Origami Station
Goshuin

Legend has it that if you fold 1,000 paper cranes, your wish will come true. As such, folding 1,000 cranes is good luck for weddings and important life events. This folkloric belief in the wish-granting power of paper cranes was made famous by a young girl, Sadako Sasaki, who was exposed to radiation by the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and developed leukemia. While in the hospital, she made it her goal to fold 1,000 cranes in the hopes that she would recover. When Sadako passed from leukemia, her story spread and the origami crane became a symbol of the hope for world peace.

Tsuru for Solidarity is an Japanese American social justice organization working towards the abolition of migrant detention, and they similarly use the crane as a symbol of peace and liberation. Members of this group fold thousands of cranes and use them in direct action protests of detention facilities. In 2020, the Davis Cherry Blossom Festival made cranes for Tsuru for Solidarity and raised money for them as the annually selected charity. Though COVID interrupted the Spring Festival, we held online events where we featured Tsuru for Solidarity, and our members helped protest against migrant detention facilities.