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KIMIKO MURAKAMI: TRIUMPH OVER INTERNMENT
Mary Kitagawa tells the story of her mother Kimiko Murakami. Kimiko and her husband had a successful farm on Salt Spring Island in the 1930s. But when Japan attacked Pearl Harbour in 1941 their lives were to change.
Mary's family was sent to a series of internment camps and beet farms where they would live in dire conditions and work for meager wages. Despite 8 years of internment, Kimiko refused to allow the children to lose hope. She was determined to return to her farm again.
Photo: Mary shows pictures illustrating her mother's life to her daughter Karen and her granddaughter Jordan.
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Amongst the first non-Europeans to come to Canada in the late 1800s were the Japanese. Some were wealthy adventurers. Others were farmers and fishermen from Japan who were seeking a better life.
The early Japanese pioneers faced discrimination and it was difficult to find work. In 1907, a mob roared through the Asian areas of Vancouver, breaking windows and demanding that Japanese and Chinese immigrants "go home".
Despite the obstacles, Kimiko Murakami and her husband were able to become successful in fishing and farming. But World War Two was raging in Europe and soon this war would change the course of their lives.
On December 7th, 1941, Japan launched a deadly attack on a US naval base in Pearl Harbour, Honalulu. As a result, the US and Canada joined the Allied efforts and declared war on Japan. The Murakamis, like other Canadians of Japanese origin, were now considered enemy aliens. Their property was confiscated and they were interned.
Photo: Kimiko and her husband
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-Steveston is a picturesque fishing village where many Japanese settled in the early 1900s. They established themselves as fishermen and ship-builders. Learn the History at the Britannia Heritage Shipyard National Historic Site.
-A century ago there were 15 salmon canneries in and around Steveston which employed Japanese workers. The Georgia cannery, which was built in 1894, has a colourful exhibit which takes visitors through the canning process used in the 1930s.
-The Steveston Museum, in the heart of the Village, is built in a former Northern Bank building. Inside you can see what a bank manager’s office would have looked like in the 19th century. Photo exhibits outline the history of the harbour.
-During the internment, Japanese Canadians were sent far away from their homes on the coast. Evidence of that can be found at the Nikkei Internment Memorial Centre, a ten hour drive from Vancouver. The former New Denver internment camp has been preserved as a museum. The tiny shacks, which housed extended Japanese families in the 1940s, still stand.
-After your cultural tour is done, be sure to enjoy the ample natural beauty British Columbia has to offer. For more information on the Steveston region, visit www.tourismrichmond.com. For more information on the New Denver area, visit http://www.castlegar.com/.
Photo: Nikkei Internment Memorial Centre includes the original homes where families like the Murakamis lived during internment
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EMPLOYMENT IN STEVESTON
Gulf of Georgia Cannery
12138 Fourth Avenue
Steveston, B.C.
Telephone: +1 (606) 664-9009
www.gulfofgeorgiacannery.com
FISHING IN STEVESTON
Britannia Heritage Shipyard National Historic Site
5180 Westwater Drive
Steveston, B.C.
Telephone: +1 (604) 718 8050
www.city.richmond.bc.ca
TOWN HISTORY
Steveston Museum
3811 Moncton Street
Steveston, B.C.
Telephone: +1 (604) 271 6868
www.city.richmond.bc.ca
MEMORIES OF INTERNMENT
The Nikkei Internment Memorial Centre
306 Josephine Street
New Denver B.C. VOG 1SO
Telephone: 1 250 358-7288
http://www.newdenver.ca/nikkei/nikkei.php
EXPLORING THE REGION
Tourism Richmond
#250-8260 Granville Ave
Richmond, B.C. V6Y 1P3
Telephone: +1 (877) 247-0777
www.tourismrichmond.com
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Channel M
Mon, June 23, 2008 @ 8:00 am (PST)
Wed, June 18, 2008 @ 2:00 pm (PST)
SCN
Tue, October 3, 2006 @ 8:30 pm (CST)
channel m
Sun, September 10, 2006 @ 11:00 am ()
Mon, September 4, 2006 @ 8:30 am ()
Tue, April 18, 2006 @ 1:00 pm (PST)
Sun, January 22, 2006 @ 9:30 pm (PST)
SCN
Tue, October 4, 2005 @ 10:00 pm (CST)
Canadian Learning Television
Mon, October 3, 2005 @ 9:30 pm (EST)
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Pre Viewing Questions
1. What do you know about Canada’s treatment of Japanese Canadians during WWII?
Post Viewing Questions
1. After viewing the story about Kimiko and her family, how do you feel about the Canadian Government’s treatment of its Japanese Canadian citizens? Do you think such treatment would occur today? Support your view with examples or references to new safeguards or legislation.
2. Are there any immigrant groups that are today viewed with suspicion because of political tensions between the Canadian Government and the government of their place of birth? Do these groups suffer from discrimination or any kind of harassment?
3. Mary says that she was taught that bitterness about the injustice that her community suffered would only hold her back? Do you agree?
4. Can anger over past injustices ever be a good thing? Explain using examples based either in history or in your personal life.
5. Kimiko’s strength and ability to start a new life remains an inspiration to her daughter. What lesson about life have you taken from an elder in your family? How does his/her life story inform your life?
Further Research:
1. A novel, Obasan, by Japanese Canadian writer, Joy Kogawa, tells the story of a young girl faced with the hard realities of internment in Alberta during WWII. Read the novel and compare this story, also a true account, to the history of Kimiko.
2. What other ethnic groups were interned during WWII and where were these internment camps located. Write a short essay on this passage of Canadian history.
Additional Research Question:
This film tells the story of a woman who is a role model to women in her family and in her community. Who in your life has been a role model? If you would like to share the story about this person with other young people to whom you think this story might act as a beacon, please add it to the website www.mothertongue.ca. Alternately, if you would like to read stories that others have posted, please click on the website and become a part of a dialogue about the importance of role models.
Note:
These starting points for discussion and research questions were written by Dr. Carole Ann Reed, an educational consultant. Dr. Reed has worked as a human rights educator for almost twenty years in the Toronto area and has authored and co-authored many articles, curricula, and educational kits as well as a book. The topics she writes about include issues such as the Holocaust, the Rwandan genocide, women’s rights and anti-racism. For several years she was the Director of the Holocaust Centre of Toronto.
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This series of educational videos was made possible with funding from
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Mother Tongue: A woman's history of ethnic Canada is a 13-part TV series that documents Canada's multicultural history from a female perspective. Each program tells the story of a notable woman in one of Canada's communities, including a Black fugitive slave, an Acadian mail order bride, and an Icelandic suffragette.
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