Tokyo, Japan Reading a academic article today, I came across this poem by Retired Emperor Go-toba written when his loyal courtier Fujiwara no Ietaka was about to leave the island where Go-toba was exiled.
Yesterday, the anti-nuclear protest at Kōenji that I took part in stretched on for five hours – six if you count the hour before it began!! There were so many participants that because they were so carefully directed by the police into a single street lane, it stretched on forever and moved quite slowly. Protestors were orderly, but adamant, remaining until the end in the square outside Kōenji Station.
It was like a huge moving festival. A large sound truck blasted the neighborhood with chants and music, and people danced. Where I helped carry a banner, though, we were so far away from the truck we couldn’t hear it. Other musicians played drums, flutes, guitars, trumpets, pots, and we all chanted. It was a great atmosphere.
According to one man counting us from the roadside, we were 8,000 people, plus thousands more watching on UStream. According to a report by Kyodo News, we were 15,000!
In the days to come, I hope to write about how I understand the experience. In the meantime, here are a few pictures. . .
Update: Haha! How embarrassing. I’ve fallen into the Japanglish trap again. This time I used the word “nuke” for nuclear power instead of for atomic bombs! Sorry! I’m going to try to correct that. . . Does “nuke energy” work? Um. . . no. “Nuclear Energy” it is.
Sleeping Mountains