The
Concord Ambassadors served as the local host committee for Contra
Costa County during the 2010 San Francisco Bay Area Grass Roots Summit. We welcomed 19
visitors from Japan into our homes.
Read about the Center For International Exchange and the history of the Japan - American Grass Roots Summit
The friendship between John Manjiro Nakahama and Captain William Whitfield marked the beginning of the Japan - America Grass Roots Exchange
In 1841 an American whaling boat rescued five shipwrecked Japanese
fishermen who were marooned on a remote Pacific island. Among the five
was a fourteen year old boy called Manjiro. Manjiro's intelligent good
nature soon earned him great respect among the American crew. He was
given the name John, and taken back to Fairhaven Massachusetts to
receive an American education. Under the care of the ship's captain
William H. Whitfield, Manjiro studied not only English, science and
navigation, but also about American culture and values- about freedom,
democracy and hospitality.
At that time Japan was under the rule of the
Tokugawa Shogunate, whose policy of isolationism meant that leaving the
country was an offense punishable by death. After 10 years in America
however Manjiro was determined to return home, to pass on the knowledge
and goodwill he had received from Whitfield and the community of
Fairhaven. Not long after Manjiro returned to Japan, Commodore Perry
arrived calling for an end to isolationism, an event which lead to the
birth of modern Japan. John Manjiro Nakahama played a crucial role in these
events, both interpreting and negotiating for the Shogunate, and
introducing and explaining American culture and technology to the
Japanese.
The friendship between John Manjiro Nakahama and Captain
William Whitfield has resulted in more than 160 years of friendship between
their descendents. Members of the Whitfield and Nakahama families play a
pivotal role in CIE Summits, and serve as a reminder of the enormous
potential of grassroots exchange. Grassroots Summits have been held in America and Japan for the past 21
years. Each year an average of 200 people travel across the Pacific to
take part. Including host participants, more than 35,000 people have
participated in this grassroots exchange.
Kitakami, Japan Concord, California
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