Nikkei National Museum & Cultural Centre Celebrates 20 years
Over 30 years ago, the idea of having a gathering place for Japanese Canadians of all ages, and welcoming the larger community to share in this space, was just a dream. In December of 1986, a small group conceived of Nikkei Place — a multi-purpose complex joining a national Japanese Canadian cultural centre, seniors’ housing, and a care home. It took planning, commitment, and tenacity to bring the project to construction. On August 9, 1997, a ceremonial groundbreaking and tree planting took place to begin construction of the New Sakura-So seniors’ housing facility, the first building of the Nikkei Place campus.
Soon after, Nikkei National Museum & Cultural Centre (NNMCC) was built (then named the Nikkei National Heritage Centre) and officially opened to serve the community on September 22, 2000. The community gathered, along with dignitaries and special guests, to share in fanfare and celebration. Since then, NNMCC has welcomed hundreds of thousands of people to experience exhibits, cultural programs, special events, educational tours, and more.
NNMCC’s 20th anniversary year has been unlike any other in its history. The COVID-19 pandemic led to the closure of the facility in March 2020, and a re-opening in June under drastically reduced capacity to comply with public health orders. Popular community events such as their Japanese Book Sale and Nikkei Matsuri have been completely re-imagined to allow for safe gatherings and cultural exchange to continue. Their online resources have become more important than ever — working to maintain and enhance the online archival research database, educational activities, and online exhibits, and to develop innovative distance-friendly programming.
As the 20th anniversary of Opening Day arrived, the NNMCC marks the occasion in a similar way to the beginning of Nikkei Place with the planting of a pine tree. Due to the pandemic, the ceremony on Sunday, September 20, 2020, was kept to a small gathering of current board members and guests.
At the start of 2020, the NNMCC envisioned a large 20th anniversary gathering that would also see the opening of the Broken Promises exhibit. Broken Promises is the culmination of a 7-year partnership with the Landscapes of Injustice project exploring the 1940s dispossession of Japanese Canadians through a multi-disciplinary lens with academic and community partners across Canada. Although the grand in-person celebration had to be cancelled, Broken Promises will host an opening via online livestream September 26th, available to anyone around the world. And on Friday, September 18, 2020, the NNMCC hosted the Nikkei Kotoba Forest Lounge where they presented an original live poetry installation, Nikkei Poem, at Nikkei Centre in collaboration with the local Tasai Collective. Nikkei Poem gathered literary submissions from the Nikkei community to create a unique and distance-friendly work of art.
WATCH: The NNMCC Then & Now - Video Slideshow
No one could have foreseen a 20th anniversary year like this one for the NNMCC. A place that has served as a physical gathering place for a our diverse community, the NNMCC has faced enormous challenges from government orders for public health. But enormous challenges have also come with opportunities for resilience: for NNMCC to continue modified programming and a sense of community at a time when many other gathering places are unavailable; and to broaden our reach to a worldwide community online.
We need your support today to maintain Nikkei Centre as a gathering place for future generations. Your support can help protect Japanese Canadian history, heritage, and culture. Please consider donating to the NNMCC’s Resilience Fundraiser. All donations made before December 31 will be matched up to $100,000.