Nagoya Sosong Support Association and Forced Mobilization Historic Site Exploration
Students and teachers of Yongdu Middle School (Principal Kim Jong-mi) conducted a historical site exploration under the theme of "Implementing Historical Justice for Distorted, Concealed, and Neglected History."
According to Yongdu Middle School on the 26th, from the 22nd to the 25th, they explored the history sites related to Japan’s forced mobilization in cooperation with the Nagoya Lawsuit Support Association.
This exchange and exploration were carried out as part of the World Citizen Autonomous School’s historical justice implementation program, urging Japan to offer a sincere apology and compensation for the history of forced mobilization.
The autonomous school is one of the 2024 Gwangju-type Future Schools. This year, Yongdu Middle School has been actively operating under the theme "Towards a Sustainable World, Yongdu Global Citizens Learning and Growing Together," continuing from last year to realize the value of learning that moves from 'knowing' to 'acting.'
This project was planned and operated by the autonomous school department of Yongdu Middle School as an educational activity to understand various global issues the world currently faces?such as climate, ecology, environment, human rights, and peace?and to participate in small actions as mature global democratic citizens, in line with the purpose of the World Citizen Autonomous School.
Additionally, as part of understanding the Northeast Asia peace process and efforts for peace on the Korean Peninsula, this program holds great significance in that it has continuity and scalability as an educational activity at the individual school level, following last year’s Dokdo exploration.
Notably, the exchange partner this time was the Nagoya Lawsuit Support Association, which performed the play "Bongseonhwa III" in Gwangju last February, depicting the forced mobilization victims’ experiences and the association’s activities.
The Nagoya Lawsuit Support Association is a group supporting the Nagoya Mitsubishi Korean Women Workers’ Military Comfort Women lawsuit, voluntarily formed in 1998 by citizens of the perpetrator country to help the grandmothers who were victims of forced mobilization.
Makoto Takahashi, the representative of this citizen group well known as the "Fools of Nagoya," was recognized for his efforts and became an honorary citizen of Gwangju.
Yongdu Middle School has been concretely and progressively planning and conducting practical programs centered on the autonomous school department and student council to ensure that the precious educational value of implementing historical justice for distorted, concealed, and neglected history is not diluted as a one-time activity but preserved and passed on to future generations.
Principal Kim Jong-mi said, "I think the world created by children who can hold the world and someone’s pain in their hearts, like the students of the Gwangju YGA joint club, will be a world where we can smile a little more than now." He added, "Going forward, Gwangju YGA will continue the spirit of ‘Act Locally!’ for a sustainable world."
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