cause discomfort. We realize that these topics, and these words, will be upsetting to adults and students alike, but is a reminder to all of us never to accept such injustice.
Theatre allows us to consider powerful alternatives to the realities we see. We have several community outreach strategies happening, including post-play discussions on 2/8 and 2/18; as well as four community dinners to encourage family-to-family dialogue. We encourage you to attend these events as a way to engage with our community and thoughtfully reflect on and process this experience. Our Active Audience Guide will be available online with a complete synopsis and further contextualizing. Additionally we have added resources to this letter to navigate these challenging moments.
Thank you for supporting this production and SCT as we endeavor to build a better world for our children. As Martin Luther King stated, “There is another element that must be present in our struggle that then makes our resistance and nonviolence truly meaningful. That element is reconciliation. Our ultimate end must be the creation of the beloved community.” – Martin Luther King, 4/15/60, Raleigh, NC
Respectfully,
Courtney Sale, Artistic Director
courtneys@sct.org
Resources
26 Children’s Books to Support Conversations on Race, Racism & Resistance:
https://medium.com/embrace-race/26-childrens-books-to-support-conversations-on-race-racism-resistance-15b189c1bab9
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline
24/7, free and confidential support for people in distress, prevention and crisis resources for you or your loved ones
1-800-273-8255
741741 Crisis Text Line
https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/
Suicide Prevention Resource Center
https://www.sprc.org/states/washington
American Foundation for Suicide Prevention
https://afsp.org/
One America
OneAmerica advances the fundamental principals of democracy and justice at the local, state and national levels by building power within immigrant communities in collaboration with key allies.
https://www.weareoneamerica.org/civil-liberties-and-civil-rights
