Hiroshima-Nagasaki Hibakusha @ 71

This past weekend marked the 71st Anniversary of the dropping of the Atomic Bomb on Hiroshima. As done for the last 30 years, The Koyasan Buddhist Temple in Little Tokyo hosted the annual Commemorative Service in conjunction with the ASA (Atomic Survivors Association) and the JACCC. As per tradition, this years well attended service was held on the first Sunday in August to comemorate the twin tragedies and hear from guest speakers and our resident Hibakusha (Survivors). How fortunate they are still alive to speak with us.

Over the years we have come to know Ms. Kazu Suyeishi and were pleased to see she was more vibrant than in recent years past. She was 14 years old when the attack came and recalled how she could actually see the Enola Gay as it appeared in the crystal blue sky that morning of August 6th, 1945. Part of her story became an inspired component of our illustrated Children's book Ichiro Dreams in Color. Another poignant survivor who attends every year is former ASA President Mr. Junji Sarashina. Still alive and happy to see all who come to this ceremony. Both survivors now in their twilight years bear no grudge for the loss of their families or the scars they have borne. They come every year to speak on the horrors of nuclear weapons and share their annual message of Peace. Candles, Sutras, and Goeika are annually offered each year before the Hiroshima Flame that was originally brought here 40 some years ago from Hiroshima with the intention of remaining a lit until that last nuclear weapon is no more. While this may sound like a lofty and unrealistic aspiration, it's intention is a peaceful one to inspire hope for an age where there are no more wars of this sort and no more future Hibakusha. We do not know how many more years we have with Ms. Suyeishi or Mr. Sarashina, but we cherish each encounter with them and in one sense feel blessed by them. For people who have suffered so much at the hands of others, their faith in mankind and love of this country is one to be learned from. As stated by the guest speaker Dr. Dr. Gloria R. Montebruno Sadler PHD reminded us, "The Americans did not know at the time about the effects of radioactive fallout. No one could have envisioned what consequences would come of such a weapon at that time." Thus, it is perhaps President Truman who authorized the weapons use in Japan forbid General MacArthur from using it five years later in Korea. As we write about this let us reiterate one thing before anyone comments is that the debate over why the bomb was dropped is irrelevant. We look at this as a wartime tragedy that changed the world and luckily has not been repeated. That is the whole point of remembering those lost and those left to tell the tale. We at American Mishima have in the past and will continue to wish all those connected by this chapter in our human history continued peace and hope one day this one solemn flame can be extinguished in peace for all mankind.

President Obama Visits Hiroshima

In an event no one ever saw coming, President Obama became the first United States President to visit Hiroshima. It had been a long desire for him to do so and we at American Mishima are thankful that this historic moment has been made. Joined by Japanese PM Shinzo Abe, President Obama made the pilgrimage to Peace Memorial Park and laid a wreath for the the 125,000 people that died there from the Atomic Bomb dropped by the B-29 Enola Gay. This figure included mostly civilian men, women, children, a number of Koreans, and a dozen American POW's. This figure does not include the untold thousands that died later from radiation sickness. 

It is most poignant that for an American President to visit Hiroshima. Not to apologize, but to mourn those lives lost and speak of peace. We are pleased that the president met with three Hibakusha present and later spoke of the peace that was forged from this terrible weapon that unleashed its indescribable cruelty that was later repeated in Nagasaki. Japan and the United States have become the best of friends since those dark days near the end of WWII.

"That is why we come to this place. We stand here, in the middle of this city and force ourselves to imagine the moment the bomb fell. We force ourselves to feel the dread of children confused by what they see. We listen to a silent cry.

We remember all the innocents killed across the arc of that terrible war and the wars that came before and the wars that would follow. Mere words cannot give voice to such suffering, but we have a shared responsibility to look into the eye of history and ask what we must do differently to curb such suffering again.

Someday the voices of the Hibakusha will no longer be with us to bear witness, but the memory of the morning of Aug. 6, 1945, must never fade. That memory allows us to fight complacency. It fuels our moral imagination. It allows us to change. And since that fateful day, we have made choices that give us hope." - President Barrack Obama 2016.

Nagasaki at 70: Message from Japan PM Shinzo Abe

Message from Prime Minister Shinzo Abe:
I attended the Nagasaki Peace Memorial Ceremony and expressed my sincere condolences to the souls of the great number of atomic bomb victims.

I profoundly contemplated how precious peace is and once again pledged to firmly uphold the "Three Non-Nuclear Principles" and lead the international community towards realizing a world free of nuclear weapons so that the horror and devastation caused by nuclear weapons are not repeated.

This year the average age of atomic bomb survivors is for the first time over 80 years old. We must not allow the aging atomic bomb survivors’ wishes for peace to fade away. At the Peace Memorial Ceremony, survivor of the atomic bombing told the younger generation about the harsh situation after the bombing and conveyed their strong wishes for peace. I was really struck as the blue sky was filled with the beautiful singing of young people, who heard those words and will later shoulder the future of Nagasaki.

Hiroshima Hibakusha A-Bomb Survivors 2014

This last Sunday August 3rd three days before the 69th anniversary of the first atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki saw the annual memorial service held at the Los Angeles Koyasan Temple in Little Tokyo. We were pleased to see that Hiroshima Survivor Ms. Kazu Suyeishi and Nagasaki Survivor Junji Sarashina were able to attend as well as other members of the American Society of Hiroshima / Nagasaki A-Bomb Survivors (ASA), JACCC, & other Buddhist Clergy from other temples in attendance. This was the most attended memorial service we have seen since we started attending them five years ago. As with every year the Hiroshima Peace Flame was brought out and candles were lit. Incense and prayers offered. While it inevitable that the Hibakusha will be leaving us soon that their memory and the lessons learned by their experiences live on to educate future generations. 

