#ed lin

Back when I was in college, we were all buzzed that Yuri and Bill Kochiyama came to us, giving strength to our cause in getting an Asian American studies class on campus and on forming an Asian group whose sole purpose wasn’t just to throw parties. They had both just come back fresh from testifying to Congress about Japanese American redress and it was mind-blowing to learn about the internment first-hand. Yuri and Bill always had time for young people, in their home and in their hearts. Later, when I was trying to write a profile about Yuri for a Hawaiian newspaper, I was a little frustrated because she refused to talk about herself, her individual experience. She would talk about people and movements and the inevitable triumph of justice. Rarely would she reflect on the young woman who went by “Mary” and how that young woman grew up to move mountains. A few years after that, I had the sad duty to write about Bill’s life when he passed away. I remember the ceremony and the gathering of people from all backgrounds coming together to celebrate the man. Now two decades later, Yuri and Bill are back together. Some people will point out Yuri’s strengths. But I will always remember her one adorable weakness. She and Bill kept a room full of teddy bears. She loved them.

Ed Lin is a New York-based writer.