S3E3: The Living Bridge: Hanako Wakatsuki-Chong and the Portland Sakura

It is peak Sakura season in the Pacific Northwest. In this episode of Japanese America, Michelle and Koji beam up to the Rose City to sit down with Hanako Wakatsuki-Chong, the Executive Director of the Japanese American Museum of Oregon (JAMO).

Hanako shares her personal journey from growing up in Idaho—where her own family’s incarceration history was largely absent from her education—to becoming a self-described "steward of memory" and "translator" of the past. We dive into the "quietly defiant" identity of JAMO in its new home in the Flanders Building and the fascinating, diplomatic history behind the 100 Akebono cherry trees that line the Portland Waterfront.

Join us for a deep dive into resilience, undeniable belonging, and the "vibe" of planting something beautiful in the soil of a place that once tried to push you out.

Learn more about JAMO at jamo.org.

CREDITS

The music was created by Jalen Blank

Written by Koji Steven Sakai

Hosts: Michelle Malazaki and Koji Steven Sakai

Edited by Koji Steven Sakai

Produced by Koji Steven Sakai in conjunction with the Japanese American National Museum

Transcript

0:00

When the cherry blossoms come out, it's to get people to think a little bit more about the Japanese American incarceration history aspects. Welcome back to Japanese America. I'm Michelle and it is finally April. The LA sun is out and the city is starting to look like a botanical garden. And I'm Koji recording from our home base in South Pasadena. But today we're heading up the coast to a city that is currently blushing pink. Portland, Oregon. We are joined by Hanako Wakatsuki Chong, the executive director of the Japanese American Museum of Oregon, or Jamo. But before we get into the history, Michelle, we've got to do a Spring Fling icebreaker since it's peak sakura season. If you were a spring themed Japanese snack, what would you be? I will be domyoji. Do you know Domyoji? No. What is. That? Oh, it's like it's a mochi, but it's seasonal. It only comes out like March and early April. It's Sakura color pink. Oh, okay. Yeah, I think I had, Like, a red bean paste inside and it's yummy, but it also has the salted sakura leaves. So, salty and salt. I mean salty, sweet and salty like me. I think Fugetsu do has it right. Yeah they do. Yeah. Yeah, I like that. Let's see what would I don't know if I have a spring themed Japanese snack in particular. All I think is, uh, all I can think of is dango, but that's not really a spring thing. So, um, I'm gonna say, uh, same thing is you. That's cheating. No, but in May, that's kashiwamochi. Which one's that one. Kashiwamochi Is the, um, the mochi for Children's Day or Boy's Day for May 5th. And it's the white mochi with uncle inside. Oh, and it's wrapped by Kashiwa leaves. I like that one. But you can't. But you can't eat the leaves for that one. Yeah, I like that one. That's a good one. There's so many different like like manju mochi thingies. Yeah. Seasonal. Do they have other ones other than those? I mean, I've never even. They have Christmas like Christmas. I guess they have New Year's. Yeah, they got New Year's. We have regular mochi and you put it. Oh yeah. That's right. Ozoni. But the shapes of mochi, it's different by region. Oh. So if I mean my my grandma was in Yamaguchi, so they make round mochi. But in Tokyo it's square mochi or rectangular mochi. Interesting. I didn't know that. Yeah. And then um, on I could go like January 7th. Uh, there's that nanakusa gayu. And then. So I get enough dessert. On 15th, there's Don Doigaki. So they have, um, dango on skewers, and then it's not really a skewer. It's like a long stick. And then you cook it over. Uh, how do you call those? The matsugasaki for New Year's? They have the pine needle. Oh, yeah. Okay. And then they burn that, and then they cook mochi over, um, the smoke of that pine needle decorations. Yeah. The Japanese, it's weird. The Japanese and the all the Asian desserts. They're not that sweet. Like they're not like French or something. Do you know why do you think that is? Are we not as sweet? No. Maybe we are. We are conserving sugar. My family and I, we were at the Chinese restaurant celebrating, um, my mother in law's birthday, and the dessert was like lychee and red bean soup. And I was like, this is not dessert. No. When you go to Chinese restaurant, desserts are oranges. Yeah, but it's like but then I was thinking like in Japan, you know? Yeah, it's like it's azuki or something, right? Like, that's like everything would just have azuki in it or even just like azuki hot azuki thing. Yeah. Japanese people complain when they come to America. Like everything so sweet, so sweet. But when I go back to Japan and have their dessert. I am saying they are dessert. Um. It's sweet, I don't I don't know what they are talking about. Hanako's journey to the museum wasn't a straight line. She grew up in a place where history was right in her backyard, yet almost invisible. We started by asking Hanako to tell us a bit about herself and her path to this