Gil Asakawa
@gilasakawaGil Asakawa escreve sobre cultura pop e política a partir de uma perspectiva asiático-americana e nipo-americana em seu blog, www.nikkeiview.com. Ele e seu sócio também fundaram o www.visualizAsian.com, em que conduzem entrevistas ao vivo com notáveis asiático-americanos das Ilhas do Pacífico. É o autor de Being Japanese American (Stone Bridge Press, 2004) e trabalhou na presidência do conselho editorial do Pacific Citizen por sete anos como membro do conselho nacional JACL.
Atualizado em novembro de 2009
Stories from This Author
2012 was a good year for Denver’s Japanese and Japanese American community
31 de Dezembro de 2012 • Gil Asakawa
This was a good year for Japanese and Japanese Americans in Colorado. A lot of the credit goes to Ikuhiko Ono, the Consul General who came to Denver late last year, and has made a concerted effort to reach out to the local JA community. Previous Consul Generals have invited local JA leaders to the official residence for private dinners and to special receptions and events, including an annual reception at a downtown Denver hotel to mark the birthday of …
Why are there no Asian Santa Clauses?
25 de Dezembro de 2012 • Gil Asakawa
I just had an interesting phone conversation with Leo Duran, a producer at KPCC public radio in Los Angeles, about a burning issue the media must address: Why are there no Asian Santa Clauses? Granted, the image that immediately springs to mind when you say “Santa” is a big fat white man with rosy cheeks, a bushy white beard and a twinkle in his eye, who guffaws “Ho! Ho! Ho!” at the drop of a pointy red hat with a …
Rice and tea have been and always will be mainstays of Asian culture
26 de Novembro de 2012 • Gil Asakawa
I’m not much of a churchgoer, but I’ve attended and volunteered at events at both the Denver Buddhist Temple, and the Simpson Methodist Church, which are both focal points of the local Japanese and Japanese American communities. A couple of weeks ago, I was part of the Mile High JACL‘s Fall Festival team, and spent a long day cooking (and cleaning) at Simpson Methodist Church. Both churches hold lots of cultural events, and like any church or temple probably throughout …
Japanese Americans should follow Japan news
25 de Outubro de 2012 • Gil Asakawa
Over the years, I’ve been surprised that many Japanese Americans aren’t interested in Japan or even visiting Japan, mostly because they’re embarrassed that they don’t speak Japanese, or they feel entirely American. I think it’s more important than ever for Japanese Americans to follow events in Japan. The fact is, Japan is on the precipice of some potentially treacherous political turmoil. Most Americans are unaware of Japan’s dysfunctional democracy, which has led to a seven prime ministers in the past …
Quick Thoughts on Japanese Fast Food
9 de Outubro de 2012 • Gil Asakawa
American-style fast food was only introduced in Japan during the past 30 years—when I lived there as a child, there were no McDonalds, Pizza Hut or KFC to be found in the alleys and skyscrapers of Tokyo. Those bastions of U.S. culture arrived in the late ‘60s and during the 1970s, and when they did, they often adapted to Japanese tastes, by featuring custom versions of the familiar Big Macs and Quarter Pounders we know and love. In Japan, for …
A visit to Nan Desu Kan: Cosplay takes the spotlight at anime convention
26 de Setembro de 2012 • Gil Asakawa
As an outsider to the anime and manga community Erin and I are drawn to Nan Desu Kan, Denver’s anime convention that celebrates its 16th year this weekend at the Marriott in the Tech Center, in large part for its attendees’ passion for cosplay. We’re not that familiar with the plethora of contemporary anime titles (though I did grow up as a kid in Japan watching the likes of Astro Boy). But you don’t need to be an anime expert …
Food for Life: Nice Rice
6 de Setembro de 2012 • Gil Asakawa
It’s been 20 years since I graduated from college (!), and I realized I don’t have much to show from those days. Old, laughably out-of-date clothes were turned into rags years ago; I’ve upgraded my cheap stereo with better equipment and newer CD technology; and I’ve driven several cars since my beloved Mazda Mizer. What I do have still with me are some books, a few pieces of artwork (I went to art school), jade plant (it’s huge), and my …
As anniversary of Tohoku Earthquake nears, Japan thanks the world, shows recovery efforts
20 de Março de 2012 • Gil Asakawa
It’s almost a year since the 9.0-level Great East Japan Earthquake, as the disaster is now officially called, and the subsequent tsunami devastated a huge swath of the Tohoku region along the country’s northeast coast. With the anniversary looming, many communities in the U.S are planning commemorative events, and many people are remembering how they learned of the disaster. The initial news of the earthquake, which struck at 2:46 PM local time on March 11, 2011, were horrific: I got …
Cooking Japanese food with my mom: Okara and Tempura
11 de Janeiro de 2012 • Gil Asakawa
My mom doesn’t cook as much as she used to. She used to cook everything—mostly Japanese food of course. She even used to make her own tofu. After my dad passed away in the early ’90s she cooked for herself for years, making large portions of dishes to freeze and re-heat as meals for days. But lately she finds cooking “mendokusai,” which translates to “bothersome" but I like “pain in the butt.” She was always a great cook and of …
Karaoke on Steriods
28 de Dezembro de 2011 • Gil Asakawa
This article was written in 2003. I haven’t judged the Kohaku Utagassen contest since then, but I’ve attended the event most years. It’s still a tradition for Denver’s Japanese-speaking community, and a showcase for the older generation’s treasured “enka” style of pop song.This weekend I discovered that karaoke can be incredibly elegant, and a legitimate form of entertainment—not just bar fodder. I was a judge for the 28th annual Red vs. White Singing Competition, Denver’s professionally-staged version of Japan’s Kohaku …
