1970s Japan Seen By A US Journalist

[Mulboyne]

While looking for information on Henry and Hoki Miller for this post, I came across a 1970 article by Darrell Houston. Clicking through the links, it seems there are eleven pieces by Houston online and they make for fascinating reading. Rather than quoting them at length here, it really would be better to just click on the links and go through them all even though they are quite lengthy.

In one, he profiles an outspoken critic of Soka Gakkai and in another he pens a portrait of a hippy hafu glue-sniffer hanging around in Shinjuku. Student riots were still a regular feature in Japan (video clips in this thread) and Houston covered one violent confrontation while also writing about the development of the main national student organization. He was also in Japan when Mishima killed himself and has a report on the day itself as well as a piece on the aftermath. His account of the social problems caused by kamikaze taxis will be an eye-opener for anyone who thinks taxis drivers are bad today. Pollution was a major problem at the time and he details the tensions between big business who resisted regulation and politicians who were coming under increasing pressure to act. Houston writes an inevitable piece about finding the real Japan but he recognizes the conceit and so it is better than most. There is an article on Hiroshima and Nagasaki at a time when it had just been reported that POWs had died in the bombings and also a look at South Korea's development and relationship with Japan.

There were probably many other journalists covering similar ground at the time but not much of their work is readily available, let alone online and free so this is a good snapshot of what one man decided was important.

[mr. sparkle]

Hmmm....where to start? OK. The Hippy Glue Sniffer.

[mr. sparkle]

Hmmm....where to start? OK. The Hippy Glue Sniffer.

Excellent. This is really a visual description. Almost feel I was there. Can't wait to read more.

[TFG]

There is something very interesting about the student revolutionary movement at that time in Japan. Usually it is the downtrodden that make these left wing swings but here in Japan it started with the kids from upper class families as is evident by the Todai riots.
I personally feel it is time for this sort of thing to reemerge in Japan.

[gkanai]

Very cool find! Thank you for sharing.

[etto_neh]

Thank you very much for the post Mulboyne! I especially liked the Sokka Gakkai article. They've a very large hall in my town and they tend to freak me the fuck out.