Democracy Center to Host the Smithsonian’s National Conversation on Race March 28

Editors please note: JANM’s Pavilion is closed for renovation; programs will continue on the JANM campus and at other locations at janm.org/OnTheGo. 

Speakers will explore models for equitable recovery from LA wildfires.

LOS ANGELES, CA – The Daniel K. Inouye National Center for the Preservation of Democracy (Democracy Center) at the Japanese American National Museum (JANM) will once again host the Smithsonian’s National Conversation on Race on Friday, March 28, 2025, from 8:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m. Tickets are free and open to the public. Reservations are required and are available at janm.org/democracy.

Building on the 2024 discussions at the intersection of race at issues of wealth, health, and the arts, this year’s dialogue examines the urgent contemporary forces shaping these issues. With a focus on youth empowerment and the role of creative practice in fostering equitable recovery from natural disasters, this gathering will illuminate pathways toward systemic change.

The keynote speaker will be Anna Kennedy-Borissow, Professor at University of Melbourne, Australia. A leading voice on the intersection of creative practice and disaster recovery, Professor Kennedy-Borissow brings deep expertise in fostering equitable recovery efforts, drawing from her extensive research on the wildfires that have devastated Australia over the past two decades. She will be joined by a panel of esteemed local experts, including Karen Mack, founder of LA Commons, Leticia Buckley, president and CEO of LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes, and Álvaro D. Márquez, program officer at the California Community Foundation, to explore how Los Angeles can adapt and implement these models to enhance its own recovery initiatives.

Alex M. Johnson, Vice President of Public Affairs at California Wellness Foundation, will deliver the opening remarks and moderate a distinguished plenary panel featuring Changeist Chief Executive Officer, Mario Fedelin; California Community Foundation Chief Officer of Policy and Programs, Cielo Castro; and Democracy Center Director, James E. Herr. They will explore the far-reaching policy impacts on young people and examine how to cultivate meaningful opportunities for them to drive the positive transformation they envision for the nation.

The Smithsonian’s National Conversation on Race is co-presented by the Smithsonian’s Our Shared Future: Reckoning with our Racial Past Initiative, as part of their National Conversation on Race series. It is sponsored by Bank of America.

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About the Japanese American National Museum (JANM)

Established in 1985, JANM promotes understanding and appreciation of America’s ethnic and cultural diversity by sharing the Japanese American experience. Located in the historic Little Tokyo district of downtown Los Angeles, JANM is a center for civil rights, ensuring that the hard-fought lessons of the World War II incarceration are not forgotten. A Smithsonian Affiliate and one of America’s Cultural Treasures, JANM is a hybrid institution that straddles traditional museum categories. JANM is a center for the arts as well as history. It provides a voice for Japanese Americans and a forum that enables all people to explore their own heritage and culture. Since opening to the public in 1992, JANM has presented over one hundred exhibitions onsite while traveling forty exhibits to venues such as the Smithsonian Institution and the Ellis Island Museum in the United States, and to several leading cultural museums in Japan and South America. JANM’s Pavilion is closed for renovation; programs will continue on the JANM campus, throughout Little Tokyo, Los Angeles, and Southern California, and beyond from early January 2025 through late 2026. For more information, visit janm.org/OnTheGo or follow us on social media @jamuseum.

About the Daniel K. Inouye National Center for the Preservation of Democracy (Democracy Center)

The Democracy Center is a place where visitors can examine the Asian American experience, past and present, and talk about race, identity, social justice, and the shaping of democracy. It convenes and educates people of all ages about democracy to transform attitudes, celebrate culture, and promote civic engagement; educates and informs the public and public officials about important issues; creates strength within and among communities to advocate for positive change; and explores the values that shape American democracy. The Democracy Center looks for solutions that engage communities in self-advocacy, explore the evolving idea of what it means to be an American, and result in actions that bring everyone together. JANM’s Pavilion is closed for renovation; Democracy Center programs will continue on the JANM campus, throughout Little Tokyo, Los Angeles, and Southern California, and beyond from early January 2025 through late 2026. For more information, visit janm.org/OnTheGo or follow us on social media @democracyjanm.