work. I was born in California, but I was raised in Idaho, so I grew up kind of more in the rural areas of Idaho. Going to high school there. Eventually going to college at Boise State University. But it was when I was at Boise State University that I met a professor named Bob Sims, who was on the board of the Friends of Minidoka. And even though he's a white academic locally within the JCL, they gave him the title of honorary Nisei, and he did what a good Nisei did. He invited me to a meeting for the friends of Minidoka, and then I got voted on as vice chair as he stepped away, and I had no clue that that was going to happen. And then that's how I got involved with Friends of Minidoka and the preservation work that was happening at Minidoka National Historic Site. So a side story to that would be, you know, I knew that my family was incarcerated during World War Two. So my great aunt wrote a farewell to Manzanar, but it was kind of presented to me out of context because I remember as a child, my dad's like, this is our family history. Handed me a book and then I read it, but without additional context. I just assumed it was something obscure that happened just to my family. Um, so then when I learned about it in college, with the help of Bob Sims and understanding that there was a camp in Idaho, it was quite shocking for me to kind of have that relevation or realization, I guess. This is a lot, a lot larger than what I assumed in my family because this wasn't presented in high school. So my secondary education didn't really cover this at all. So that's kind of how I got into the work with the Japanese American history and eventually working at Minidoka National Historic Site. Oh, I was actually, I started off with the Idaho State Historical Society and then went to Tule Lake National Monument, then went to the Navy and then went to Minidoka National Historic Site and eventually found my way to Pearl Harbor National Memorial and ended up my federal Career at as a superintendent of Honolululili National Historic Site, and then eventually came here to the Japanese American Museum of Oregon. Now she's leading a major institution in Portland's historic Japantown. We asked her to tell us about the museum's identity and its new home in the Flanders building. The Japanese American Museum of Oregon is about 25 years old and started back in the day where co-founders were creating a historical plaza. So there's a Japanese American Historical Plaza, which is on the waterfront that was created in 1990, and that was through people's redress, reparation money that people came together to try to honor the story that happened here in Portland and in Oregon, to remember those who are incarcerated, the the fracturing of our community. Also just to, um, you know, honor the story of our, our families who are incarcerated, but then telling it to more of the state audience and other people outside the community. So that started in 1990. And eventually some of the board members are like, we need to have a museum. And then they started the Oregon Nikkei Legacy Center, um, which we turned into the Japanese American Museum of Oregon, because sometimes people in Oregon, when they see Nikkei, they thought it was Nike, which is not the same thing. And so for, uh, more getting people to understand what we are, we decided to kind of use more of the normal nomenclature of Japanese American Museum of Oregon rather than Oregon. Nikkei Legacy Center has to help people outside the community understand what we are. Most people see the cherry blossoms as a general Portland event, but the origin story is actually about international trade and diplomacy. Essentially, our first board chair was Henry Sakamoto, and he, you know, him and another community member, Bill Naito, uh, decided, hey, we want to create this plaza. And Bill Nader was a, a property kind of guru at that time, very involved in actually the creation of what we see as Portland today, like the white stag building and having that signature image that people normally see of Portland, of the white stag that says Portland, Oregon, that flashes. Um, he created a or helped create pioneer um square that now has every year a Christmas tree out there because originally they were going to make that into a parking lot and he's like, we need public spaces. So he partnered with Henry Sakamoto and they had this design to create this Japanese American Historical Plaza and Bill of Rights Memorial. Because Bill Naito's family weren't actually incarcerated. They did the self evacuation where they ended up moving to Salt Lake. And, um, he just wanted to make sure that people understood the incarceration. So this site is several acres large that we co-manage with Portland Parks and Rec, and it's right up on the waterfront where there's the Willamette River flowing through town. And Henry Sakamoto actually used to work for the US Department of Agriculture for about 32 years. So he had a lot of connections with folks in Japan. And there was a growers association that ended up donating 100 of the Akebono cherry trees that