The Yon-Say Podcast: Recent Episodes
Nikkei Rising
The Yon-Say Podcast, presented by Nikkei Rising, is a space where we’ll be bringing you round table discussions with young adults involved in and around the Japanese American community to honor the Japanese American community’s history and explore its implications today. As part of the Tadaima Virtual Pilgrimage series, a new episode of the Yon-Say Podcast will release every week on Thursday for a total of nine episodes.
The application for the Kakehashi Program is dropping next month, and this is an opportunity you don't want to miss! Created by the Japanese government to promote American travel to Japan, this 10-day all expenses paid (including airfare!) trip will take you and a group of other young JA adults on an adventure to explore culture, food, history, society, and diplomatic relations across Japan. In this heartfelt Part II, we chat with Scout, Hannah, Kelly, and Cris about the “Japanese goodbye”, breaking matcha machines, feeling like we come from somewhere for the first time, and what it’s like to be welcomed back to a place many of our families haven’t been for two generations.
The application for the December 2023 Kakehashi Program is dropping next month, and this is an opportunity you don't want to miss! Created by the Japanese government to promote American travel to Japan, this 10-day all expenses paid (including airfare!) trip will take you and a group of other young JA adults (18ish to 25ish) on an adventure to explore culture, food, history, society, and diplomatic relations across Japan. In this special two-parter series, YSPN host Sachi takes you through all the things you need to know: What's a Kakehashi? How do I apply? Why should I apply? And what should I expect? Stay tuned for Part II for a fun round-table discussion from March 2023 Kakehashi participants about this once-in-a-lifetime experience.
On the finale episode of our mini-series, Mixed Feelings, host, Yoko, sits down with her twin sister, Hana, to talk about their childhood and what it was like growing up as mixed fraternal twins. Join us as we cap off our first YSPN mini-series! Thanks for joining! Available now on Spotify and Apple Podcasts 🎙🎙Art by @renmaicha
On this episode of Mixed Feelings, host Hiro is accompanied by his good friends, Ayako Tischler and Ryan Scanlan! Join the three of them as they discuss how their experiences abroad have affected their own perspectives as individuals of mixed heritages. Available now on Spotify and Apple Podcasts 🎙🎙Art by @renmaicha
On this episode of Mixed Feelings, host Matt is joined by fellow Nikkei Rising members and movie aficionados, Caroline and Lauren! Listen to them discuss what it means to be mixed in the media, why representation is important, and some insights into their favorite movies and characters! Join us for Mixed Media!
On this episode of Mixed Feelings, join host Michelle Heckert and special guest Sydney Kasson for an important discussion about beauty standards. How do they different for mixed folks? Are there conflicting standards because we’re mixed race? And what role do social media and other institutions play in our understanding of beauty standards? Listen in to find out more on this episode!
Welcome back to the new and improved Yon-Say Podcast Network (YSPN)! In our first limited series, Mixed Feelings, your favorite mixed hosts discuss their experiences in different aspects of being mixed joined by special guests! In this first episode though our hosts sit down to discuss the importance of Lovings Day, a milestone in the civil rights movement, and explore their identities as mixed Nikkei! Join us on this new journey as we explore our Mixed Feelings!
In this episode of the Yon-Say podcast, hosts Jonnie, Yoko, Michelle, Sachi, and Matt sit down to discuss the past 3 seasons of the Yon-Say podcast, its inception, the good, the bad, and how the Yon-Say as we know it is coming to an end... But not for long! Listen in for a special peek at what the future of the Yon-Say Podcast looks like. Thank you everyone for your support these past few years! We are looking forward to bringing you new stories, experiences, guests, and hosts in the future. This has been the Yon-Say podcast and it's been Yooooooooooon-said!
This week on the Yon-Say, Sachi and Yoko are joined by Devon Matsumoto and Koki Atcheson from the Young Buddhist Editorial. We hear about the YBE’s origin, discuss our own religious backgrounds, learn about the experiences of Buddhists during WWII, and inspect the intersection of religious, ethnic, and cultural identities that many Nikkei Buddhists hold.
In this episode, Matt and Michelle sit down with artist, activist, and author Kiku Hughes to talk about her debut graphic novel, Displacement. Hear all about her journey through art and how she came to share the story of her family's incarceration experience.
