Nisei Week Little Tokyo: A Celebration Beyond Japan

Nestled along the outskirts of the majestic skyscrapers of downtown, a literal bustle of energy and the most modern form of architecture that Los Angeles has to offer, Little Tokyo is more than a mere pleasure to the eye. The streets are loaded with an incredible and mystifying history.

The illustrious Japanese settled in the area circa 1934. George Orwell’s prophecy of a year when Big Brother and an omnipresent “thought police,” would penetrate all form of human life and behavior, “1984,” should have also been the 50^th anniversary of this enduring and endearing culture’s presence in the neighborhood.

This would have come to pass, of course, had not the war at the time of The Great Depression deducted six years. Instead, this week, August 11-19, will mark the 78th Annual Nisei Week Japanese Festival. The Nisei (二世, “second generation”) is a Japanese-language term used in describing the children born in a foreign country, to Japanese-born immigrants (who are called Issei). The impressive attraction caters to tastes as varied as its participants are in age and background.

The Grand Parade and Taiko Gathering, wherein expertly trained percussionists will orchestrate beats set to a marching pace—on drums of varying sizes and colors—that date as far back as the 6th century CE, symbolizing the social unity that binds minorities both within and outside Japan, will undoubtedly hypnotize passersby who soak in the pounding rhythms. Another presentation sure to electrify viewers, The Coronation Ball—where a Nisei Week Queen will receive a crown in a most regal display of nobility—are sure to underscore one of the most revered and long-standing cultural landmarks of our great nation.

With the temperatures expected to remain high through the weekend, intensified with a wicked dose of humidity, the gathering is sure to promise an overdue respite from the heat. If so inclined, one’s palate should be treated to some Japanese cuisine and maybe even a pit stop at one of the many restaurants strewn throughout the boulevards and avenues to ensure a breezy end to a beautiful festival found at the bottom a glimmering Sake bottle.