Shuhei Yamamoto
Welfare Worker and Taiko drum player
"Taiko has a huge impact on my way of living. When I started taiko at the
age of 9, it was just gfun.h
But I started thinking seriously about it when a friend who plays taiko in
a different group asked me,
gWhy do you play taiko?h
Taiko is the traditional craft of the people alienated in Hisabetsu Buraku.
It started with a wish of the local adults who wanted to offer an activity that their children could be proud of.
Although I did not understand it well
in my childhood, taiko was also
a symbol of the liberation movement in which my parents and seniors fought against discrimination.Taiko introduced me to the way many such people have lived.
I hope to continue living with their thoughts and feelings in my heart, keeping up my head and taking one step at a time, so my life marks a new path."
