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North Shore Country Day welcomed alum Joel de la Fuente ’87 back to campus for a day of classroom visits, conversation and a performance all centered around “Hold These Truths,” the acclaimed one-person play about civil rights and constitutional courage.

Throughout the day, Joel met with students in all divisions, including AP U.S. Government, acting and entrepreneurship classes, sharing insights from his career and discussing the themes that resonate in his work. During Morning Ex, he performed an excerpt from “Hold These Truths,” introducing students to the story of Gordon Hirabayashi, a University of Washington student who challenged the U.S. government’s orders to forcibly remove and incarcerate people of Japanese ancestry during World War II. Reflecting on his return to campus, Joel said, “It’s thrilling to be back at school. It’s amazing to see all the different ways in which it’s physically changed and filled out with so many more students.” He added that it was especially meaningful to see how NSCD’s core values continue to resonate, noting that “the basic tenet of ‘Live and Serve’ still seems to really apply.”

Written by award-winning actor and playwright Jeanne Sakata, “Hold These Truths” traces Gordon’s decision to resist the internment orders and his decades-long journey to reconcile his belief in the U.S. Constitution with his country’s actions. Gordon turned himself in to the FBI to assert that the policies were racially discriminatory, was convicted and ultimately lost his case before the U.S. Supreme Court in 1943. Years later, new evidence revealed government misconduct, and his conviction was overturned by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in 1987. In 2012, Gordon was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor.

That evening, Joel and Jeanne returned to campus for a public program co-sponsored by the Family Action Network. Following a private reception for members of the NSCD community, Joel presented the full play as a staged reading, reprising his portrayal of Gordon and dozens of other characters. He was then joined onstage by Jeanne for a moderated conversation with fellow alum and NDCD trustee Lisa Doi ’09, assistant curator and project manager at the Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles.

The discussion offered insight into the play’s development, its historical grounding and its continued relevance, particularly for students studying American history, civics and the arts. Jeanne spoke about discovering Gordon’s story for the first time and her surprise that it was not more widely known. “I said to myself, why don’t I know about this man?” she recalled. “I saw it as a great American story, not just as a great Japanese American or Asian American story. I wanted all Americans to know about this young college student that took a stand against racism.” Joel spoke about his decade touring with the production nationwide, where it earned critical praise from outlets including The New Yorker and The New York Times, while Jeanne reflected on the research and storytelling choices that shaped the work.

Joel, a veteran of stage and screen, spent 10 years performing “Hold These Truths” to audiences across the country. He received a 2013 Drama Desk Award nomination for Best Solo Performance in New York City and won the Theatre Bay Award for Outstanding Principal Performance in 2019. In addition to his theater work, he is widely known for his roles as Chief Inspector Kido in Amazon Prime’s “The Man in the High Castle” and Dr. Johann Pryce in Netflix’s “Hemlock Grove.” His recent credits include “Devils,” “The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon,” “Tempest” and the world premiere of Keiko Green’s “You Are Cordially Invited to the End of the World!”

Joel’s return to campus underscored the school’s commitment to connecting students with alumni whose work bridges disciplines and invites thoughtful engagement with history, ethics and creative expression. Asked what he hopes students take away from the play, Joel emphasized the power of individual action. “One person really can make a difference,” he said. “Integrity and principle do matter. … What you do really does matter. So don’t let yourself off the hook. Participate, and you might make a huge difference.”