The short film “Finding Dohi” takes audiences along on a mother-daughter pair’s journey to Japan to learn whatever they can about their Japanese family’s history dating back to the late 1800s, at the time that their ancestor, Eitaro, first immigrated to Hawaiʻi. 

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 Director Amber McClure describes the barriers to ancestral connection she and her mother faced: “[Eitaro] and his wife encouraged their children to study Japanese language and culture, yet embrace their identity as industrious citizens of the United States. However, World War II changed that. Living in Hawai’i, they were all placed under martial law, and communication with family in Japan was strained. Meanwhile, nearly all Japanese Americans in the US, both 1st and 2nd generation, were gathered and imprisoned in detention camps. My mother and her siblings were born immediately following World War II, attended Christian church, and were never taught to speak Japanese. If they had family in Japan, their existence was never mentioned.”

“Finding Dohi” provokes us to ask: What is lost and forgotten in Hawaiʻi Japanese communities? How does remembering impact our identities, politics and solidarities today?

Besides violating civil rights through removal and incarceration…How did US treatment of Hawaiʻi Japanese communities during WWII disrupt connection to ancestors and culture? 

What value is there in searching before WWII, before the plantation, and before immigrant narratives–for ancestral connection to Japan? 

How can intergenerational relationships and family history bring Hawaiʻi people of Japanese ancestry groundedness, strength and courage to join with others in facing the challenges Hawaiʻi experiences today?

Join us to watch “Finding Dohi” and stay for an intimate post-screening conversation with the filmmaker and a group of artists and intellectuals:

• Amber McClure, “Finding Dohi” filmmaker and genealogist
• Kyle Kajihiro – Assistant Professor of Ethnic Studies, UH Mānoa
• Tsuyuno Amos – Professional Creative

Hosted by the JACL Honolulu with funding from the JACL Legacy Grants Program.