Essay Part Two — Generations of Japanese abroad By Garry Bassin	フレームで見る  英文をプリントする  脚注をプリントする
海外の日系人たち 明治時代以降、多くの日本人が新しい生活の場を求めて海を渡った。 彼らはその行き先で、日本の伝統や価値観を守り続けながら、懸命に生き抜いた。 時代は移っても、今なお彼の地では彼らの子孫が暮らしている——。

All too often in Japan it is easy to forget just how many Japanese people have traveled to far away places trying to start a new and better life. We tend to reject these people as those who have "left" or "given up," but in fact many of the immigrants to other countries maintain their Japanese heritage and values even more than the people that actually live in Japan.

Since the Meiji Era, scores of Japanese people migrated to different places all over the world. For the most part they were laborers and worked very hard to feed their families and raise their children. Many of those second and third generation descendants are now respectable businesspeople, politicians and community leaders far away from Japan. One of these places is Hawaii.

Beginning about 150 years ago and lasting until fairly recently, there was a thriving sugar cane industry on the Hawaiian islands. Laborers from China, the Philippines, and Japan came to Hawaii to work in those fields and factories. The first Japanese came to Hawaii in the late 19th century. Even though they came as common laborers, many Japanese immigrants began to open stores and do other kinds of business. Some even became Paniolos and lived the hard but often romantic life of the Hawaiian cowboy. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, there was even a famous troop of Japanese-American soldiers from Hawaii that went to Europe to fight for freedom from Nazi rule. The Japanese culture is so woven into the thread of Hawaiian life now, that it is difficult to separate it. The Hawaiian vocabulary has words like bento, shoyu, and musubi in daily use. The Japanese culture is part of the Hawaiian identity.

In 1999, a young man named Leo Yoshida came to a small town called Honoka'a, on the Big Island of Hawaii, as part of a university graduation present from his father. There he met a second generation Japanese woman in her 80s who became his friend and guide. When Leo returned to Japan, he wrote a book titled "Honoka'a Boy," which was in part about the revelation of these Japanese immigrants living in Hawaii, and their insight on the world.

Living in Japan, it can seem as though the rest of the world is very far away. It is easy to forget about people who have left for life in other places. It is these people though, that become the true ambassadors of Japanese culture and the ones that help to educate and preserve Japanese heritage throughout the world. For this, they deserve our respect and gratitude.

The feature film "Honoka'a Boy," based on Leo's book, opens in Japan on March 14th. If you have the time, it might be worth a trip to the movie theater.

Shukan ST: March 13, 2009

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