On Thursday May 19th google celebrated what would have been the 95th birthday of Yuri Kochiyama. First seeing the google doodle I was confused and had no idea who this woman was. As it turns out she was a civil rights activist. Friend of Malcolm x. She was also someone who inspired by Osama Bin Laden.
Kochiyama was a Japanese American woman who was born in 1921 she died in 2014. On the day of Pearl Harbor, her father was arrested. Not long after her mother, one of her sisters, and Yuri were sent to internment camps. She lived her for about two years. Her brothers volunteered to join the army: one was accepted, the other was denied because of health reasons. It is unclear if she met her husband, Bill, in a camp or afterwards. He was a solider and still supported and encouraged her activism. She had six children. Later in life she lived in low-income housing in New York. Many of her neighbors were black and Puerto Rican. Her oldest daughter remembers being surrounded by her mother's work. Yuri invited speakers into her home for a sort of open house for these people to come and speak.
As mentioned before she was friend of Malcolm X, who was one of her hero’s. She met him in 1963. One of her sons and her were arrested among many black activists during a protest. While she was awaiting trail Malcolm X walked in. Of course there were many fans there who wanted to greet him. Their long friendship started with a handshake. Once she got the courage to talk to him she asked to shake his hand. Naturally he asked her why and she said for giving direction to his people. That is where the three-year friendship began. Over those three years he came to speak at Yuri Kochiyama’s open houses. When Malcolm X was assassinated in 1965 Yuri ran toward him and cradled his head as he died.
Even though she fought for equality for not just Asian Americans, but people of color in general, she had some radical views. She supported Osama Bin Laden. She even stated she admired him as much as she did Malcolm. She saw him as a leader to his people. She viewed him as a freedom fighter rather than a terrorist. She described him as “no ordinary leader”. When asked if freedom fighters should support him, she responded that they do not just support him but fight with him.
Even though she did have some controversial views she did accomplish positive things. For example she helped to push for the signing of the Civil Liberties Act. Which was a government apology for those who were in camps during World War II and provided reparations. She fought against imperialism and racism. In 2005 she was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize. She also fought for other political prisoner rights.
Even as she got older she still fought and never gave up her activism. Throughout her career she inspired many people. She had some great accomplishment even with being controversial. She lived a difficult life growing up and let that shape her views. It encouraged her to fight for equality.
