(From the book description) “On February 12, 1965, in the Audubon Ballroom, Yuri Kochiyama cradled Malcolm X in her arms as he died, but her role as a public servant and activist had begun much earlier than this pivotal public moment. Growing up in a Japanese immigrant family in California, Kochiyama was largely unconscious of race and racism. After Pearl Harbor, however, Kochiyama's family was among those forcibly removed to internment camps, a traumatic experience that opened her eyes to social injustice. Kochiyama began her activist career in the civil rights movement in Harlem, where she met Malcolm X who inspired her political development and the ensuing four decades of work for Black liberations, Asian American equity, Puerto Rican independence, and political prisoner defense. Heartbeat of Struggle  is the first biography of this courageous woman, the most prominent Asian American activist to emerge during the 1960s.”

 

Kochiyama's story and work are significant to Japanese Americans and minority communities because her actions showcase how the experiences of one minority group can pave the way for another minority group in both directions—gaining agency or meeting injustices. By forming true alliances, Kochiyama demonstrates the strength in unity to lay the groundwork for social change that embraces each other regardless of race, class, economics, or national origin. 

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