 Hiroshima Peace Flame 2014

Hiroshima / Nagasaki Memorial

Every 1^st Sunday in August, a memorial service for the victims of the Atomic Bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki is held at the Los Angeles Koyasan Buddhist Temple in Little Tokyo Los Angeles. As with every year, what few surviving Hibakusha of the ASA American Survivors of Hiroshima / Nagasaki A-Bomb Survivors that are still with us attend and share their stories. In the last five years that we have attended these memorial services, we have always found it troubling to hear people throw in the age old argument as to the necessity of the bomb to end the war, but never from those who have ever encountered these few survivors who have had the opportunity to hear first hand what it was like to have walked through a burning hell on earth and live to tell about it. We assure you that while it is easy to arm chair quarterback history from a distance, seeing, meeting and shaking the hands and in some cases hugging these aging survivors presents a human face and a reality not one of us could possibly imagine that in our opinion would mute any argument in favor of the bomb. 

As with any post war debate here in the United States, the mention of the bombing of Pearl Harbor is thrown around carte blanche in the same old “well they started it” mentality. We could argue this point all day long but that's not what we are here for. There is no point in re-fighting WWII for argument's sake. While the attack on Hawaii was focused on attacking Military installations and personnel (part of the risk of being part of the military), the atomic bombings on civilian population centers simply do not equate on the same level. While tragic and unfortunate it might have been to have been a serviceman at Pearl, to have been a primary school student forced to search for bodies of your dead and dying classmates under the rubble and ash of your grade school is not the same thing. They didn't volunteer for that nor could they imagine seeing inner city canals clogged with dead bodies and rivers of blood amidst the burning skies and blackened smoke to the screams and cries of those who could no longer be helped. And you think you had childhood trauma? Imagine what these grade school children when through! Compared to these people, we've got nothing to complain about. The United States was so fortunate to not have its cities bombed during the war, it is likely for this reason people could not grasp the concept of total war hence the realities of such war can not be understood leading in some cases to the level of arrogance by those who have never experienced war yet out of ignorance, champion it. 

 

I could not imagine on any level seeing people walking about so burned beyond recognition you could no longer tell if they were male or female or if they were facing you or if their back was turned to you. Yet, these events did happen and must never happen again. When I look into the eyes of these people and see their scars and the humbleness in their voices, it evokes a level of hurt and disappointment that 68 years later, the world has not learned from these events. Selective memory I call it. We as a society choose to remember only what happened to us and ignore the suffering of those civilians who by no fault of their own had been swept up by tragic events beyond their control both in Japan and here in the United States. Like the old people who showed me their tattoos force ably inked onto them in places like Dachau, so too are the scars and haunting looks carried on by these survivors. And what many do not know here is what became of them after the war as they became known as Hibakusha – a people sometimes shunned within their own country as if they were responsible for what happened to them. As said many times by ASA member Kazu Suyeshi – No more Hiroshima's – No more Nagasaki - No more Hibakusha.

Undeniably, War is an ugly business in which there are always casualties be it intended or unintended of consequence. While 68 years have passed, we can not allow these tragic events to be forgotten or written off like some disconnected grainy black & white photograph accompanied by a two sentence footnote in history. You can't say it's a Japanese problem not our problem. War is a world wide human problem that stems from the failure to communicate. We live on such a small planet, it makes no sense why parts of the world still fight like cavemen over tiny scraps of meat or act irresponsibly by threatening the world with nuclear war if they do not get what they want. Such war must never happen again. Such horrible weapons should never be used yet they still exist. Those who have not learned of what took place those terrible days of August 1945 have no concept of what such weapons can do. Therefore it is important to hear the stories of these few remaining survivors for we have such little time left as the WWII generation leaves us in ever greater numbers. We at American Mishima would like to thank Mr. Junji Sarashina, and Ms,Midori Seino for their continued work sharing their stories so that future generations will learn from their experiences. 

 No more Hiroshima's – No more Nagasaki - No more Hibakusha.

広島記念, 67th Hiroshima-Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Anniversary

 

Here stands Junji Sarashina, the director of the American Society of Hiroshima-Nagasaki A-Bomb Survivors. Mr. Sarashina himself is a survivor of these tragic wartime events that took place some 67 years ago. He along with Kaz Suyeshi (who was also in attendance) are among a dwindling population of Hibakusha still alive to attend one of these memorial services held every year on the Hiroshima anniversary at the Los Angeles Koyasan Buddhist Temple. 

This was our 4th year we have attended these memorials. And as before, we were thanked by those survivors and their families who together with us gathered to pray for those lost in that wartime tragedy of so long ago. We at American Mishima are grateful and most fortunate to meet such individuals in our lifetime and to hear their stories that bring the human side of what took place come to life. It is hoped that after the World War Two Generation passes on that there will never be another atomic bombing anywhere in the world and no new Hibakusha to bear the scars and tears of such nuclear terrors.

Seen here: Hiroshima Survivor Kaz Seyushi holds our baby Mia-Naoko as we light candles for the people who suffered from the twin atomic bombings 67 years ago.