On 28th October, PPSEAWA Japan held the annual International Peace Day
Seminar as a hybrid program. Our new youth and council member, Wakaba Hamamatsu, gave us a lecture about the history of the civil rights movement of persons with disabilities aiming to achieve peace and equal society. She first raised the issue of Japanese employees with disabilities having difficulties adapting to the workplace and accomplishing their tasks being rejected or not given proper tasks by their bosses or colleagues. Then she presented the case of the civil rights movement by Judith Heumann, which greatly raised awareness of persons with disabilities in the United States since the 1970s. Wakaba emphasized the importance of discussing the idea of peace and equality especially concerning persons with disability, which we still lack in Japan as a country of democracy.
After the seminar, thanks to the call from Wakaba, some members could send the old clothes to Noto Peninsula (Kanazawa prefecture), which was devastated by the heavy rain disaster in September.