Thanks to You!

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What an incredible year we’ve had! 

We participated in the Fifth Nikkei Angel Island Pilgrimage, hosted our annual Story Circle, and premiered Songs for J-Town.

None of this would have been possible without your presence and support. Let’s take a moment and remember what we were able to achieve together.

All photos taken by Mark Shigenaga.

FIFTH NIKKEI ANGEL ISLAND PILGRIMAGE

At the historic site of Angel Island, Brenda and Mark performed Return of the Sun in honor of the thousands (over 85,000) of people of Japanese descent who passed through the Angel Island Immigration Station.

At the historic site of Angel Island, Brenda and Mark performed Return of the Sun in honor of the thousands (over 85,000) of people of Japanese descent who passed through the Angel Island Immigration Station.

You can learn more about the event here

SECOND ANNUAL STORY CIRCLE OF THE

JAPANESE DIASPORA (IKIRU: TO LIVE)

In August 2022 was the  online Story Circle centered around IKIRU: TO LIVE. The event united people of Japanese descent living all throughout the U.S . 

TESTIMONIALS
FROM THE 2022 STORY CIRCLE: 

“The collective strength and relief found in our particular stories and differences, more so than any essential Japanese thing which binds us. Japanese-ness (or maybe specifically, Japanese diasporic experience) as a dynamic and open basis for love and inclusion, not a source of division, purity, silence, or pridefulness.  My breakout room experience was very heartfelt and heart-filling.”

•••

“Assimilation is annihilation. When I came to the US I chose to go by my English name because I felt fear that I would be rejected. I wish I had not gotten rid of the part of me that signified I was Japanese. It still hurts.”

•••

“I think this space is especially important for Japanese Americans because of the custom of enryo.  We tend to not share our stories and thus our ancestors die a second death because they are not remembered.  This space gives us a safe community to share our stories so that we can celebrate our heritage
and be authentically seen.” 

You can learn more and watch the video here.

SONGS FOR J-TOWN

As we continue to dream into the future we hold with us the sparks that brought Songs for J-Town into being, spoken from the first voice of Mark Izu: 

“As I created and selected music this concert for you at the Presidio Theatre, I sadly recalled the military commands emanating from the Presidio that sent our parents and grandparents to concentration camps. But beyond bringing people together to memorialize and grieve, I’m hoping our music helps us cleanse, rejoice and look forward to a new future. Many were raised in homes in which emotion was not to be expressed. Gaman was taught as a value. But tonight, I’m hoping that the music can speak for us and this concert be a cleansing. As you hear the music, please let it wash over you like a gentle rain. There’ll be music that reminds of our past and celebrates this coming together, serving as a beginning point for our futures together.”

rise

​

we bow with respect

kneel in homage

give thanks to our ancestors

 

and then we rise

 

we bend in harsh storms

we stumble and fall

pull each other back up

broken at times

but we heal

 

and then we rise

 

they stuff our mouths with their fear

twist our children with their venom

deny our history 

breaking all mirrors 

which reflect our true selves

 

but we 

wash our mouths

with flowing river water

cleanse our eyes 

with gentle spring rains

take our children to the sea 

and unwind their limbs

 

as we tell them the stories 

of how we’ve survived

of how we carry 

our ancestors’ breath 

inside our mouths

 

we teach our children 

who we have been 

and who they are

and why we must 

learn to climb mountains

with sturdy ropes 

and enduring faith 

 

 

 

of why we must 

climb closer and closer 

to the sun

so that we 

like it 

will rise 

and rise

and rise


devorah major

AUDIENCE TESTIMONIALS: 

“The connection between the performers, the little moments when they cued each other, listened to each other, supported each other was, to me, great performing and a recipe for our world.”

•••

“There was so many personal meaninful moments in Songs for J-Town. I am a person who was born and raised in San Francisco, I am of Japanese descent, I work in the community to help the Asian American population, I love it when genres are mixed, I love live music, the list goes on. I cried. That was my experience, a positive cry. Please keep up the great work.”

FIRST VOICE, INC • All Rights Reserved © 2017

Brenda Wong Aoki