Asian American History and the Law: “A Long March”

PBS documentary considers issues relating to Asian American experience in historical and legal perspective

A Long March (2022) is a PBS documentary about Filipino American veterans of World War II seeking to regain their place in history and restore their identity as veterans of the United States. The story highlights, in historical context, the legal issues they have faced from the administrative bureaucracy of the U.S. government to the Federal Courts. It is a revealing look at how the United States conscripted Commonwealth Filipino forces to defeat World War II Axis powers – then denied hundreds of thousands of veterans recognition for honorable service.

The screening, organized by Columbia University’s Center for Japanese Legal Studies and co-sponsored by the Weatherhead East Asian Institute, APALSA and Nihon Horitsu Kenkyukai, will be followed by a panel discussion, including Anna Mercado Clark, that will draw upon the Filipino American experience to consider issues relating to the Asian American experience in historical and legal perspective.