I regret that I have forgotten already where I got the link from (sorry!), but I was pointed today to a wonderful set of short documentary videos created by the Washington Post and available on the paper’s website, addressing a number of challenges and issues currently facing Okinawa. Outside of the military bases issue, which only garners extensive coverage on rare occasions, the American media seems to almost never discuss Okinawa at all. It remains quite obscure, and even among graduate students specializing in East Asia, I am often asked where Okinawa is, and other basic questions about the place. So, it is a true treat to see such documentary treatment, on a variety of issues, and handled extremely well, with high production values and such.
The videos also address various issues pertaining to Okinawan-Americans in Hawaii, which, while of course important in their own right, are really local Hawaiian issues and not specifically Okinawan-American (Okinawan-Hawaiian) issues at all. I personally must admit I have little interest in this, just as I have little interest in local issues from Michigan, Nevada, South Florida, or most other parts of our country. My interest is in Okinawa – its history and culture – and not in local, provincial, small town issues faced by Americans who happen to be of Okinawan descent. But, that’s just me, and I do not mean to disparage anyone else’s interests…
I wish there were a way to embed any of these videos, or any of the content from that page, so as to make the link seem more eye-catching and attractive. Do take a moment and give it a chance; you won’t be sorry.
