Celebrating 53 years serving the youth of San Francisco and beyond, the Japanese Community Youth Council recognized its roots and impact over the years, as its services have made a lasting impact on thousands of youth each year, including those who came back to the organization to take on leadership roles. The organization celebrated its […]
Uplifting Generations of Youth: JCYC looks back at five decades
November 24, 2022 by Leave a Comment
David Kakishiba and EBAYC: Community-based programs to help youth
October 13, 2022 by Leave a Comment
David Kakishiba has spent 42 years working with the East Bay Asian Youth Center, better known by their acronym EBAYC. While the organization has evolved to suit its constituents’ needs, Kakishiba’s mission has remained unchanged since he first joined the organization in 1980. His community advocacy efforts creating healthy environments for youth has informed his […]
THROUGH YONSEI EYES: DEAR ASIAN AMERICANS: An open letter and guide-in-progress on being a productive ally to African Americans by a devastated and outraged Asian American
June 4, 2020 by Leave a Comment
Are you also devastated and outraged? You should be. That’s just the start. So, what’s next? How can the Asian American community mobilize to be productive and supportive to the Black community right now? I’m not claiming to be a perfect ally/activist, or that this is the definitive guide to being an ally in 2020, […]
THROUGH YONSEI EYES: Friendsgiving
January 1, 2020 by Leave a Comment
Many English teachers in Japan have a tough time during the holidays. It’s times like these when we realize how much we need each other here. I look around the room and become overwhelmed by how deeply I love the people around me.
THROUGH YONSEI EYES: The virtue of goodbye
April 11, 2019 by Leave a Comment
Late March and early April are times of great change within the Japanese school system. In March, the students have their graduation ceremonies. They are serious affairs filled with tears and stoicism. It’s difficult to move on from a middle school.
THROUGH YONSEI EYES: Welcome home
January 1, 2019 by Leave a Comment
I tried to take in the reality of my circumstances. I had just moved from the metropolitan Bay Area to rural Japan to teach English. I didn’t know any Japanese. I didn’t know anyone in Tottori, the least populated prefecture in the country. I had no Internet and no cell service, which meant I couldn’t even call home. There was nothing to fill the crushing silence.
The beauty of youth
July 26, 2012 by Leave a Comment
LYCHEE LIGHT CLUB By Usamaru Furuya (New York: Vertical Inc., 2011, 328 pp., $16.95, paperback) Growing up is hard. Young boys face adolescence and their oncoming adult lives with eyes like those of a deer caught in headlights. In that sense, “Lychee Light Club” is a “Lord of the Flies” for the new century, as […]
Nikkei bridge the digital, generational divide
March 2, 2012 by Leave a Comment
Youth and seniors are slowly bridging the gap between the community through a series of workshops that are being held at the Japanese Cultural and Community Center of Northern California (JCCCNC). The Digital Leadership Program’s classes encourage senior citizens to embrace technology, and allow San Francisco Japantown’s youth to develop their communication skills. The classroom […]
iTOUR THROUGH HISTORY: New app allows digital media to teach about the Japanese American incarceration experience
January 20, 2012 by 2 Comments
Have the days when students learned about Japanese American history through textbooks gone by the wayside? As consumers latch on to the latest tech gadgets, some companies are using digital media to teach about the incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II. From iPhone applications to video games, the emerging trend signals the innovative […]
Reduced bus service to ‘accelerate destruction’ of San Francisco’s Japantown
Editor’s Note: According to the San Francisco Unified School District, it has reduced its bus service for the 2012-13 school year, due to ongoing state budget cuts. For more information, visit www.sfusd.edu/en/transportation/transportation-changes.html or call (415) 695-5505. The combined effect of the elimination of SFUSD school bus routes to the Nihonmachi Little Friends stop is the […]