In this special episode, Matt and Hiro partner with the Little Tokyo Historical Society to share the story of Issei civil rights activist, Sei Fujii! In a discussion with director and researcher, Jeffrey Gee Chin; actor, Chris Tashima; and translator, Saeko Higa-Dickinson, learn about Sei Fujii's life and the legacy he leaves behind. You can also hear about the short film, Lil Tokyo Reporter based on Fujii's life and learn about the new book, A Rebel's Outcry published by LTHS, translated from Japanese for the first time! Huge thanks to LTHS and our guests for partnering with us on this episode!
In this episode, hosts Yoko and Michelle welcome fellow Yon-Say host Hiro Edeza, and Ethnic Studies student Kiara Konishi. We discuss the origin stories of our names, as well as our relationships to them. We also explore what factors may alter how we and our names are perceived (ie. location, gender). As we dive deeper into “what” our names mean, we ultimately uncover “how” they have impacted our identities.
In this Memorial Day episode, hosts Hiro and Matt sit down with descendants and supporters of the World War II Nisei Veterans of the 442nd, 100th, and MIS to give an overview of their history and legacy. From the bombing of Pearl Harbor to the beaches of Italy, the frozen forests of France, and war torn Japan, follow the story of the most highly decorated unit of its size in all United States military history from those who’s family experienced it. Join the Nikkei Rising team in remembering all those veterans who took part in World War II despite the racism and incarceration they faced at home. Remember, Go For Broke!
In this episode we welcome our new team member, Sachi Koide. Yoko and Sachi talk to Ryan Lee and Melanie Shojinaga about all things sports: we discuss our relationship to sports growing up as JA athletes, how sports serve as a community builder and a source of empowerment, how the history of playing sports in camp has been carried forward, the experience of being an Asian American girl athlete, and more! Plus, we get to hear about the amazing new Terasaki Budokan (www.terasakibudokan.org - IG: @terasaki.budokan )
79 years ago today, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, the document that allowed for the forced removal and mass incarceration of 120,000 persons of Japanese Ancestry during World War II. All these years later, the Japanese American community uses this date, February 19th, as Day of Remembrance, to honor that years of incarceration that the community suffered through. But it isn’t only a day for memories, but for action and to use the story of our community to help others. For this special episode, our host Matthew sits down with a few pasts guests to hear about their experiences with Day of Remembrance and a look ahead at what they think the day will bring for future generations to come.
The story of Japanese American Incarceration has, like many historical events, become the subject of countless books, movies, and other media. Though until recently, it was a story unshared by a major television network. With the premiere of AMC's The Terror: Infamy, the story of the incarceration made its way into the homes of hundreds of thousands of viewers. In this special episode of the Yon-Say, hosts Matt and Hiro get to sit down with The Terror: Infamy's own Derek Mio! Join the discussion as the three of them look at getting into the entertainment industry, the importance of telling Asian American stories, and what it was like bringing the story of the incarceration to a new generation with a twist.
In this January special, two families discuss how their Oshogatsu traditions have transformed over the generations, while the core spirit of this beloved holiday has remained the same. Hosted by Jonnie and Yoko. Featuring Sara, Amy and Dan Kubo, Hana Fedorenko and Leslie Morishita.
For many Japanese Americans, returning to Japan is always one of the big items on their bucket lists. But even that idea in itself, “returning to Japan” is a loaded thought and brings about the question of how we identify as Japanese Americans and what our ties are to Japan no matter how big or small. In this episode, hosts Michelle and Matt sit down with Kristy Ishii and Mika Zattera, fellow Nikkei who both got to spend time in Japan through different programs and jobs! If you’ve ever wondered a little bit about what it’s like for Japanese Americans to go back to Japan for work, school, or anything else, see some of the good, the bad, and the interesting about Nikkei in Japan.
The Japanese American community is one of the largest mixed-race/ethnicity communities in the nation. For our hosts, that's more than evident since four out of five us are all mixed themselves! In this episode, Hiro, Matt, Michelle, and Yoko discuss their experiences growing up mixed, what it means to them, and some of the quirks and interesting experiences that come along with it. For all of our mixed-race/ethnicity' friends, families, and listeners, this one's for you!
