丁香园AV

Kunimoto describes feeling a natural connection to community-engaged research largely because of her positionality in academia and lived experiences. 鈥淚 grew up living in poverty and faced racism when I was younger. When you move from that environment to the upper echelons of the ivory tower, you begin to realize that it鈥檚 predominantly white鈥攊t makes it clear there needs to be changes so that people from underprivileged backgrounds can feel safe and active in this environment.鈥�

For Kunimoto, a highlight of her work has been becoming the Director of Ethnic Studies at Ohio State University and being in relationships with people who are Black, Indigenous or people of colour. 鈥淎t the Center, I work with other faculty and graduate assistants who are all BIPOC鈥攊t鈥檚 built for me a community of friends and colleagues who are BIPOC and share my values closely.鈥�

Throughout her research, she has maintained her energy for social activism, and is passionate about changing institutional structures toward anti-racist goals.

Community feels connected to broader social concerns for Kunimoto. 鈥淲hen I think about community, I think about the Indigenous peoples whose lands the university sits on, people who don鈥檛 have access to post-secondary education, people who might not have a post-secondary education but are just as valuable as someone who has a PhD,鈥� she says. 

Kunimoto is in Vancouver this spring for her sabbatical. She鈥檚 working on a new book project called Transpacific Erasures: Contemporary Art, Gender, Race and the Afterlives of Japanese Imperialism, where she will be examining how contemporary artists in Japan and America have dealt with the aftermath of the Pacific War. As part of her research, she will be connecting with Japanese artists in Vancouver, utilizing resources at 312 Main, and visiting the Nikkei Heritage Centre in Burnaby.

鈥淪ocial connections are so important to fuel ongoing work and building community is the only way to productively get through oppressions people experience every day.鈥