Powell Street Festival returns to Oppenheimer Park

    1 of 11 2 of 11

      Many Vancouverites don't know that Oppenheimer Park was known as the Powell Street Grounds when it opened in 1902.

      In the first four decades of the 20th century, it was in the heart of the city's thriving Japanese district.

      The park was also the home field of the neighbourhood's beloved Japanese Canadian baseball team, the Vancouver Asahi, who won several tournaments and championships.

      But all of that came to an end when approximately 23,000 B.C. residents of Japanese descent were interned following the bombing of Pearl Harbour.

      It ripped the heart out of Japantown, as it was then known. The Downtown Eastside went into a decades-long decline following the loss of this large and vibrant community.

      The former residents' assets were later sold while they were living in camps. The Japanese Canadian fishing industry was eliminated. Businesses were shuttered.

      This meant they had to start all over again after the war ended. And they had to wait more than 40 years before the Canadian government apologized and offered each internee $21,000 in compensation. Those who were deported to Japan were given back their Canadian citizenship.

      But not all lived long enough to see this day.  Some who were forced to move to Japan starved to death in the famine following the Second World War.

      Every B.C. Day weekend, Japanese Canadians honour their history and their culture at the Powell Street festival in Oppenheimer Park.

      Today and on Sunday (August 3), events are taking place at the Firehall Arts Centre, the Vancouver Japanese Language School and Japanese Hall, Vancouver Buddhist Temple, Centre A, and, yes, Oppenheimer Park. During the daytime, all the entertainment is free. (Here's the schedule of events.)

      Last year, the Powell Street Festival Society graciously exited from Oppenheimer Park after a tent city was created there by homeless people.

      The housing activists, including many of First Nations descent, wanted to bring attention to this issue in advance of the Vancouver election. The society issued a statement supporting them.

      The festival is back in Oppenheimer Park this year.
      Charlie Smith

      But this year, crowds of festivalgoers were back in Oppenheimer Park munching on sushi, listening to traditional and contemporary music, watching martial-arts displays, and buying Japanese works of art.

      It was yet another homecoming for a community that has experienced and overcome a far more challenging displacement in the past.

      Members of the UBC Classical Ju-jutsu Club put on a demonstration.
      Charlie Smith
      The festival's merchandise booth was busy.
      Charlie Smith
      Food stands attracted long lineups.
      Charlie Smith
      Tasty treats were readily available.
      Charlie Smith
      Japanese food sold at bargain prices.
      Charlie Smith
      Diners converged on Dunlevy Avenue.
      Charlie Smith
      The festival has maintained excellent relations with the neighbours.
      Charlie Smith
      Seniors could keep out of the sun.
      Charlie Smith
      Things for sale.
      Charlie Smith

       

      Comments