Looking Back / Looking Ahead

The year 2008 was many things but it was certainly not boring. While issues like global warming and the war on terror continued to take up their share of headline space and screen time, there were enough new earth-shaking developments to almost make one long nostalgically for a time when the latest celebrity melt-down was the lead-off story on the nightly news.

South of the border, a seemingly endless made-for-TV political campaign kept many of us riveted to the screen as a self-described hockey mom from Alaska (oh yeah, and that war hero fellow she was running with) went up against a young mixed-race senator from Hawaii. Television anchors and comedians were in seventh heaven as the campaign unfolded and the mud began to fly. Side-stories and sub-plots galore ensured that the election stayed at the forefront of many people’s minds and one of the positive outcomes of the election was a seemingly re-energized electorate.

As if the election campaign wasn’t dramatic enough, the collapse of the world financial markets not only raised the stakes considerably but changed the complexion of the campaign. When the dust settled, America had elected its first non-white President, and for one night at least there was sense that anything was now possible. That euphoria was short-lived however, as reality set in and the magnitude of the economic collapse began to be apparent.

Canada’s election played out against the same background of economic doom and gloom but the contrast couldn’t be starker. Canadian voters proved to be supremely disinterested in what was widely seen as an unnecessary, opportunistic election. Interestingly, while Canadian overwhelmingly supported Barack Obama (and would have voted for him in a landslide given a chance) they returned Stephen Harper to power, although short of the majority he was looking for. Immediately following the election, it appeared that a new culture of cooperation and non-partisan politics would be the order of the day in Ottawa, an illusion that proved to be short-lived. With the economic update in late November, the Conservatives chose to bait the opposition with a series of measures including the abolition of public funding of political parties. The ensuing shenanigans saw the Conservative Party come within a hair’s breadth of falling to a jury-rigged coalition made up of the Liberals and NDP and supported by the Bloc Québécois.

For the Canadian Nikkei community, the economy was doubtless the number one story of the year, but there were a number of other events and occasions that stand out. The year began with the news that the Kamloops Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre had been destroyed by fire. Shortly afterwards, Kami Insurance of West Broadway narrowly survived an explosion at a neighbouring restaurant. Happily Kami survived relatively unscathed and the Cultural Centre was fully insured (and has since been rebuilt). 2008 was also the 80th Anniversary of diplomatic relations between Canada and Japan and numerous events were held across Canada to celebrate this longstanding partnership. In April, The Bulletin celebrated its 50th Anniversary, with the April cover featuring founding Editor Mickey Tanaka (née Nakashima). In September, the 20th Anniversary of the signing of the Japanese Canadian Redress Agreement was marked with a National celebration hosted by the National Association of Japanese Canadians and the Greater Vancouver Japanese Canadian Citizens’ Association.

Nikkei artists continued to make their mark, as did others including engineer Henry Wakabayashi who in July was awarded the Order of Canada, joining an impressive list of other Japanese Canadians who have received Canada’s highest civilian honour.

As we say goodbye to 2008 and usher in the New Year, The Bulletin asked a number of Japanese Canadians across the country to provide their take on the year that was, and what they see ahead for the coming year. Below is a sampling of the answers received . . .

Michael Fukushima
National Film Board of Canada

Looking back over the last year, what stands out most for you as a:
highlight?
Being considered a community leader by The Bulletin!
lowlight? The re-election of Stephen Harper and utter lack of cohesion of Canada’s centre left.
Looking ahead to 2009, what do you see as a focus for:
your company/organization? Celebrating the NFBs 70th Anniversary.
you personally? Not becoming entwined in the NFB’s 70th Anniversary celebrations . . . too much.
Given the state of the world’s finances, how do you see it impacting you and or your company/organization? Frugalista is a truly cringe-worthy neologism, but probably the best state-of-mind I’ll be able to aspire to the next couple of years. As for the NFB, we’re always vulnerable to extermination whether the economic times are good or ill.
If you were to make one New Year’s resolution, what would it be?: To do no evil. Really.

Jay Hirabayashi
Kokoro Dance
Looking back over the last year, what stands out most for you as a:
highlight?
Creation and performances of Ghosts for the Powell Street Festival and 20th Anniversary of Japanese Canadian Redress
lowlight? The re-election of a Harper-led government
Looking ahead to 2009, what do you see as a focus for:
your company/organization? Kokoro Dance is going to take over the world
you personally? I am going to be a guitar hero rock star
Given the state of the world’s finances, how do you see it impacting you and or your company/organization? Kokoro Dance has been in recession since 1986, the year we started, so nothing is new.
If you were to make one New Year’s resolution, what would it be? “Don’t worry, be happy” says Meher Baba, and I agree.

Kristen Lambertson
Powell Street Festival Society
Looking back over the last year, what stands out most for you as a:
highlight?
Joining the Powell Street Festival, moving back to Vancouver, Barack Obama elected in the US.
lowlight? hard to say . . . but perhaps the state of our own federal politics, the loss of Paul Newman . . .
Looking ahead to 2009, what do you see as a focus for:
your company/organization? Maintaining the same high level of programming and community outreach in our new temporary location at Woodland Park.
you personally? The list is too far long . . .
Given the state of the world’s finances, how do you see it impacting you and or your company/organization? The financial crisis is a worry given that PSF is so reliant upon donations and funds from granting agencies. Ideally PSF would like to continue to grow and provide more opportunities for Japanese Canadian and Asian Canadian artists, as well as continue its search for a permanent multi-purpose facility on Powell Street. But in order to provide equitable artistic fees and maintain stability, we need to receive a certain amount of granting fees. With the economic downturn, arts and culture will probably be the first sectors to experience funding cuts. I am hopeful that the impact will not be too great, and that PSF will not have to scale back its plans. Regardless of the economic state, PSF will definitely continue with the festival itself and the many other PSF events throughout the year. The show must go on!
If you were to make one New Year’s resolution, what would it be? To find additional funding!