now is in the plaza that every year when, um, the sakura are blooming. Um, you know, people come out for the hanami and they'll, you know, enjoy the area. And so like this year we actually activated it doing, um, like working with a partner called Hollywood lights where they do ambush lighting, where they come in and put lights up on the trees. And so this was the first time we did it and we got some incredible pictures and we only did it for a limited three nights. And so we're talking about doing it again next year to try to promote more people coming into the plaza to learn about it, because a lot of Portlanders don't recognize that this is a historical plaza where we're trying to commemorate the incarceration, that they just see it as a fun place to go. So we're trying to bridge that educational gap. We were curious about the logistics. When do these trees typically bloom, You know yeah, it seems like third week of March for the last couple years, but it has sometimes been as late as, um, April, uh, when the sakuras would come out. And what was it like for Hanako the first time she saw them? First I saw it in full bloom. It's just amazing because there's such a density of, um, the cherry trees, which makes it really nice because growing up in Idaho, there's not a lot of this stuff, you know, to see. And then it's literally down the waterfront. You have all these amazing pink blooms coming out, and then you see the community come in and using the space. So the first time I saw it, I was just like really impressed of how it brings people together. And honestly, I didn't recognize it was a plaza because this was before I actually worked at Jamo. And I think that's, that's the thing that we're trying to do is educate people about it because it's so easy to miss it, because the way that the Plaza was designed was to be a little bit on the minimalistic side, but also to integrate with nature. So you don't quite see it. It doesn't completely stand out. And, you know, kind of honoring a lot of like Japanese aesthetics. And I think a lot of people then miss it when they're going about their daily lives. So we have a tricycle that we actually take out to educate people. And a lot of people enjoy that because it's like a mini pop up, like museum where we have handouts and stuff that we can educate folks. Beyond the aesthetics, these blossoms mean something deep to the Nikkei community. We asked Hanako what they signify to the city and to her personally. Yeah, I think the significance for at least the JA community is just when when the cherry blossoms come out, it's to get people to think a little bit more about the Japanese American incarceration history aspects. For me personally, like I, I kind of like, I don't know, the purple prose of like, we all go through hardships in life, you know? No one had like, well, there's probably some people that has an easy life where they don't have to go through hardships. But I like to think about as we're emerging from winter and that hardship in a seasonal aspect, and seeing these blooms come out, showing the beauty of what could come out of some of these hard times. But then it's also fleeting. And, you know, and it's amazing when the blossom starts falling off the tree as if you're getting showered with love by nature. Like to me, it, it gives you the opportunity to pause for a moment just to think about life, how fleeting sometimes things are. But then also trying to make sure that you're able to find the beauty within those moments. Uh, Michelle, have you seen. Have you ever been to Portland, Oregon? And have you seen these, uh, the Sakura? I've been to Portland, Oregon, but I've never seen Sakura there. But I was like, you know, cherry blossom, whatever, whatever. I didn't see it for like many, many years. And a few years ago, I went back to Japan in cherry blossom season and oh My God, it was so magical. Why was it so magical? It's like pink everywhere. I don't know, like a pink rain. And you walk through that pink storm of pink. It's. It's so magical. Were you with your husband? No, I was by myself. Of course. Yeah. I mean, in in Portland. I mean, I guess they planted a ton of trees. So this whole area has has these Sakura and, uh. From the sound of it, from what Hanako was saying, it sounded like it was really, really beautiful, and I can't. I was telling her that I really, really wanted to go. And maybe I'll take my son up there, but I always feel like taking my son to these things is like, kind of a waste. I don't think he'd like. Like, I don't think he'd appreciate these kinds of things. Like one time we were in Vegas and he wanted to do that. Um, I think in what is it, the Venetian they have like the rowboat thing and I was like, or the gondola. And I was like, I don't want to spend $50 on doing this. I think you should take your. Yeah. Person. And I was like, you can take your girlfriend in the future or whatever. You could take somebody like that you want to go with. I think it's a waste for me and you to go. But but do you think your your children would appreciate that Sakura