Welcome back to the Yon-Say podcast! To kick off season 2, with a little less than a week to the 2020 election, hosts Matt and Hiro sit down with community members Amy Watanabe and Karman Chao to discuss some history around the Japanese community and voting. Going from the early days of when Japanese Americans could barely vote, to the fight for voting rights, and the importance of not only voting today, but why the larger AAPI community is such a key player in local, state, and national elections! Make sure you get out and vote!
For these past 8 weeks, the Yon-Say Podcast team has had the chance to talk to various guests from different walks of life. That being said, for this final episode of the Yon-Say, we thought it would be fun if your favorite five (五) hosts were to come together for this last episode to explore the topics of identity & reconciliation together. We hope you enjoy our discussion as we dive into what it was like for each of us to get involved in the community, what it's like being bi/multi-racial, and what we envision for the future of the Nikkei community. Thank you for tuning in every week and we can't wait for what's in store for the future!
In our society at large, women’s histories are too often erased, forgotten, or misremembered in ways in ways which strip women of their agency, complexity and intelligence. Nikkei history is no exception. In this episode Michelle and Yoko are joined by guests Nina Wallace and Miya Sommers to learn about the vital, but often overlooked, contributions of women in the redress movement, share stories about our Nikkei foremothers, and talk about the Nikkei women who inspire us from Yuri Kochiyama to our extraordinary grandmothers.
The story of incarceration doesn’t only follow Japanese Americans. Japanese Canadians and Japanese Latin Americans were also subjected to the cruel practice of incarceration during World War II. In today’s episode, Matthew and Jonnie sit down with Kayla Isomura and Marisa Nakada, descendent of Nikkei outside the US, to learn more about the stories of incarceration even we as Japanese Americans rarely hear. With some similarities to the Japanese American experience, and even more surprising differences, the story of Nikkei incarceration across the Americas is one that everyone should learn.
What happens when the war is over? In the sixth episode of the Yon-Say Podcast, Matt and Michelle talk to Rob Buscher of Philadelphia and Celeste Goedert of Detroit to discuss what their families did when the war finally came to an end. The Army gave every incarceree a bus ticket and $25 and told them to return to their non-existent homes as if nothing happened. From where their families went, what choices they had to make after four years of incarceration, and how that’s impacted them today, this episode explores a history that isn’t as well known within the stories of Japanese American history.
What is citizenship? In the fifth episode of the Yon-Say Podcast Yoko and Hiro are joined by guests Leidy and Nat to interrogate the complicated and often dehumanizing notion of citizenship which pervades our country and its systems. Is citizenship a legitimate mode of belonging in a country that put its own citizens in concentration camps, barred others from naturalization on the basis of race, and continues to subjugate residents who do not have documentation? From the treatment of Issei in the 1900s to the experiences of undocumented people today, we delve into how citizenship operates as an institution of oppression, what it means to be part such an institution, and what it means to be excluded from it.
What would you do if your loyalty to your country was questioned? Matthew and Jonnie are joined by guests Andie Kimura, with Go for Broke National Education Center, and Bethany Narita, Jonnie’s sister, to discuss the infamous loyalty questionnaire and how it affected our families.Some volunteered to fight in the army, some answered “No,No”, others were draft resistors, and still others found themselves stuck in the middle. This episode looks at how the army asked for loyalty after it put our families in concentration camp, and how that created a divide between friends and families that remains to this day.
What does it mean to be a descendant of the incarceration? Jonnie and Yoko are joined by guests Lauren Matsumoto and Jason Fujii to discuss our families’ camp experiences and explore how those experiences inform our yonsei identities. From the importance of pilgrimages to all the little stories passed down from our grandparents, this episode dissects why who we are is so deeply entangled with these desolate sites of WWII incarceration.
In this second episode of the Yon-Say Podcast, Michelle and Hiro reflect on our ancestors' lives leading up to Executive Order 9066 and the forced removal with guests Nina Nakao and Kendal Takeshita. Listen as they dive into how these stories have affected the newest generations of Nikkei and what it means to them as descendants.
In this premiere episode of the Yon-Say Podcast, Matt and Yoko reflect on our ancestors' immigration stories with guests Jonnie Narita and Saiyare Refaei. Listen as they dive into how these stories have affected the newest generations of Nikkei, and explore the intersectionality between the immigrations of our ancestors and the communities of today.