Boyle Heights is set to celebrate its Japanese history with the second annual Nikkei Celebration to take place on Saturday, August 5.
Set to run from 5 to 10 pm, the event is a celebration of the Nikkei (Japanese emigrants and their descendants) of Los Angeles and an opportunity for attendees to learn about the Japanese history of Boyle Heights, which was once the city’s largest residential community of Japanese immigrants and Americans, apart from Little Tokyo.
The celebration will start with a parade that will take off from Saratoga and 1st Streets and head towards Otomisan, the city’s oldest continuously operating Japanese restaurant, near Matthews.
There, various cultural presentations are set to take place including a public “ondo” (musical performance) led by the Little Tokyo Dance Clubs. Performances include a drumming session led by Hikari Taiko, student performances from the Neighborhood Music School, and a traditional Japanese dance show led by Nancy Hayata.
Speakers at the event will include CEO & President of Boyle Heights Community Partners Vivian M. Escalante, Little Tokyo Historical Society President Michael Okamura, Vice Consulate of Japan in LA Hiroko Matoba and others. Boyle Heights Community Partners and the Little Tokyo Historical Society are the two main organizers behind the event.
Japanese history and culture must not be forgotten! This event will help that from happening. Plus good food!