BEGIN:VCALENDAR
VERSION:2.0
PRODID:-//PYVOBJECT//NONSGML Version 1//EN
BEGIN:VEVENT
UID:events.uid.6672@www.discovernikkei.org
DTSTART:20221008T000000Z
DTEND:20221009T000000Z
DESCRIPTION:On October 8th (Saturday) and 9th (Sunday)\, the <strong>Okina
 wa Association of America (OAA)</strong> in Gardena\, California will reb
 roadcast their annual <em>Irei no Hi:</em> Remembering the Battle of Oki
 nawa on YouTube. <strong>A special guest lecturer from Okinawa\, Harumi M
 iyagi\, talked about the forced mass civilian deaths on Zamami Island.</st
 rong>\n\nThe event was Japanese with English subtitles for the presentatio
 n and English translation for the Q&amp\;A. The recording will be availabl
 e to watch anytime on October 8th and 9th: <strong><a href="https://www.yo
 utube.com/watch?v=drZHwOSlPSw" target="_blank">youtube.com/watch?v=drZHwOS
 lPSw</a></strong> – <strong>Suggested donation is $5.</strong><strong>
 </strong>\n\nWorld War II’s Battle of Okinawa has been called one the bl
 oodiest land battles in the Pacific\, with historians calling it a “war 
 of attrition” by the Imperial Japanese Army to prevent the U.S. military
  from reaching the Japanese mainland. The U.S. military landed in the Kera
 ma Islands (made up of Tokashiki\, Zamami\, and Kerama) on March 26\, 1945
 . Okinawan survivors state that the mass civilian deaths that occurred dur
 ing this time were coerced by the Imperial Japanese Army. In 2007\, Japan
 ’s Ministry of Education ordered the incidents to be removed from high s
 chool textbooks. Guest lecturer <strong>Harumi Miyagi</strong> talked ab
 out these horrific incidents based on her research and interviews with sur
 vivors.\n\n<strong>Harumi Miyagi</strong> is a historian\, lecturer\, and
  writer born in Zamami. She is currently the vice chairperson of the New O
 kinawa Prefectural History Editorial Committee (Shin Okinawa-ken-shi Hensh
 ū Iinkai) and chairperson of the Women’s History Subcommittee. As a lec
 turer\, she has spoken at Okinawa International University\, the Universit
 y of the Ryūkyūs\, and the Prefectural Government office about women’s
  history and gender studies\, peace and human rights\, and the inheritance
  of <em>tootoomee</em> (Okinawan mortuary tablets). Her books include 
 “What My Mother Left Behind: New Testimonies of Mass Suicide in Zamami I
 sland\,” “Women’s History as a Minority” (co-authored)\, and “Li
 sten to the Damage of Sexual Violence” (co-authored).\n\nThis year marks
  the 77th anniversary of the Battle of Okinawa. In Okinawa\, a memorial da
 y known as <em>Irei no Hi</em> (慰霊の日) is observed annually on Ju
 ne 23\, the date which was documented as the end of the Battle of Okinawa 
 in 1945. The goal of the OAA's annual <em>Irei no Hi:</em> Remembering t
 he Battle of Okinawa event is to memorialize the nearly 150\,000 lives tha
 t were lost during the war and post-war years and to inform the next gener
 ation about Okinawa’s history and current issues. \n\nThe <strong>Okin
 awa Association of America\, Inc. (OAA)</strong> is a public benefit\, ch
 aritable organization that is dedicated to preserving and promoting Okinaw
 an culture. Formed by first generation Okinawan immigrants (issei)\, the O
 AA has grown into a multi-generational organization that hosts numerous ev
 ents throughout the year for the community (cultural lectures\, performanc
 es\, social gatherings)\, senior-focused activities\, and opportunities fo
 r youth/young adult members of Okinawan descent. 2019 marked the organizat
 ion’s 110th anniversary as well as the 20th anniversary of the OAA Cente
 r in Gardena.
DTSTAMP:20240416T233443Z
SUMMARY:Battle of Okinawa Virtual Lecture (Replay)
URL:/en/events/2022/10/08/battle-of-okinawa-virtual-lecture-replay/
END:VEVENT
END:VCALENDAR