Best Film on The Monterey Peninsula
Runtime: 1 hour, 3 minutes, 55 seconds
Directed by: David C Schendel
Overview:
A group of women activists combat Asian hate crimes and resist racism in war-torn 1940s California. Recently in a dusty filing cabinet in Monterey, California a local historian made the amazing discovery of a 16mm film from 1938 showing the local Japanese American community having fun at the wharf and playing baseball. Along with this remarkable never-before-seen film of a community about to be destroyed was a trove of signed petitions demanding the restoration of civil rights to those same Americans. As historian Tim Thomas dug deeper into the origins of both the film and the petition drive he discovered a story that stands as a lesson for all Americans interested in preserving our democracy. At a time when the fear of WWII gripped our nation, kitchen table conversations led to a door-to-door petition drive motivating citizens of the Monterey peninsula to resist economically motivated racism and welcome back fellow citizens held in concentration camps for 3+ years solely due to their Japanese ancestry. Toni Jackson—who worked as an editor for John Steinbeck and was Ed Ricketts’ common-law wife—wrote the petition, A Democratic Way of Life for All, in 1945. It stands as the only organized public resistance to the well-funded hate campaign waged against Japanese-Americans as they began the painful return home to suspicious communities. “Enduring Democracy: the Monterey Petition” explores the motivations of the wealthy individuals who financed hate campaigns as well as the daring women who spearheaded the carefully thought-out response. A twitter war before mobile phones, the battle was fought in the editorial pages of several local newspapers as racists emboldened by Anti-Japanese war propaganda posted full page ads to discourage Japanese Americans from returning to their homes and businesses. Inspired by Mollie Sumida’s letter to the editor written while imprisoned in camp and impervious to threats of violence, residents banded together to get their community to sign Toni Jackson’s petition pledging “The Democratic Way of Life for All.” The petition drive and subsequent posting in The Monterey Herald effectively put a stop to the public efforts of several well-funded fear campaigns against California Japanese American Citizens. Sponsored by Change.org
Director Biography – David C. Schendel:
David C. Schendel was born in Springfield, Massachusetts and grew up in Minnesota. The son of Alfred Schendel, a successful designer/painter/photographer, David was introduced to the arts before he could walk. David began his career at age 12 with his first film, “Don’t Show Mom This One!” A graduate of the University of Washington School of Drama, he started with live-theatre directing before dedicating his talents to filmmaking. “The Can,” David’s first feature-length film premiered at the famous Coolidge Corner Theatre in Boston and became an underground film sensation. His award-winning documentary about classic cars in Cuba, “Yank Tanks” was shown at film festivals around the world, screened on PBS, and was opening night film at the prestigious NY MoMA Documentary Fortnite. Most recently David’s film, “The Comedy Club,” won a Jury Award for Best Documentary at Cinema at the Edge in Los Angeles. Currently he is finishing a new project, “Enduring Democracy” and in production on a new feature “Painting at the Edge.” His apprenticeship with his dad, studies in behavioral science and passion for classical theatre continue to infuse his work with an emphasis on humor and a concern for the future of planet Earth.
