Little Tokyo all Over Again

Looking through the LA Times, I came across this article which tied in nicely to the Kurashige readings on Little Tokyo.

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-korjapan23-2009feb23,0,2634061.story

In the article, it discusses the influx of Korean-Americans in the Little Tokyo neighborhood in the past decade and the relationship that they have with the Japanese-Americans who currently reside there. In the past few years, the number of Koreans living in Little Tokyo has been multiplying, and with this growth, tensions in the Japanese community have been mounting. Because of historically bad relations and tensions between these two ethnic groups, the Japanese residents weren't happy about this change. Each group continued to believe in the racial stereotypes of the other group. The Koreans believed that "'the Japanese are snooty.' 'They don't greet you in the elevator.' 'They disdain Korean culture.' 'They're trying to push us out.'" whereas the Japanese believed that the Koreans "'smell of garlic.' 'They don't follow the rules.' 'They're going to take over.'"

Examining these stereotypes, we can see from an outsider’s perspective that they are simply that-- stereotypes; However, they are still detrimental to the community and perpetuate hatred and disdain among the residents. Though they are all Americans, there is still too much historical hatred and tension for the two ethnic groups to live in harmony, or so it seems. This parallels nicely with the entirety of Chapter 9 in Kurashige's book. Just like with the influx of African-Americans in Little Tokyo in the 1940's, cultural ignorance, limited housing options, and cultural histories have led to racial divides. In the book, Kurashige talks about the mistrust that Japanese-Americans had of African-Americans. The example he provides us is that of a robbery of an elderly Japanese couple by an African-American figure. This singular incident fostered hatred within the Japanese community of African-Americans without considering other evidence. By taking a select few events such as this, it is easy to make assumptions about another race, and that is what has been going on in the Japanese community. In the article, it provides a similar example of one man’s experiences being both Japanese and Korean, and the distrust that he developed for the Japanese. However, instead of dwelling on this incident and becoming spiteful, he used the energy to create solidarity within the community.

Beyond the apparent racial tensions that now exist in Little Tokyo, the article goes on to discuss how in the Little Tokyo Towers, a retirement community, the residents have taken it upon themselves to create a peaceful and harmonious community despite their cultural differences. Though the towers have always been somewhat culturally diverse, they have always been primarily Japanese. But now, with a shortage of housing options for retiring Koreans, about 1/3 of the units are occupied by Korean residents. Just like when African-Americans began occupying Little Tokyo, at first, the Japanese residents were angered that their tower was being filled by Koreans and they put up a fight. Legally, however, the landlords cannot give out the units based on race. The members of the community soon came to realize that fighting, stereotyping, and shutting each other out was not the solution. Just like the Japanese and Black communities realized in the 1940s, both groups should work with one another towards a common goal instead of working against one another. They realized that “if unity… was to be built, the community …would be the principle arena for struggle” (169). In other words, it takes a community effort to band together and work cordially. Even though the stereotypes between the two groups still exist, they have overcome these and learned to cooperate. “Despite the fact that many harbored racial stereotypes… [they still] got along” (170).

In the article, it discusses various ways in which the Koreans and Japanese have come together in order to understand the culture of one another. Members of the Little Toyko Towers have volunteered their time to teach Korean and Japanese language classes; they have all pitched in to purchase a karaoke machine with songs in both Japanese and Korean; they print a newsletter in both languages and have put on concerts from both cultures.

Immediately upon reading this article, the parallels between this current situation and the reading jumped out at me. Of course, this concept of racial tensions leading to solidarity is not unique to Little Tokyo. I myself made connections between this and my own life. Living in a suburban community outside of Chicago, the area has been primarily white for the last several decades; however, in recent years, there has been a large rise in the Mexican population. Because of the racial and cultural barrier, my community has been polarized. Though there has yet to be any real kind of solidarity, I can hope that just like these two situations seen in Little Tokyo, the residents of the community will come together for the sake of harmony in order to reach some kind of mutual cultural understanding.