TOKYO — Two multiracial athletes, two high-profile roles: Rising NBA star Rui Hachimura carried the Japanese flag at the Olympics’ opening ceremony. Tennis superstar Naomi Osaka lit the Olympic cauldron. For Japan, it was a remarkable showcase of racial diversity — but one that also highlighted how much remains missing in a nation that values […]
Washington selects Hachimura 9th in NBA draft
July 4, 2019 by Leave a Comment
NEW YORK (Kyodo) — Rui Hachimura became the first Japanese player selected in the opening round of the NBA draft when the Washington Wizards claimed him with the ninth pick June 20 in New York. The 21-year-old Hachimura played three seasons at Gonzaga University before being drafted. He now will join a Washington team that had […]
Naomi Osaka stayed above the fray to claim first Grand Slam title
September 13, 2018 by Leave a Comment
NEW YORK — As Serena Williams’ U.S. Open final crumbled around her on Sept. 8, Japan’s Naomi Osaka said she had to stay above the fray in order to keep her historic run to Grand Slam history alive. With code violations, broken rackets, tears and accusations of cheating coming from Williams’ end of the court, Osaka […]
Japanese baseball ‘Iron Man’ Kinugasa, son of African American, dead at 71
April 26, 2018 by Leave a Comment
TOKYO — Hall of Famer Sachio Kinugasa, whose 2,215 consecutive games remain a Japanese record, died of colon cancer April 23 aged 71, people familiar with the matter said. Nicknamed “Iron Man,” Kinugasa played for the Hiroshima Carp from 1965 to 1987 and was the Central League’s 1984 MVP. He is tied for fifth in […]
Asian American Orchestra to celebrate Black History Month, commemorate DOR with new work
February 15, 2018 by Leave a Comment
Anthony Brown, who is of African and Japanese heritage, will commemorate the intersection of his biracial identity as part of a 20-year retrospective of his Grammy-nominated Asian American Orchestra Feb. 18 at the Oakland Asian Cultural Center, celebrating Black History Month and observing the Day of Remembrance. The Day of Remembrance reflects upon the 76th […]
Okinawa-born Dave Roberts introduced as first minority manager of L.A. Dodgers
December 3, 2015 by Leave a Comment
LOS ANGELES — Well into a 35-minute press conference announcing his arrival as the 10th manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers, Dave Roberts was thrown a curveball. Flanked by the men who hired him — Los Angeles General Manager Farhan Zaidi and President of Baseball Operations Andrew Friedman — Roberts, who was born in Okinawa […]
Not Japanese Enough? Miss Universe Japan looks to fight prejudice
August 6, 2015 by 1 Comment
TOKYO — At first glance, Ariana Miyamoto might not be instantly recognized as a Japanese woman. But the 21-year-old model and former bartender — who in March became the first mixed-race contestant to be crowned “Miss Universe Japan” — was born and raised in Japan, and Japanese is her native language. But because of her […]
Nikkei teen, said to be Disney’s first biracial lead character, stars in ‘Big Hero 6’
November 20, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Ryan Potter provides the voice of Hiro Hamada, a young genius-turned-superhero in Disney’s latest animated film “Big Hero 6.” The 19-year-old Potter, whose father is Japanese and mother is Caucasian, plays what he describes as the first biracial main protagonist of a Disney film. Born in Portland, Ore., Potter moved to Tokyo a few months after […]
Postwar adoptees from Japan make connections, share stories in U.S.
November 20, 2014 by 2 Comments
LOS ANGELES — Kei LaFleur has a story behind the name she grew up with, and she said that story has given her much to be thankful for. Born in the fall of 1954 to, she believes, a Japanese mother and American father, she was named Keiko and put in the care of the Elizabeth […]
A legendary artist’s lifetime of loneliness
August 11, 2011 by Leave a Comment
THE EAST-WEST HOUSE: Noguchi’s Childhood in Japan By Christy Hale (New York: Lee and Low Books, 2009, 32 pp., $17.95, hardcover) Always having been curious about the life of biracial artist Isamu Noguchi, I was pleased to receive this book to review. Palo Alto, Calif. author and illustrator Christy Hale has created a lovely picture […]
Connect & Share