Terry Watada
Nikkei Voice columnist and jack-of-all-trades writer
Looking back over the last year, what stands out most for you as a:
highlight?
doing a music performance with my son, Bunji. See part of it on You Tube. Search for Cheyenne and the Weasel.
lowlight? Suffering from heat exhaustion in Hiroshima. Don’t travel to Japan in August!
Looking ahead to 2009, what do you see as a focus for:
your company/organization? Getting more subscribers and ads, I suppose, though I’m not involved in the daily running of the paper anymore. Mel Tsuji and Yusuke Tanaka are doing a great job in this regard. Mika Fukuma is doing a superlative job with the English section. I hope she stays on for many more years.
you personally? Get my second novel finished. It’s partially about Tom Shoyama versus Etsuji Morii (remember, this is fiction). It is wholly about the JC resistance movement during WWII.  I also have a new manuscript of poetry circulating the publishers. A play nearing a production-ready draft. I hope it goes up as a full production in 2010. Another play in development. And a third in a rather nascent state about the Asahi Baseball Team.
Given the state of the world’s finances, how do you see it impacting you and or your company/organization? Fewer subscribers and ads, I suppose. Personally, I thought I could retire from teaching, but I’ll have to put those plans on hold for a while longer.
If you were to make one New Year’s resolution, what would it be? Write more. Publish more. Retire.

Caitlin Ohama-Darcus
Student/Bulletin Columnist/Member of Chibi Taiko Senior Group
Looking back over the last year, what stands out most for you as a:
highlight?
(a) Barack Obama & Hillary Clinton, (b) the animated movie Wall-e, (c) passing my second-year organic chemistry course
lowlight? (a) the global financial crisis, (b) the ethnic crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo
Looking ahead to 2009, what do you see as a focus for you personally? learning…learning…listening…looking…learning…
Given the state of the world’s finances, how do you see it impacting you? no personal impact but many lessons learned by the younger generations witnessing their parents and leaders shaking their heads and pulling their hair out
If you were to make one New Year’s resolution, what would it be? to assume nothing (. . . and eat more green vegetables . . .)

Emiko Newman
Bulletin Contributor/Member of Chibi Taiko Senior Group
Looking back over the last year, what stands out most for you as a:
highlight?
Starting high school
lowlight? The economy
Looking ahead to 2009, what do you see as a focus for:
your company/organization?
Going to Japan with Chibi Taiko
you personally? Doing well on my piano exam. Field hockey. Watching the new Harry Potter movie!!!
Given the state of the world’s finances, how do you see it impacting you and or your company/organization? Not applicable to me yet!
If you were to make one New Year’s resolution, what would it be? To not wait until the last minute to write The Adventures of Bean-chan.

Ron Nishimura
Greater Vancouver Japanese Canadian Citizens’ Association
Looking back over the last year, what stands out most for you as a:
highlight?
The 20th Anniversary of Redress Celebration – being part of the team that put together a celebration in which Nikkei or Japanese Canadians were able to remember and be part of the accomplishments in achieving Redress for the wrongful internment by a past government that were driven by unjust fears.
lowlight? There always a lot of areas you would like to have been better, but there are always levels of family relationships that one would probably thought should be better, especially in areas of communication.
Looking ahead to 2009, what do you see as a focus for:
your company/organization? One thing which I would like to see is growth in new memberships and increased relations between all organizations and people within the Nikkei community, nationally and locally. Also more communications and relationship-building with our multiethnic community especially in areas of cultural awareness, human rights, and social justice.
you personally? I would like to further develop my personal skills in all areas, especially to do with communications and organizational skills.
Given the state of the world’s finances, how do you see it impacting you and or your company/organization? Given that most of our GVJCCA membership is made up of seniors, there are always concerns over the dwindling number of memberships either being renewed or new memberships being attained. And there is always the desire to retain or grow our membership from the US and overseas.
If you were to make one New Year’s resolution, what would it be? One thing I would like to do is to build stronger ties with my family members and be a healthier person overall.

Rika Uto
Vancouver Japanese Language School & Japanese Hall
Looking back over the last year, what stands out most for you as a:
highlight?
The Hall filled on opening day of the 2008-2009 school year with the largest enrolment of students in recent times.
lowlight? The loss of several dear members of our School: Yoshiyuki Fujiwara, Jim Horiuchi, Ryota Kawasaki and Motohisa Niiro
Looking ahead to 2009, what do you see as a focus for:
your company/organization?
To continue to deepen relationships within the Downtown Eastside and Japanese Canadian communities to work together towards common goals.
you personally? To devote more time to creative and physical activities and spontaneous fun.
Given the state of the world’s finances, how do you see it impacting you and or your company/organization? It’s sure to have an effect on our ability to fundraise both from the public and private sectors, especially for our heritage renovation project. It will also put more pressure on the Downtown Eastside neighbourhood as there may be fewer resources to meet the increased need and numbers of low-income residents.
If you were to make one New Year’s resolution, what would it be? I don’t make New Year’s resolutions because I never keep them so with good intention but with no expectation I resolve to get my material into John in a timelier manner.