By Terry Watada It was 1980-something when Lane Nishikawa, playwright and actor, came to Toronto to stage his one-man play, Life in the Fast Lane. I can’t remember how I met Lane but I agreed to produce his play to present something different, something that spoke to young Japanese Canadians instead of the mainstream White...Continue reading
By Terry Watada Poverty is the scourge of nations. Its prevalence causes blight, increased welfare and health costs, homelessness, and untimely death. Perhaps its worst effect is hunger accompanied by malnourishment as a consequence. It is a persistent and pernicious problem, yet no government is willing to do much about it, except encourage the food...Continue reading
By Terry Watada I thought I’d start 2016 with some surprising facts, at least surprising to me. Did you know Nobu McCarthy was Canadian? I know, who’s Nobu McCarthy? Perhaps you remember films like the egregious Geisha Boy, the Karate Kid, Part II, and Walk like a Dragon. Or TV shows like Sea Hunt, the...Continue reading
By Terry Watada Matsujiro Watada, my father, died in 1987 at the age of 81. He was a rugged man; his body was sculpted by his years working as a highrigger in a BC logging camp before farming on the prairies. He then made his way to Toronto to work for a construction company. He...
by Terry Watada We all observe customs and traditions no matter our background. They define us, they link us together, they identify us. Pity is the individual who rejects them because they are ashamed of their upbringing, their culture, their identity. “I’m just a Canadian” is a telltale sign of a lack of insight. Oddly...Continue reading
by Terry Watada When parents are lost, they tend to fall into myth; that is, you as their child idealize them. So it was I wanted to believe that I inherited my mother’s laugh, her welcoming nature, her popularity. From my father, I hoped I received his strength, his wisdom and his sense of integrity....Continue reading
by Terry Watada Editor’s note: While Terry is on his summer hiatus, we decided to look back on his nearly thirty years of writing about and for the Japanese Canadian community and by extension the Asian Canadian community. We will be reprinting some his columns until his return. Iva Ikuko Toguri died on September 28,...Continue reading
by Terry Watada Editor’s note: While Terry is on his summer hiatus, we decided to look back on his nearly thirty years of writing about and for the Japanese Canadian community and by extension the Asian Canadian community. We will be reprinting some his columns until his return. Welcome to the Christian Millennium! Give or...Continue reading
– 30 Years and still going strong by Terry Watada Editor’s note: While Terry is on his summer hiatus, we decided to look back on his nearly thirty years of writing about and for the Japanese Canadian community and by extension the Asian Canadian community. We will be reprinting some his columns until his return....Continue reading