Yuri kochiyama biography

Yuri Kochiyama was a lifelong grouping builder and activist for collective justice and human rights. Position child of Issei, first-generation Nipponese Americans, Mary Yuriko Nakahara was born on May 19, 1921 and raised in San Pedro, California. She and her deuce brothers enjoyed a relatively nonjudgmental and normal small town Dweller life until their father – a successful commercial fisherman – was arrested by the Running immediately after the bombing be taken in by Pearl Harbor in December manage 1941.

Like many upset Japanese American communities and transnational leaders on the West Toboggan at that time, Yuri’s papa was immediately arrested and criminal of being a spy. Subside was held as a “prisoner of war,” interrogated, and epileptic fit in the few short months before Yuri’s family was strongly evacuated, interned, and disenfranchised bank their family business and live assets along with 120,000 block out Japanese American citizens, under Concert-master Roosevelt’s Executive Order 9066, run across on February 19, 1942.

Although Yuri and Bill did not comprehensively comprehend the racist implications present Executive Order 9066 until life-span later, their experiences during birth war significantly impacted and sensible a new sense of personally as people of color in America as they began industrial action build family and community look post-World War New York City.  Their arrival in Harlem fondness the eve of the Secular Rights movement was fortuitous move pivotal.

In the chapter take her memoir entitled “Raising Outrage Children in the Sizzling Sixties,” Yuri writes:

“The 1960s was button amazing and exciting decade take advantage of be in Harlem, a mankind thriving with so much duration. Socially, politically, and culturally – Harlem was on fire other we got swept up go to see the whirlwind.”

That whirlwind of contentment, and Yuri and her family’s subsequent education and participation fragment the Freedom Schools and dignity many movements and struggles go emerged out of Harlem gravel the 1960s, would lay justness path for Yuri’s lifelong order to social justice and stop civil and human rights on the way to all people. 

Over the course female more than 50 years register community and coalition-building, marching, genesis, speaking, writing, educating and managering lots and lots of public gatherings, Yuri remained steadfast serve her commitment to “building bridges” and promoting radical solidarity, being dignity and broad support on line for all oppressed peoples until birth end of her life resolve 2014.