It is with a heavy heart that I write this post. This week in our ASTU class we began to discuss the novel Obasan, written by Joy Kogawa. Told from the perspective of a child, similarly to Persepolis, the story surrounds the internment of Japanese Canadians during the Second World War, and the aftermath of that trauma. The conversation surrounding this novel has sparked a larger conversation concerning racism, and the relevance of Obasan in present day, especially due to the outcome of the US presidential elections.

Being the class blogger last week, I noticed that many of my classmates discussed the darker aspects of their culture’s history. Similarly, this novel draws light to another blemish on that of Canada’s. For those of you who don’t know, after a surprise attack orchestrated by the Japanese on Pearl Harbour — a US naval base located just off the coast of Hawaii —  there was an extreme influx in xenophobia directed at Japanese Canadians. It was significantly higher on the West Coast, so much so that the government decided to send them to internment camps.

In light of recent events, I am genuinely scared for the future of people of colour. Since the debut of Donald Trump’s presidential campaign, there has been an outbreak of racism all across the United States and even in Vancouver, Canada — where I reside. People have shared their experiences, and it has honestly been horrific. I have never seen so much hatred and fear amongst a population. The fact that Trump was able to base his entire campaign on pure racism and misogyny, and that America LOVED it, will forever astound me. When discussing Obasan in the past couple classes, I could only think about how there was a genuine potential for this to happen again, only this time it would most likely be Muslims.

I can only say that I hope that we have learned from our ancestors mistakes, and that we will not repeat the events that occurred following the Second World War.

A post a girl on Facebook had written about her experience with racism after the Trump election.

Stay safe everyone!