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UID:events.uid.5467@www.discovernikkei.org
DTSTART:20171026T000000Z
DTEND:20171026T000000Z
DESCRIPTION:<strong>Celebration of her</strong><strong>itage: Torrance even
 t with guests from Okinawa</strong>\n\n“Let us set off\, to the five con
 tinents we will call home.” These powerful words were said over a centur
 y ago by Kyūzō Tōyama\, historically known as the grandfather of Okinaw
 an immigration.\n\nIn honor of the first Okinawan immigrants who fearlessl
 y traveled across the world\, the Okinawa Association of America (OAA) wil
 l host the inaugural World Uchinānchu (Okinawan) Day celebration on Thurs
 day\, October 26. Featuring special guest performers from Okinawa\, the ev
 ent will take place at the Torrance Cultural Arts Center’s Toyota Meetin
 g Hall from 7 to 9PM.\n\nThe highlight of the event will be special perfor
 mances directly from Okinawa. Musician\, poet\, and director Daiichi Hirat
 a -- who brought his epic "King Shō Hashi" musical to L.A. eight years ag
 o -- will be returning with a team of professional musicians\, dancers\, a
 nd karate practitioners. Their dynamic presentation will blend traditional
  and modern elements\, ensuring that this will be a must-see event. Local 
 performers including the L.A. branch of Ryūkyūkoku Matsuri Daiko will al
 so make an appearance.\n\nAt the closing ceremony of last year’s World U
 chinānchu Festival -- a massive\, global “homecoming” for the descend
 ants of Okinawan immigrants -- Okinawa Prefecture Governor Takeshi Onaga a
 nnounced that October 30 would henceforth be declared as World Uchinānchu
  Day (WUD). The idea was proposed by Andres Higa and Tadashi Andres Ysa Ur
 bina\, third-generation Okinawan descendants from Argentina and Peru\, res
 pectively.\n\nThey took to the stage at the closing ceremony with a powerf
 ul message: “We have gratitude for our ancestors in our hearts. We have 
 love for all those we meet in our hearts. We have love for our ancestral h
 ome in our hearts.” The speech -- spoken in Japanese with a large screen
  displaying English\, Portuguese\, and Spanish translations -- was receive
 d with loud cheers from the audience. “[Today] Uchinānchu of the world 
 have gathered once again\, and once again our hearts have become one. Let 
 us celebrate the fact that we are all Uchinānchu.”\n\nThe October 26 ev
 ent in Torrance will be filmed and screened at an official WUD ceremony in
  Okinawa to take place four days later. <!--[if gte mso 10]&gt\;\n&lt\;st
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 dFragment-->\n\nRSVP is required due to limited space: <a href="mailto:oaa
 mensore@gmail.com">oaamensore@gmail.com</a>\, 310-532-1929. Admission is f
 ree for current OAA members and $10 for the public. The Toyota Meeting Hal
 l is located at 3330 Civic Center Drive in Torrance (next to the James Arm
 strong Theatre).
DTSTAMP:20240418T220608Z
SUMMARY:1st World Uchinaanchu (Okinawan) Day Celebration
URL:/en/events/2017/10/26/1st-world-uchinaanchu-okinawan-day-celebration/
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