Mia F Yamamoto (born 1943), is a Los Angeles-based criminal defense attorney and civil rights activist. Yamamoto is a transgender woman of Japanese American descent, born in the

Poston War Relocation Center The Poston Internment Camp, located in Yuma County (now in La Paz County) in southwestern Arizona, was the largest (in terms of area) of the ten American concentration camps operated by the War Relocation Authority during World War II. The sit ...

during World War II.

Personal life

Yamamoto was born in Poston,

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

in a

Japanese-American internment camp are Americans of Japanese ancestry. Japanese Americans were among the three largest Asian American ethnic communities during the 20th century; but, according to the 2000 census, they have declined in number to constitute the sixth largest Asi ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. Her mother was a registered nurse and her father was a lawyer. Her family's experiences in the camp, and her father's subsequent exclusion from the then Whites-only

Los Angeles County Bar Association The Los Angeles County Bar Association (LACBA) is a voluntary bar association with more than 21,000 members throughout Los Angeles County, California, and the world. Founded in 1878, LACBA's goal has been to meet the professional needs of lawyer ...

were early factors that shaped Yamamoto's view on the legal system and race relations. Having been born "doing time" due to her race, she developed a sensitivity to clients who found themselves facing convictions and harsh punishments that they otherwise might be able to avoid, had they been white. Yamamoto and her brothers joined Mexican gangs who were unafraid to stand up to racial injustice. Due to its potential psychological benefits, Yamamoto saw the gang lifestyle as somewhat positive. Gangs offered her a home away from home, and years later she served as a voice for previous gang members by serving as their trial lawyer. Yamamoto knew from an early age that her body did not match her identity, but did not know how to express her inner turmoil. While struggling with her gender identity she decided to enlist in the Army, and served from 1966 to 1968. She was awarded the

National Defense Service National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...

medal,

Army Commendation Medal The Commendation Medal is a mid-level United States military decoration presented for sustained acts of heroism or meritorious service. Each branch of the United States Armed Forces issues its own version of the Commendation Medal, with a fifth ...

, and Vietnam campaign medal. After the army, she attended UCLA's School of Law, where she co-founded the Asian Pacific Islander Law Student Association (APILSA). In 1984 she opened her own practice, and has practiced law since. The salary that she earned as a lawyer helped her afford therapy, which began her journey towards realizing she was a trans woman. However, she was only able to find negative representations of the transgender community. Yamamoto tried to find her way through her transition with the arts, learning to dance and play music. The challenges of transition led her to the realization that she should become an activist for the transgender community. She married Kimberlee Tellez on September 2, 2015.

Career

In practice since 1985, Yamamoto has represented thousands of clients in over 200 jury trials, accused of crimes such as murder, sex offences, assault, drug offenses, theft, white-collar crimes, and DUI. Yamamoto was appointed to serve on the California Judicial Council Task Forces on Jury Improvement and on Fairness and Access in the Courts by the Chief Justice of the California Supreme Court. Yamamoto served as President of the California Attorneys for Criminal Justice in 2001. In 1999 she presented a lecture for President Clinton's Initiative on "Race and Criminal Justice" at George Washington University. She has been a guest for several panels, classes, and demonstrations for the American Bar Association, Los Angeles County Bar Association International Bridges to Justice, for which she trained criminal defense attorneys in the Republic of China. She has also been a commentator for print, radio and television news features.

Awards and honors

Yamamoto is the recipient of the Rainbow Key Award by the City of West Hollywood, the Liberty Award by Lambda Legal, and the Harvey Milk Legacy Award by Christopher Street West/LA Pride. She has also been honored by API Equality and the Los Angeles County Human Relations Commission for her advocacy on behalf of the LGBT community. She has received honors from the Criminal Courts Bar Association, National Lawyers Guild, and the Women Lawyers Association of Los Angeles. Yamamoto is featured in the

Silas Howard Silas Howard is an American director, writer, and actor. His first feature film was ''By Hook or by Crook'' in 2001 with Harry Dodge, and he earned an MFA in directing at UCLA. He began directing episodes during the second season of ''Transparen ...

documentary ''More than T''.

References

External links

Mia Yamamoto on-camera oral history
''The Outwords Archive'', April 7, 2017 {{DEFAULTSORT:Yamamoto, Mia 1943 births Living people American LGBT lawyers American LGBT people of Asian descent American LGBT rights activists American military personnel of Japanese descent American transgender people LGBT people from Arizona Japanese-American civil rights activists Japanese-American internees Transgender rights activists Transgender women UCLA School of Law alumni 20th-century American lawyers 20th-century American women lawyers 21st-century American lawyers 21st-century American women lawyers