The Tuna Canyon Detention Station Coalition is offering the Mark Stirdivant Scholarship for Justice, named after an active member of the coalition who passed away in 2019.
“Only the Oaks Remain” is the rallying cry of the Tuna Canyon Detention Station Coalition. Tuna Canyon in Tujunga was the site of the unjust World War II incarceration of Japanese, Germans, Italians and others.
The scholarship’s goal is to preserve these imporant historical events and to educate by encouraging creative art and writing so that we can reflect on our past and become better people. Mark Stirdivant believed in the power and effectiveness of diverse coalitions as well as preserving places that remind us of the importance of social justice for all.
The art and essay scholarship is open to all students from 9th to 12th grade.
Essay: Explain how the preservation of the Tuna Canyon Detention Station site will prevent future violations of human rights. What can the youth do to ensure that the civil rights violations that occurred at Tuna Canyon do not occur again? ($500 for first place, $100 for second place)
Art: Only the oaks stand as testament to the civil rights violations that occurred at Tuna Canyon Detention Station. There are no historical buildings. Provide art that will enable people to remember and act upon the history at Tuna Canyon. ($500 for first place, $100 for second place)
Deadline for entries is midnight on Nov. 11. For rules, entry form and more information, visit www.TunaCanyon.org.