Activism

Navdeep Jassal Journeys to Atlanta to Join the Fight to Save Our Democracy

Published

3 years ago

July 9, 2021

Christy Price

Navdeep Jassal/LinkedIn

The January 6^th insurrection at the U.S. Capitol was a strong call to action for Navdeep Jassal.

“It breaks my heart to see what’s happening in our country,” Jassal said. “So many people sacrificed their lives to win the right to vote; we can’t sit on the sidelines and watch it get taken away.”

Jassal has been a committed volunteer in Oakland, preparing and serving food for the hungry with Post co-publisher Gay Plair Cobb at First Presbyterian Church and participating with the Poor People’s Campaign and volunteering for Common Cause and local progressive candidates. She recently volunteered in the campaign of Janani Ramachandran, who will be in the runoff election for the 18^th district state assembly seat in August.

Born in Manchester, England, to Indian immigrant parents, Jassal’s family moved to Iowa where she graduated from the University of Iowa with a major in business and communication studies.

After living in San Francisco and Oakland for nearly 30 years, Jassal is getting into the thick of the fight for voting rights — in Atlanta, Ga.

She recently left her job analyzing consumer goods for Post Consumer Brands and is heading to Georgia for the next two months to volunteer for Fair Fight Action, the organization founded by Stacey Abrams to fight voter suppression efforts and make elections more equitable.

Of South Asian Indian heritage – like Vice President Kamala Harris — Jassal wants to help save democracy.

Why work with Stacey Abrams? “She’s tenacious and gives more than 100% in everything she does. She includes and treats all people of color with the highest level of respect,” she told the Post.

Jassal read New York Times columnist Charles Blow’s book “The Devil You Know,” to gain insights on how and why she should work shoulder-to-shoulder with Blacks and liberals who are moving to the South to continue the struggle for voting as the path to save democracy.

Her past volunteer experiences include serving as a field organizer for the Equal Rights Amendment Campaign in Iowa and as a participant with Rev. Dr. William Barber’s Poor Peoples Campaign and their Moral Mondays direct action efforts in North Carolina.

Asked why she wanted to become a modern-day Freedom Rider, she said “I want to serve as a worker bee in the streets with communities of color.”

Her experience with public relations, fundraising, and organizing along with her skills in sales support, cross-functional collaboration and analytical background with such companies as Lucent Technologies, Clorox and Del Monte could prove to be major assets for voter participation groups.

“I know the work is going to be hard; I know the hours are going to be long, but I’ve never been so sure in my heart that I’m doing the right thing,” Jassal said.

Jassal has been introduced to some civil rights activists through connections provided by Gay Plair Cobb, who had also moved to Atlanta in 1973 to work for political progress.

Jassal has agreed to provide reports on her volunteer mission to the Post News Group.

Christy Price

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Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024

Published

3 days ago

April 26, 2024

Oakland Post

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Oakland Post: Week of April 17 – 23, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of April 17 – 23, 2024

Published

1 week ago

April 19, 2024

Oakland Post

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Oakland Schools Honor Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties

Every Jan. 30, OUSD commemorates the legacy of Fred Korematsu, an Oakland native, a Castlemont High School graduate, and a national symbol of resistance, resilience, and justice. His defiant stand against racial injustice and his unwavering commitment to civil rights continue to inspire the local community and the nation. Tuesday was “Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Constitution” in the state of California and a growing number of states across the country.

Published

1 week ago

April 19, 2024

Oakland Post

Fred Korematsu. Courtesy of OUSD.

By Post Staff

Every Jan. 30, OUSD commemorates the legacy of Fred Korematsu, an Oakland native, a Castlemont High School graduate, and a national symbol of resistance, resilience, and justice.

His defiant stand against racial injustice and his unwavering commitment to civil rights continue to inspire the local community and the nation. Tuesday was “Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Constitution” in the state of California and a growing number of states across the country.
One OUSD school is named in his honor: Fred T. Korematsu Discovery Academy (KDA) elementary in East Oakland.

Several years ago, founding KDA Principal Charles Wilson, in a video interview with anti-hate organization “Not In Our Town,” said, “We chose the name Fred Korematsu because we really felt like the attributes that he showed in his work are things that the children need to learn … that common people can stand up and make differences in a large number of people’s lives.”

Fred Korematsu was born in Oakland on Jan. 30, 1919. His parents ran a floral nursery business, and his upbringing in Oakland shaped his worldview. His belief in the importance of standing up for your rights and the rights of others, regardless of race or background, was the foundation for his activism against racial prejudice and for the rights of Japanese Americans during World War II.

At the start of the war, Korematsu was turned away from enlisting in the National Guard and the Coast Guard because of his race. He trained as a welder, working at the docks in Oakland, but was fired after the bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941. Fear and prejudice led to federal Executive Order 9066, which forced more than 120,000 Japanese Americans out of their homes and neighborhoods and into remote internment camps.

The 23-year-old Korematsu resisted the order. He underwent cosmetic surgery and assumed a false identity, choosing freedom over unjust imprisonment. His later arrest and conviction sparked a legal battle that would challenge the foundation of civil liberties in America.

Korematsu’s fight culminated in the Supreme Court’s initial ruling against him in 1944. He spent years in a Utah internment camp with his family, followed by time living in Salt Lake City where he was dogged by racism.

In 1976, President Gerald Ford overturned Executive Order 9066. Seven years later, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco vacated Korematsu’s conviction. He said in court, “I would like to see the government admit that they were wrong and do something about it so this will never happen again to any American citizen of any race, creed, or color.”

Korematsu’s dedication and determination established him as a national icon of civil rights and social justice. He advocated for justice with Rosa Parks. In 1998, President Bill Clinton gave him the Presidential Medal of Freedom saying, “In the long history of our country’s constant search for justice, some names of ordinary citizens stand for millions of souls … To that distinguished list, today we add the name of Fred Korematsu.”

After Sept. 11, 2001, Korematsu spoke out against hatred and discrimination, saying what happened to Japanese Americans should not happen to people of Middle Eastern descent.
Korematsu’s roots in Oakland and his education in OUSD are a source of great pride for the city, according to the school district. His most famous quote, which is on the Korematsu elementary school mural, is as relevant now as ever, “If you have the feeling that something is wrong, don’t be afraid to speak up.”