support this film project: saving the wat

Longtime readers might remember that I've posted a couple of things over the years about the Berkeley Thai Temple, a valuable community gathering center that has had to deal with some unfortunate run-ins with the surrounding neighborhood.

Saving the Wat is a documentary project about Wat Mongkolratanaram, aka the Berkeley Thai Temple, and its recent struggles. Fiscally sponsored by the San Francisco Film Society, the project is currently seeking contributions to get made and seen. Here's some more information:

Saving The Wat
Virada Chatikul, Siwaraya Rochanahusdin

Wat Mongkolratanaram, aka the Berkeley Thai Temple, comes under fire when a request to build a Buddhist shrine on their own property is submitted to the city. The Temple elders must now rely on a group of young and energetic second-generation Thai-Americans to advocate for their constitutional rights protecting religious freedoms. The team navigates through the city's land use and permit process, represents the Temple in mediation with neighbors, launches an awareness campaign, and ultimately, brings together a community that would otherwise face potential closure of the Temple.

Saving the Wat is a story about intergenerational/immigrant community organizing, multiracial community politics, and urban planning/policy that deserves to be documented. For more information, and to donate to the project, go to the San Francisco Film Society website here. (Thanks, Oiyan.)