1st Edition

Myth, Protest and Struggle in Okinawa

By Miyume Tanji Copyright 2006
    256 Pages 14 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    256 Pages 14 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    Okinawan people have developed a unique tradition of protest in their long history of oppression and marginalization. Beginning with the Ryukyu Kingdom’s annexation to Japan in the late nineteenth century, Miyume Tanji charts the devastation caused by the Second World War, followed by the direct occupation of post-war Okinawa and continued presence of the US military forces in the wake of reversion to Japan in 1972.

    With ever more fragmented organizations, identities and strategies, Tanji explores how the unity of the Okinawan community of protest has come to rest increasingly on the politics of myth and the imagination.

    Drawing on original interview material with Okinawan protestors and in-depth analysis of protest history, Myth, Protest and Struggle in Okinawa will appeal to scholars of Japanese history and politics, and those working on social movements and protest.

    1. Introduction  2. Diversity and Unity in the Community of Protest  3. Annexation and Assimilation  4. The Battle of Okinawa and 'Okinawan Pacifism'  5. First Wave: Opposition to US Military Land Acquisition  6. Second Wave: Towards Reversion  7. The Anti-Wave Landowners and the Progressive Coalition  8. Kin Bay and Shiraho: Emergence of New Social Movements  9. Third Wave and Beyond: Power of Unai and Dugongs.  Conclusion 

    Biography

    Miyume Tanji

    'Miyume Tanji has written a well-researched book on a complex and difficult issue in contemporary Japanese studies that of the Okinawan protests against the machinations of Japan and the US to maintainOkinawa as a repository of American military might in the Pacific. Moreover, it is one of the firstworks available in English to address in detail the history and the nature of the protests against thepresence of the US military forces in Okinawa. The argument that Tanji produces is articulate andmoves beyond many of the more generic perspectives of the ‘Okinawa problem’ so evident in bothJapanese and English.' -Matthew ALLEN/University of Auckland

    'A cleverly written book, with a strong message about the power of knowledgeable passive resistanceagainst what appear to be overwhelming odds, Myth, Protest and Struggle in Okinawa is a powerfultome with an equally powerful anti-war message. It should give readers hope that there is still the potential to challenge—successfully—the hegemony of indiscreet and often inhumane policies made by desk warriors in distant locations.' - Matthew ALLEN/University of Auckland