Celebrating The Years Of Legacy And A Partnership That Strengthens

Partnering with the National Association of Japanese Canadians (NAJC) to host the Human Rights Day on October 4, 2024, was not only an honour, a tremendous learning opportunity, but also, above all, a critical moment to solidify a growing relationship with NAJC. 

The Human Rights Day was hosted as part of The Northern Lights Conference. Northern Lights took place between October 3-6, 2024 in amiskwaciy-wâskahikan (Edmonton) and was the result of the work of several partners led by the Edmonton Japanese Community Association (EJCA) and the National Association of Japanese Canadians (NAJC).

This biannual commitment of the NAJC to bring their members in person to celebrate their culture was brought back this year for the first time after the COVID-19 pandemic. However, NAJC added a new and fantastic element: one full day of programming on human rights. Rooted in the legacy of Dr. Gordon Hyrobaishi, NAJC and the John Humphrey Centre for Peace and Human Rights developed a special day centered on creating spaces to explore the current experiences with human rights of the Japanese-Canadian community, the intersections of those with other diverse communities, and generational needs and strengths. The day's planning started right after the Ignite Change Convention, where the EJCA and NAJC were some of the key partners that worked with JHC to Celebrate the 75 Anniversary of the Declaration of Human Rights. 

Rooted on the history and Legacy of Dr. Gordon Hirabayashi and the importance of sharing our stories of discrimination, resistance and resilience as part of healing and acknowledgment; the sessions discussed that 54% of Japanese Canadians experience racial discrimination that originates from the history that began with the Japanese Exclusion Act enacted more than 100 years ago. It unveiled how younger Japanese-Canadians experiences of separation and disconnection from family and culture and historical injustices, most notably the internment of Japanese Canadians during World War II, are still wrapped under a sheet of shame and silence. Those untold stories also disconnect new Japanese immigrants from their settled community. 

This disconnection with family, culture and history is a shared experience of colonization and underscores the urgent need for solidarity among various marginalized communities. Both Japanese Canadian and Indigenous communities are united in their call for Canada’s history of oppression and Indigenous history to be truthfully represented and taught in public education at all levels to engage youth. 

Attendants also explored inclusion and biases in their own communities and called their members to embrace the responsibility of educating themselves on creating inclusive spaces to people living with disabilities, 2SLGBTQIA+ and other racialized groups to cultivate spaces of solidarity and action.  

After a full day of education and conversations on issues like how discrimination manifests in online spaces, anti-racism initiatives and solidarity campaigns, at the end of the day JHC facilitated a dialogue-to-action process that guided attendants to identify the main topics they wanted to act upon, and create action plans.

The NAJC community call themselves to pay attention and build around the following issues:

1. Racism and the Model Minority Myth

Rooted in structural racism, white privilege, white supremacy and the colonial strategy to minorities and normalization of “othering.”

CALLS TO ACTION: 

  • Solidarity building with Indigenous communities

  • Challenging Anti-Immigrant discourses

  • Educating ourselves, “unlearn” and show allyship/solidarity

2. Silence and Suppressed Stories

Roots in displacement and internment camps, difficulty discussing trauma and racism with younger generations.

CALLS TO ACTION:

  • Honour memories, raise awareness & build connections to share stories in safe and inclusive spaces and provide various outlets for storytelling that cross mediums and include cultural programming to connect to the past

  • Need to ensure this history is part of current education and resources offered to aid in trauma and healing.

3. Separation and Disconnection

Roots in legacy of decades of separation and disconnection from family and culture, lack of belonging, intergenerational trauma, suppression or rejection of tradition and classism.

CALLS TO ACTION

  • Identify who feels they do not belong and engage them in learning and communication, finding spaces to build community and find commonalities to share

4. Identity

Identified especially for children of first generation post-war Japanese immigrants. Struggling with exposure to new cultures while also maintaining their identity and connection to culture.

CALLS TO ACTION

  • Children/Youth should have access to Japanese Canadian history to know what it means to be Japanese Canadian in Canada

  • Children should be given the freedom to decide their interests and identity and learn from their peers


5. Curriculum Gaps in Education

Rooted in lack of action and meaningful implementation of ensuring Japanese Canadian history is taught as part of the history of Canada; ignorance and feeling that one has to be an expert to teach this context.

CALLS TO ACTION

  • Embrace complexity and simply to facts and storytelling through guest speakers

  • Utilize and share resources and stories on addressing racism and sharing culture

  • Ensure educators have tools and resources easily available to empower them 

  • Reduce/eliminate regulation on curriculum and support educators to integrate this history into their curriculum and facilitate learning


6. Assimilation

Rooted in the history of discrimination, racism, hate, and being labelled “Enemy alien”, this was a tool for survival and safety. 

CALLS TO ACTION

  • Celebration of identity and embrace pride in heritage with support of community

  • Embrace mixed identity and reclaiming traditions (e.g. language, food, culture and practices)

  • Documentation of family histories, connections to culture and unification with understanding that this history of cultural genocide should never be repeated.

7. Solidarity

Rooted in division as a colonial tool to impress and continue the narrative of “othering”. A need to build an inclusive society by focusing on the most vulnerable and marginalized and rebuilding our foundation to move forward in a good way through decolonization, finding shared values, ID’ing those who would continue to push oppression and division, building collaborative relationships with intention and building unified solidarity.

CALLS TO ACTION

  • Follow decolonial practices and learn from Indigenous leaders

  • Center voices of Indigenous and BIPOC to build a solid foundation and create space for those not often seen/heard

  • Build collaborative and strategic relationships through shared values and grounded in intention; not transactional and ensures power is shared

  • Use a variety of approaches and activities to connect and learn together; build allyship through solidarity and listening to promoting understanding

Much planning and action has been taken between the NAJC and JHC in the last few years and will continue to happen. Allow us to take a moment in this joined path to celebrate NAJC’s and EAJC's leadership and decision to support your community in exploring the responsibility of walking the legacy of people like Dr Hirobayashi. 

As mentioned, EJCA and NAJC were key partners during the Ignite Change 2023 Convention celebrating the 75th Anniversary of the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UNUDHR). EJCA and NAJC hosted several sessions,  including:

“The NAJC conference was a beautiful opportunity to connect the community meaningfully. The varied workshops provided learnings of context, history, traditions, lived experiences and practical tools to be more aware and conscious within our daily interactions.

The fruitful conversations highlighted the parallels of our shared struggle and the need for solidarity to strengthen relationships and work toward action so everyone can live with a sense of security and dignity.”

- Reflections on the NAJC Conference; Amaani Patel, JHC Facilitator

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