blooming? I think no, maybe I was there by myself. Yeah. I don't know. I was busy drinking, I don't know, I wasn't drinking, it was just so magical. I'm sure my daughter would appreciate inside, but she may not say it out loud. Yes, I really I didn't know about I didn't know about this. Um, these, uh, cherry blossom. I have to admit that until I started doing research and then I said, oh my God, it's, it seems like it's so awesome. And I got to talk to the folks over at Jamo. It's not all heavy history, though. We asked for some of the fun stories she's heard about the trees. The best one so far was I like. So I told you about the ambush lighting that we did. We partnered with them a business called Hollywood Lights. And, um, our partners, they sent us an email because Wednesday was the last day they did this out of a three day run. And he was saying how Portland Parks and Recreation staff said they thought thousands of people came in just to watch the lights or see the cherry trees. But he told us a story that he watched someone proposed to their loved one during this kind of night scape lit up cherry blossom. So right now that is my favorite story of the site. Because then even though we're in these hard times, people are still living their lives and they're, you know, committing to each other. However, those trees surround the Japanese American Historical Plaza, which carries a darker history. We asked Hanako to tell us about the connection to the concentration camps. Yeah. The dark side of this chapter was the World War Two incarceration that led to the creation of this site almost, you know, in the 90s. Right. To to commemorate that. So during World War Two, uh, Japanese Americans were forcibly removed. And here in Portland, there was a lot of anti-Japanese sentiment where the Oregonian itself. So that's the newspaper was very proud when it was Jap free. And that was a quote. And so they actually put it on the front page paper when Japanese Americans were forcibly removed from their homes and then were taken to the Expo Center, which is in North Portland. And it's really incredible where this building, the buildings that Japanese Americans were forcibly removed into, are still up and running. Like I just Bryonia actually came out a few weeks ago and there was an RV show. And so we walked around, which is kind of very strange to like see it being used in that way where our community was forcibly removed into. So yeah, so it's really interesting to see how visitors, when they visit the plaza and see the cherry blossoms. Some people understand the history of the plaza and some of the, I guess the design aspects where if you walk into the plaza off of Naito Parkway, which is named after Bill Naito, there's two reliefs that has these imagery of like a Dorothea Lange image. Um, images of people in the 442. But it also tells a story from immigration to incarceration to service. But as you walk closer to the cherry trees in the waterfront, you'll see the stones are neatly arranged. And then all of a sudden you come to the circle where there's fractured stones. And that's to signify the fracturing of our community, where Japanese Americans were taken away. And there's three stones, two that are kind of laying on their sides, and then one that's standing tall, that lists the ten concentration camps that people were taken to. And then we have a berm that, um, separates the cherry trees from the or not separates, but the cherry trees are on top of this berm facing the river. But we have these other stone reliefs that has poetry on it. Some of the poems are from Issei immigrants and their haikus. Some of them are poetry that's done by former Incarcerees like Lawson Inada and other Oregonians contributing to it. But I also mentioned early on that it's also the Bill of Rights Memorial. So they have the Bill of rights at the one entry point of the plaza where people could see the, you know, look at the Bill of rights to understand where, you know, these were American citizens who were forcibly removed without due process. And it's important for us to understand our rights and understand that the government can be trades people. And it's very similar to things that are going on today. So just take out the Japanese American community and insert another community. And it's very, very shocking to see how similar it is. That history isn't just in the past. We asked how these trees help us talk about anti-Asian sentiment today. To me, it's like because it is the Japanese American historical Plaza just in of itself, where the cherry trees are. That totally is the gateway where we could talk about the anti-Asian sentiment that happened then, and then compare it to today. Because honestly, like I think it was, I think it was like two years ago that was actually Asian Americans who, uh, a couple people I think were assaulted on, on that waterfront area because the waterfront goes the whole way. So it was like very much like, oh my God, we could talk about it now and on. And also like, I think it was three years ago because it's like, right