‘Understanding Gender Diversity in Our Families and Community’

BERKELEY — Tadaima Bay Area will present “Understanding Gender Diversity in Our Families and Community” on Saturday, Feb. 6, from 2 to 4:30 p.m. at Berkeley Methodist United Church, 1710 Carleton St. in Berkeley.

Mioi Hanaoka

Advocates like Marsha Aizumi and Rep. Mike Honda have raised public awareness of the “T” in LGBTQ and opened up space for a dialogue that seldom happens in the Nikkei communities. Join Mioi Hanaoka and other gender non-conforming and transgender individuals as they share their stories of triumph and challenge, both through in-person sharing and video.

When Hanaoka first came out at the age of 15, her father, Rev. Nobu Hanaoka, became a strong advocate in the LGBTQ, Asian and Pacific Islander, and faith communities. Through API Equality-Northern California’s Pink Elephant Project collaborative, she explored her narrative and learned the power of telling her story of acceptance.‬

This Tadaima conference pre-event is hosted by several LGBTQQ supportive community organizations, including: APIQWTC, Berkeley Buddhist Temple, Berkeley Methodist United Church, Buena Vista United Methodist Church, J-Sei, Lake Park UMC, Network on Religion and Justice, Out Proud Families, and more.

Other upcoming pre-events:

• “Raising Awareness and Fostering Acceptance of LGBTQQ in Our Nikkei Families” on Sunday, March 6, from 2 to 4 p.m. at Mountain View Buddhist Temple, 575 N. Shoreline Blvd., Mountain View.

• “Call to Action: LGBTQ Issues Post-Marriage Equality” on Tuesday, Feb. 23, from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at Buddhist Church of San Francisco, 1881 Pine St., San Francisco.

Admission to pre-events is free.

Tadaima, meaning “I’m home” in Japanese, will culminate in a one-day conference on Saturday, April 2, at San Jose State University that will bring together Japanese American lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and questioning individuals and allies. Registration is $30 general, $10 for students, $5 for SJSU students.

Tadaima events provide safe places for Japanese American LGBTQQ individuals and allies to engage in community-building, networking and storytelling. Hosted by local Nikkei community organizations and leaders, Tadaima is an opportunity to celebrate, learn from and mutually support the experiences of LGBTQQ members of the community.

RSVP for pre-events or conference to www.tadaimabayarea.org/events/.