Sei Fujii

Sei Fujii (藤井 整, 1882–1954) was a human rights activist for Japanese-American individuals. He also established a California daily newspaper in 1931.[1]

Life

Sei Fujii was born in Shūtō, Japan (as of 2013, Yamaguchi).[2] After dropping out of Yamaguchi High School in the old system,[1] he moved to the United States in 1903.[1][3] He studied law at the University of Southern California[4] and graduated from USC Gould School of Law. However, he was unable to get a lawyer's license[3] because of a law that prohibited citizenship for those who were a member of "Mongolian race" and without citizenship he was unable to acquire a law license.[5] After that, he started to fight against discrimination for Japanese immigrants with his friend J. Marion Wright, a lawyer in California.[4] In 1928, the Supreme Court permitted Japanese-Americans to establish hospitals in Los Angeles.[1] In 1948, they successfully struck down the California Alien Land Law of 1913, giving Japanese immigrants the ability to purchase land.[1] In 1952, the law limiting citizenship was judged unconstitutional,[2][4] and Fuji was finally able to acquire his citizenship at the age of 73.[5] "He died by heart attack 51 days later," according to the Los Angeles Times.[5]

"Lil Tokyo Reporter"

In 2012, the narrative short film "Lil Tokyo Reporter," an independent film about the activities and advocacy of Fujii in the fight for Japanese-American human rights, was produced in the USA.[2] The film was exhibited at the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival[1] and won more than 18 awards in various parts of the USA.[6] It was directed by Jeffrey Gee Chin, a Chinese-American, and starred Japanese-American Actor Chris Tashima as Fujii.[1]

Law license after his death

In 2017, California's top court decided unanimously to grant him a law license 63 years after his death.[5] According to the lawyer in the case, there are only a few cases of individuals being granted law licenses posthumously; the Los Angeles Times reported a similar case involving a Chinese immigrant.[5]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "日系人の人権のため戦う：藤井整の勇気描く". Rafu Shimpo (in Japanese). 2013-05-09. Retrieved 2017-06-30.
  2. 1 2 3 大村隆 (2013-09-18). "記者藤井整 生きざま描く 米で排日土地法撤廃に尽力 映画製作者が市訪問". Chugoku Shimbun (in Japanese). Retrieved 2017-06-30.
  3. 1 2 "米で故日系１世に弁護士資格". Swissinfo (in Japanese). 2017-05-26. Retrieved 2017-06-30.
  4. 1 2 3 郷崇倫 (2011-12-27). "「正義の闘い」を映像に-藤田キャロル文子さん その1". ディスカバー・ニッケイ (in Japanese). Retrieved 2017-06-30.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 "Sei Fujii was denied a law license because of his race. California's top court has granted him one, 63 years after his death". Los Angeles Times. 2017-05-24. Retrieved 2017-06-30.
  6. ↑ 福田恵子 (2014-08-25). "排日土地法撤廃の功労者・藤井整を描いた「リトルトーキョーレポーター」 製作陣と出演者に聞く 〜その1〜". ディスカバー・ニッケイ (in Japanese). Retrieved 2017-06-30.

See Also

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