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Asian American organizations send letters to Governor Ducey against anti-Asian violence

April 10, 2021April 10, 2021 by Carolyn Classen

The Japanese American Citizens League (JACL) of Arizona, along with several Asian Pacific Islander organizations sent a letter on April 9 to Arizona’s Governor Doug Ducey, against the anti-Asian violence across the nation. In Arizona a Filipino American man Juanito Falcon was attacked and killed in Phoenix in February. There have been a number of … Read more

Photo Gallery of 2019 Tucson Japanese Festival

January 22, 2019 by Carolyn Classen

Our Southern Arizona Japanese Cultural Coalition sponsored our 6th annual New Year’s Tucson Japanese Festival on Jan. 20, 2019 at the a new location, the lovely Tucson Chinese Cultural Center, 1288 W. River Rd. We seemed to have outgrown PCC Downtown where we hosted the 3rd, 4th and 5th festivals.

The highlight again was the mochi pounding (from rice), making and sampling.

This festival was a huge success with about 2000 people attending, and several dance/music performances, martial arts group demos, exhibitors (including Southern Arizona Koi Assn.), tea ceremonies, the art of kimono, children’s games (Go, kendama, fukuwarai), and of course, delicious Japanese food for sale and sample. As publicity chair, I was astounded at the # of attendees, considering that most information went out via FB or online, and not in print.

Photos below taken by M. Fumie Craig, founder of Tucson Origami Club and MC Louis Rivera, except for one by volunteer Teena Werley, which are all captioned.

Mochi display for New Year’s, courtesy M Fumie Craig

Volunteers serving mochi samples with kinako, courtesy M Fumie Craig

SAJCC Director Yuki Ibuki welcoming the audience, courtesy of Louis Rivera

koi on display by Southern Arizona Koi Association, courtesy of M Fumie Craig

Tucson Japanese Language School display, courtesy M Fumie Craig

Tucson Japanese Festival 2019

January 16, 2019 by Carolyn Classen

If you don’t know what takoyaki balls (made from octopus) are, check out our 6th annual Tucson Japanese Festival, which was previously called the Tucson Mochitsuki for the mochi (rice) pounding event highlight. Our Southern Arizona Japanese Cultural Coalition (SAJCC) is still pounding & making mochi, but we feature other Japanese activities and performances as well. Here’s the flyer and schedule of events below.

NEW location — Tucson Chinese Cultural Center, 1288 W. River Rd. (between Oracle and La Canada Drive) –no longer at PCC Downtown, where it was for past 3 years).

Enjoy the ramen and my favorite, spam musubi (very popular back home in Hawaii, where it is ubiquitous). It is cooked rice, covered by a wrapping of nori (seaweed) with fried spam inside.

Talk on WWII Japanese American internment camps in Arizona

April 9, 2018April 9, 2018 by Carolyn Classen

Many people still come up to me and say that they had no idea that there were two large internment camps in Arizona (at Gila River and Poston) during WWII. These camps in the desert were created as a result of President Franklin Roosevelt signing E.O. 9066 which impacted over 120,000 Japanese Americans, 2/3 of … Read more

Photo gallery of 2018 Tucson Japanese Festival

January 23, 2018January 21, 2018 by Carolyn Classen

Yesterday Jan. 20, 2018 our Southern Arizona Japanese Cultural Coalition (SAJCC) sponsored another New Year celebration, for the 5th year, now calling it Tucson Japanese Festival (instead of Tucson Mochitsuki — named for the mochi (rice) pounding, which is demonstrated every year).

The festival was held once again for 3rd year at Pima Community College downtown (1125 N. Stone Ave.), with musical & dance performances on the stage in the Amethyst Room and activities outside on the patio, and Japanese games/origami upstairs in the Campus Center. Japanese food was for sale, and samples of green tea and mochi were provided to the 1000 plus attendees.

Here’s some photos of the festival, courtesy of various photographers.