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My Family Connection to Okinawa

Much of what I heard about Okinawa growing up came from my mother, aunt, and grandmother. The three of them spent time in Okinawa while my grandfather was stationed at Kadena Air Force base in the 1960s. They would explain to me that some of the decor of our home, such as our lacquerware platters, a porcelain vase, and a strange looking instrument on display were all Okinawan. My mother told me about the history of some household items and always noted that, while Okinawa is a part of Japan, the items we had were a part of the very unique culture of the Ryukyu Islands. On my travel to Japan with the Gail Project, I finally saw where my grandparents lived and where my mother spent her first two years at Kadena Air Force base. I saw for myself the immense US military presence in Okinawa and I learned more about the local society and traditions my family talked about, such as the Okinawan sweet potato festival and the island’s subtropical weather. While in Okinawa, I learned of the long history of Okinawan lacquerware and porcelain, and that the strange looking instrument in the house was actually a traditional Okinawan guitar, or ‘sanshin.’ Traveling to Okinawa with the Gail Project was an amazing experience that not only allowed me to explore my family’s past, but also gain a better understanding of the rich history and beautiful culture of the Ryukyus I had grown up around.

Above is a picture from the 1960s of my grandmother and aunt in front of a monument still standing at Mt. Mabuni Peace Park, Okinawa. 

For more info on the Gail Project, check out https://gailproject.ucsc.edu/

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Why I Joined the Gail Project

When I first got to UC Santa Cruz I planned on being a Global Economics major. I thought it would be interesting to learn the culture of foreign countries while studying economics. I soon realized, however, that years of studying calculus did not sound very interesting to me so I took classes across a variety of subjects until I finally decided upon the History Major at UCSC. It was the fall quarter of my sophomore year when I took Professor Dustin Wright’s course on the Empire of Japan. I became captivated by Professor Wright’s lectures, the fascinating and dense reading material, and the overall dialogue of the course. I finally realized that history was my passion and when I heard that the Gail Project served as an outlet for undergraduate research, I had to find out more about the group. 

I glanced at their pamphlets and went through their website, and soon came to the conclusion that the Gail Project was the perfect group for me. Not only did they offer great experience in historical research, but they also focused on Okinawa, the island where my grandparents lived and my mother was born. Household items from Okinawa littered my childhood home and my grandmother used to clarify that, while my mom’s passport said she was born in Japan, she was from the island of Okinawa. I learned so much more about Ryukyuan history and culture through another class with Professor Wright; the Okinawan Memories class.

It was at this point I became a member of the Project, initially helping with the social media team before developing my own research on the history of Christianity in Okinawa. Since I joined the Gail Project during spring quarter of 2017, I’ve travelled to Okinawa twice, I’ve helped organize an art exhibit, I’ve read through countless documents and have learned a lot about oral history, photography, and filmography. The Gail Project has done so much for me, and I hope that this blog may highlight the amazing work this Project does for UC Santa Cruz, the Okinawan people, and American-Okinawan dialogue.

For more click here: https://gailproject.ucsc.edu/

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Check out this excellent blog by Ted Jaich, one of our team members and a recent graduate of UCSC in History!

The UCSC Gail Project

UC Santa Cruz’s Gail Project is a historical research project focused on developing American-Okinawan dialogue. This group is rooted in a series of photographs of Okinawa taken by US Army serviceman Charles E. Gail from 1952-1953. These images were later donated to the university by Gail’s daughter, Geraldine, where they were quickly picked up by UCSC History Professor and Cowell Provost Alan Christy who realized the potential of studying Gail’s pictures. Thus, the Gail Project was created as a team of professors, graduate students, and undergraduates all focused on studying the history of Okinawan culture and politics in the post-WWII period when Gail’s photos were taken. The Gail Project has since developed into a substantial research initiative has travelled to Okinawa multiple times, has supported graduate and undergraduate research on the Ryukyus, has curated an art exhibit, and has built key relationships between members of the UCSC community with Okinawan people and researchers around the world. As this project continues to expand, we have gone on another trip to Okinawa this summer of 2018 and I hope to use this medium to post about what the Project is up to while we’re here and what’s happening in Okinawa presently.

The image above is a picture I took of a shrine outside a US military base at Futenma, Okinawa that was once photographed by Charles Gail in the early 1950s.

For more info check out https://gailproject.ucsc.edu/

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Swipe right 👉🏼to look back at some cooling moments from last year's summer in Okinawa! Although the color scheme is blue, we are anything but to announce that in two weeks we will be in Okinawa again! ✨Thank you to all of our Giving Day supporters, @ucsc, @ucschistory, the people of Okinawa & its diaspora, & our alumni, family & friends for furthering our research journey! 🌺#ucsc (at Okinawa｜沖縄)

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#tbt to our homemade Okinawan Movie night, where our members enjoyed a viewing of "Nabbie's Love"! 📽 (at UC Santa Cruz)

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We ❤️our donors! Here we are celebrating the birthday of one of our generous supporters with pizza and cake! (at Santa Cruz, California)

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Giving Day is TOMORROW! Our fundraising team is ready, are you? Check out our Giving Day site- link in the Bio! ✨ (at UC Santa Cruz)

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Have you seen our Giving Day video yet? If you watch it, we'll dance from joy! Link in the description! ✨

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Want to learn more about Okinawan History? Then join our members for a crash course with graduate student Evan Terris, today, in Cowell Classroom 113! #ucsc (at Shuri Castle)

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Don't forget! We are having a new member meeting tonight filled information, introductions, and snacks! Come to the Cowell Provost House at 6 pm to find out who we are and what the Okinawa Memory Initiative can do for you! #ucsc (at Cowell College)

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Even if you missed our table set up last week, be sure to check out our new member meeting, tomorrow @ the Cowell Provost House from 6-8pm! Come find out how to get involved! (at Bay Tree Bookstore)

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Calling all @ucsc students! Do you want the opportunity to gain hands-on producing videos and podcasts, examining history, and more? Then check out our table in the Quarry today from 12-3pm! (at Bay Tree Bookstore)

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Here's a closer shot of our poster presentation in D.C! We were very grateful to start the new year with #aha18! (at Washington, District of Columbia)

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This weekend, Alexyss McClellan and Evan Terris traveled to Washington D.C to present at the American Historical Association's first undergraduate poster session. We are grateful for their hard work and dedication and proud of them for representing @ucsc on the East Coast! Click the link in our bio to read more about the AHA's undergraduate poster session! (at Washington Marriott Wardman Park)

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#tbt to the opening of our exhibition at the @sesnon.ucsc! We are eternally grateful for all of the support we received and conversation we had through this show. Although our Sesnon Gallery show closed this Saturday, the exhibition at @smithgalleryucsc is open until December 15th! Don't miss out on a chance to make some cranes! (at Sesnon Art Gallery at UCSC)

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#tbt to the opening of our exhibition at the @sesnon.ucsc! We are eternally grateful for all of the support we received and conversation we had through this show. Although our Sesnon Gallery show closed this Saturday, the exhibition at @smithgalleryucsc is open until December 15th! Don't miss out on a chance to make some cranes! (at Sesnon Art Gallery at UCSC)

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Just three more days to check out Charles Gail's original photos and the excellent work of our team members at the Mary Porter Sesnon Gallery in Porter College and the Eloise Pickard Smith Gallery in Cowell College! Don't miss out! #exhibitions (at Shuri Castle)