Top > Program Library > Sharing the Unspoken The Nagasaki A-Bomb

Sharing the Unspoken
The Nagasaki A-Bomb

Broadcast on August 9, 2004/49minutes

To view this content, you need the latest version of the Adobe Flash Player.

Get ADOBE FLASH PLAYER

77-year-old Ms. Eiko Yamazaki has over the years been telling of her experiences in the A-bombing of Nagasaki using sign language. On August 9, 1945, when she was 18 years old, Ms. Yamazaki returned to Nagasaki City from the place to which she had been evacuated to search for her sister, only to meet with the bombing tragedy. She did not learn that the horrifying sights she saw then were caused by an A-bomb until sometime after the end of the war. Her impaired hearing ability prevented her from obtaining the information any quicker. In 2003, Ms. Yamazaki was the first deaf person ever chosen as the representative of the A-bomb victims to speak at the annual Nagasaki Peace Memorial Ceremony. She related her own experience in sign language to audiences throughout the world. Her evocative use of hands and body captured the hearts of many people across Japan, resulting in the pouring in of a large number of invitations to give talks. The program follows Ms. Yamazaki to various parts of Japan where she goes to share her experience of the Nagasaki A-bomb in sign language, mainly with young audiences.

Page Top