Sunday, October 07, 2007

Tokyo Spring: Supporting the teachers opposing the singing of Kimigayo in schools

Hello Everyone!

On Sunday 14th October Spring will be holding an event at 4pm at Heaven's Door Shimokitazawa to help raise awareness of the fight of the teachers who are opposing the singing of Kimigayo  in schools.

One of the key figures in the campaign, Junko Kawarai, who features in the documentary "Against Coercion: Refusing to Stand for Kimigayo" will be at the event for a Q&A session. Interested members of the Japanese public, including school students and people from countries other than Japan who are interested in this issue are encouraged to come along and learn more about what is going on.

After watching a documentary with footage of the campaign in which the sheer obstinacy and inflexible, head in the sand attitude of Tokyo Bureaucrats is exposed, along with their bullying tactics, obfuscation and unwillingness to engage in any kind of meaningful dialogue, Kawarai san will answer questions about her recent experiences.

A variety of related topics will be covered in the session, and a poem, written by Munehiko Ichino will be read in both English and Japanese to honour our guest. Although the poem is specifically about the key figure in the film, Nezu San, it is worded in such a way as to refer to all the teachers who are suffering at the hands of the school board and should be understood as a tribute to all of them.

PLEASE COME TO THIS EVENT EVEN IF YOU ARE UP TO DATE AND FAMILIAR WITH THE CASE, and BRING AS MANY OF YOUR FRIENDS AS YOU CAN.

In Solidarity

Spring