PEARL HARBOR TAPE: On December 7, 1941, Japan, like its infamous Axis partners, struck first…. [fade down]
Robynn Takayama: Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor brought the United States into World War II. The bombing also launched an internal attack on Americans of Japanese descent, especially on the west coast.
Yuri Kochiyama: Three tall white men came knocking on our door. …and they all showed a little card and it said “Federal Bureau of Investigation.
1:31 AND HOW ‘BOUT FOR YOU
All that and the fact that this is a good chance for people of different backgrounds and religious faith and races and all to get together and do the same thing and get acquainted. We hadn’t met before. But we find that we have some similarities and that’s what this is about, like the speakers said tonight. It was very nicely done.
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:05 I’m sort of fortunate that the Japanese community came out the muslim community because I’m part of the American muslim community. And that the fact that they sympathized with some of the backlashes that the muslims were facing here when September 11 happened. And it was really nice to see how fast the J community came forward and were there to support us during a difficult time. It was a nice feeling to know that was happening. Not just the J community, but also other communities were coming and supporting the Muslim community. Because there was a lot of backlashes and stuff going on and it really helped out a lot.
:56 has that increased or decreased? The backlash?
WHAT BROUGHT YOU OUT TONIGHT?
1:03 I was talking with the Hemam at the mosque in San Jose and he said the Japanese community have invited us to join with a walk so we memorate 9/11 and we are very happy to come down and join the group. We are Vietnamese Muslim. We have a lot.
AND WHAT CONNECTIONS DO YOU SEE BETWEEN THE MUSLIM COMMUNITY AND THE JAPANESE COMMUNITY
1:40 I think it is very close relationship. Because they understand our situation and help us get through this difficult time.
[car noise, walking]
WHAT BROUGHT YOU HERE TONIGHT
2:19 We just met on the streets.
2:25 I’m involved with the peace and justice movement with an organization called WILFPF: Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom. But I enjoy all the activities that the JA do in relation to peace and justice work, especially with the Muslim community. I appreciate that relationship. It’s very good.
WHAT IS THE SIGNIFICANCE OF AN EVENING LIKE THIS ON 9/11
2:50 This is a good way to commemorate and honor all the dead who were so unfortunate in that mass destruction of the towers. So I think this is a peaceful way to express our sadness about the event.
3:14 It was a flyer that I saw and I have a Muslim friend at work. I work for the city of San Jose. So I came out in support of our relationship with the community and the Muslim people as well as to show them our support for the trials and tribulations that they’re going through right now that we went through many years before. In support, I’m out here.
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You know we all stay home and listen to TV and have concerns but this was an opportunity where we could come out and express ourselves in a peaceful way. This is a beautiful country live in. We’ve lived here and it has been good to us and we just want that the good will should spread so that people of all races and all religions and all backgrounds could live in peace.s
WHAT’S SIGNIFICANCE THAT STARTED AT BUDDHIST AND COMING OVER HERE
:37 That just tells us our unity of different people from different backgrounds. And the Japanese people have really come out to help us in difficult time that we are going through right now because of course their own background, the difficulty that they went through. And this is how we help one another. [child sounds, singing]
WHY DID YOU COME OUT TONIGHT AND WHAT’S THE SIGNIFICANCE
1:47 I came out tonight to support the community, the Muslim community, all the communities that are coming together around 9/11, supporting families, but also showing support.
AND SIGNIFICANCE
2:06 It’s significant because there’s examples of two communities that have been marginalized, discriminated against, had had violence against them in the history and in the present right now. And it shows in terms of communities uniting for commonalities and that’s really significant.