when I came to JMU, the consul general of Japan here in Portland was actually assaulted. And that was a hate crime where he was assaulted within, I think, a month or two of him actually coming to start his service out here. So just even the location and here in Oregon, you know, we can talk about some of those more contemporary issues through the lens of the historical issues. Finally, we ask where our listeners can go to find out more and support the work they are doing? Definitely. You could check us up on our website JAMO@org. So j a m o.org. And on there, we do have a link for the cherry blossoms where you can learn more about the plaza. And then we did have a countdown as well on when the peak was going to be. But now we pass peak peak was I think last Saturday. So. So yeah, currently at the museum, we are hosting an exhibit called Minidoka on Our minds, which is influence from Roger Shimamura series called Minidoka on My Mind. Um, and it's talking about the 25th anniversary of Minidoka National Historic Site becoming a park unit. So that exhibit is going to run through the end of June. So if people are here in Portland, please come by and check it out because we have everything from what the National Park Service has created and collaterals of like videos and collaborations, but then also featuring some of the museum's artifacts that we have on art that was made in camp or made as a response to camp. And also the descendants reflecting upon it and their art as well. Um, but one of the most special objects that we have that's featured in this exhibition is Ed Abe's Wood. So Ed Abe was one of the first people to die at Minidoka, and he went to collect wood with his friend. A storm came in relatively fast. He got lost in everything, and his friend ended up making it back to camp while he ended up getting disoriented and he walked parallel to the camp. So his friend was like, oh my gosh, we need to go find Ed. Four days later, they found his remains still with his wood, where he died from exposure about four miles away. And so his family kept the wood for many, many years. And in about 2018 ish or so. Um, a community member in Seattle ended up, uh, asking the family saying, hey, are you guys going to do anything with this wood? And the family's like, well, do you have a purpose? So he's like, I had this idea, I would like to give the wood to Mira Nakashima, who was incarcerated at Minidoka. And her father is the, um, the esteemed George Nakashima woodworker. And so she created a three piece set, uh, art piece. One's a mobile, another one's a hanging piece, and one's a standing piece. And then she left two pieces as is and donated it to Minidoka National Historic Site, and we are featuring it here. Yeah. So it's one of those full circle stories that it had a really terrible birth, I guess. But then I believe it finally has some beauty to it. And it's and we'll be sending that back to Minidoka after this exhibition. But it's a nice full circle object. Koji hearing. Hanako talks about those fractured stones right next to the fragile blossoms. It really hits home, especially since we are in 2026 looking at America's 250th anniversary. It really does. It makes you think about how we curate our own legacies. Michelle, looking at the state of the world today and the 250 years of this country, does the spirit of the blossom feel more fragile or more resilient to you right now? I think it's more resilient. Oh, really? How so? The blossoms are fragile. Yeah, but that doesn't mean them weak. And they return every year. Even when everything goes wrong. Yeah, like it's it's every every year. Like you, you forget about it. But they are always they always come back. So I think it's more resilient. What about you? What do you think? I feel so negative. You're so positive. I mean, and Hanako's answer was super, super beautiful about. I mean, kind of how like, yeah, it's resilient because it comes, you know, they, they die and then it's beautiful and then it comes back. I just, you know, I'm just really sad right now about everything that's going on. And I just wish that things weren't the way they were, you know, especially now that I'm a father and, you know, having a son and just wanting to make sure that he doesn't go die in a war that I don't want him to die in. Yes. But at the same time, you know, like things like the war. I don't want it. I don't I don't like it, but I can't really myself can't stop the war. So you have to be like that cherry tree. Like you just you just concentrate on doing your job. Like. But the $6 gas makes me think every time I see it. Oh, $6, that's that's cheap. It's like 7.85. That makes me that reminds me of it every time. And I drive to Corona every day. Oh no, oh no. That's a lot of commute. I know, I know six, $7 a gallon. It's a lot. Oh yeah. That's a powerful place to leave it. Thank you to Hanako Wakatsuki Chong for joining us from Portland. You can find everything at j a m o.org Next month we're talking about Tule Lake. I don't know why. I have an exclamation point there. We'll see you then. Bye. Bye.