As I flip through the pages of Justice In Our Time (Talonbooks, 1991) by Roy Miki and Cassandra Kobayashi, I realize just how out of touch with the Japanese Canadian community I was in 1988.
Concurrently, as I read through Art Miki’s new memoir, Gaman: Persistence: Japanese Canadians’ Journey to Justice (Talonbooks, 2023), I’m reminded of his passion for justice and tenacity. Whenever I have had the good fortune to meet Art, I am always taken aback by his grace and modesty. A lot has changed in 36 years.
Art’s detailed account in Gaman outlines how the NAJC worked collaboratively and strategically to challenge age-old racist notions and stereotypes, slowly prying open the hearts of Canadians. And once that gap was open, Canadians, to their full credit, were able to wipe away the generations of hate and finally accept us as full fledged Canadians. What the NAJC accomplished was truly monumental.
When I contacted Art about doing this interview, it came as no surprise that he had just finished a busy Asian Heritage Month (May) giving talks at schools while continuing to educate about what JCs experienced during and after World War Two and the redress movement.
Arthur Kazumi Miki was born in Vancouver on September 1, 1936. He began as an elementary school teacher, then became a principal. In 1984, he became president of the National Association of Japanese Canadians until 1992. During this time he helped to lead the fight for redress for Japanese Canadians who were imprisoned in BC internment and POW camps, and whose property was confiscated by the federal government and sold by the government despite their promise to return it.
Art’s younger brother, Roy Akira Miki, 82, is a Canadian poet, writer, activist and professor emeritus at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, BC. He was born on a sugar beet farm in Ste. Agathe, Manitoba. Roy was awarded the Governor General’s Award for English Poetry (2002) and the Gandhi Peace Award (2006). He has two other siblings: Kunio (Les) and sister Joan.
At the outbreak of World War Two, at the age of five, Art and his family were forced to leave their Surrey, BC home that was situated on 14 acres. In order to avoid having the family separated, the Mikis went to Manitoba to work on a sugar beet farm. At the end of the war, they moved to North Kildonan.
To say that Art’s lifelong dedication to selfless volunteerism and community service has benefited us all is an understatement. While gaman, perseverance, is apt to describe how Art lives his remarkable life, I’d like to add “omoiyari,” one’s altruistic feelings for others, as another Japanese word to describe this true Canadian hero.
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Norm Ibuki: It has been some time since the redress settlement (1988). Why is this book coming out now?
Art Miki: I had written parts of the manuscript shortly after the redress settlement around 1994 but had not pursued publishing it, feeling there were a number of books on the same topic available. Every so often I would pull out the manuscript and add to it and then set it aside. About five years ago I was reflecting on what I still wanted to do when the nagging reminder of my uncompleted manuscript arose. I decided then that I would complete it if it’s the last thing I do.
I ran into a friend, Terry MacLeod, at the mall who had been a CBC radio host and told him about my uncompleted manuscript. He suggested that I send him a copy of what I had written which he would read and give me feedback. We met over coffee and Terry felt that content would be of national interest and that I should pursue finding a publisher. His opinion was encouraging and so I asked my brother, Roy, whether he would contact Talonbooks in Vancouver to see if they might be interested.
Roy had previously had a book published by Talonbooks and knew the people there. I followed up on Roy’s email and Talonbooks asked me to send them my manuscript. This was shortly before COVID. During COVID not much was happening in the publishing field and surprisingly in January 2022 I received an email from Talonbooks asking if I was still interested in having the manuscript published. I said I would but I wanted to change the focus of the book to be a memoir and to relate personal experiences that complimented the pursuit of justice.
During 2022 and 2023, I devoted my time to rewriting and working with several editors provided by the publisher to refine the material. I was impressed with the efforts by the editors to make the book a historical documentation of not only the redress campaign but its implications and precedents for other groups and also my personal experiences and growth.
Ibuki: A new generation of Japanese Canadians has grown up since 1988. What sort of changes have you noticed in the national community?
Miki: I think there has been a significant change in the makeup of the Japanese Canadian community. The number of Japanese Canadians with mixed backgrounds, which makes up over 50% of the Japanese population in Canada, is continually increasing and will have an impact for community development and future community engagement. What is most noticeable is the increasing number of women who are engaged in leadership roles especially in issues related to human rights and social justice. This is true at the national level.
I think the BC Redress agreement (2022) has created a greater involvement of young Japanese Canadians in the administrative process and advisory and adjudication panels and thereby exposing them to community organizations and activities. This exposure to the Japanese Canadians through the many projects will hopefully stimulate their interest and should be beneficial to the future of the Japanese Canadian community.
Ibuki: What are the values that you hope to pass on to younger generations?
Miki: Whenever I speak to the younger generation, I encourage them to take a risk and seek out challenges. There are many things a person can accomplish if only you are willing to take a risk and try. I urge younger people not to be afraid to make mistakes. As principal I had a sign on the wall that read “If you don’t make mistakes, you are not learning” as a reminder that mistakes are part of learning.
Another value that I feel is so important is to have a positive outlook when approaching issues. Instead of complaining and feeling like a failure “if things don’t go the way you expect,” take the positive view to the problem by asking yourself, “What could I have done differently to make it right?” I have used this approach as a school principal to introduce different innovative programs for learning that I felt would create a more positive environment for the students.
As the NAJC president I was asked by reporters many times as we struggled during the negotiations with different Ministers of Multiculturalism “whether it was frustrating when I had negative push backs from them all the time?” My response to them was that I looked upon the redress campaign as a learning experience for Canadians who have very little knowledge of how Japanese Canadians were treated during the Second World War. I have said to them, “Even if we do not achieve redress, I know that Canadians have learned something about the Japanese Canadian experience. For me that was just as important.”
Ibuki: As you’ve observed, the 2024 Japanese Canadian community has evolved a more pan-Asian mindset. Do you have any thoughts about these changes?
Miki: I think it is important for members of the Japanese Canadian community to have a greater awareness of the existence of Nikkei diasporas around the globe. As president of NAJC, I represented Canada in 1991 at the Pan American Nikkei Convention in Peru and spoke of the Canadian redress experience to delegates from North and South America.
We don’t realize how the Second World War affected Nikkei people in different countries until you hear their stories. In Peru several hundreds of Japanese Peruvians were kidnapped by American soldiers and held in prisoner-of-war camps in Texas for possible hostage exchanges between the US and Japan. It is interesting to note that there is a closer relationship between the Japanese in Central and South America with the government of Japan as compared to the United States or Canada.
COPANI (Conventions of Pan American Nikkei) is held every second year and this year it will be held in Paraguay from September 5 to 8. There are always a few Canadian delegates who attend these conventions. Keiko and I have attended nine conventions and found them to be informative, enjoyable and have met so many interesting people. It has opened our eyes to how the Japanese have adapted and become active participants in the different countries. Vancouver has been tentatively considered for the 2026 COPANI.
© 2024 Norm Ibuki
