ABSTRACT
The Kunitachi demonstrations were organized at a small bar located near Yaho station. This chapter discusses the way the Kunitachi organizers conceived of the demonstration not only as a means of political expression but also of community-building. It analyzes the music of the demonstrations acted as a conduit for the cultural memories of anti-nuclear activism in Japan. The music of the late Imawano Kiyoshiro, a one-time Kunitachi resident, helped local activists connect with the long history of anti-nuclear struggle. The region's ties to the counter-culture and the anti-nuclear 'new wave' movement of the 1980s were also reflected in the music of the Kunitachi demonstrations. The chapter also discusses the use of performance and props at the demonstrations. Activists lampooned powerful figures such as the Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) and tried to act out possible alternative futures through street theatre. The chapter explores the role of memory and place in the development of anti-nuclear culture in a local community.
