Eikichi Kawasaki and the Genealogy of Kanno in Tohoku: The Intersection of Yakuza and Texans

Eikichi Kawasaki and the Genealogy of Kanno in Tohoku: The Intersection of Yakuza and Texans

Eikichi Kawasaki was the fourth president of the Tohoku Shinno Doshikai, a gangster organization in the Tohoku region, and also the fourth head of the Tokyo Moridai Soke. He served as a coordinator of local yakuza organizations, arbitrating conflicts and building relationships between organizations. In particular, he had a certain influence in the yakuza community in the Tohoku region, as evidenced by the fact that he brought an outbreak of fighting in Asamushi Hot Springs in Aomori Prefecture to an end in about seven weeks.

The postwar Tohoku region had its own unique yakuza culture that differed from that of the Kanto and Kansai regions. Tohoku was originally a predominantly rural society, and economic yakuza were not the mainstream as in urban areas, but rather Hakucho-kei and Shinno-kei organizations had taken root. The Shinno-kei is a traditional style of yakuza that has ties to local farmers and merchants, and is responsible for security at festivals and community coordination. In this unique Tohoku climate, the "Tohoku Shinno-Doshikai" maintained local order and developed activities tied to the local economy.

From the prewar to the postwar period, tekiya in the Tohoku region were responsible for organizing local festivals and had close relationships with local clan organizations and shrines. They earned their living by managing the location of festival stalls and systematically coordinating the operations of street vendors. Therefore, tekiya organizations were closely tied to local communities, and in rural areas and small towns, they had a certain influence on the local economy as Shinto farmer-affiliated organizations. This Shinno-affiliated tekiya organization later became linked to the yakuza in the Tohoku region.

During the chaotic postwar period, yakuza society rapidly changed as gangs from the Kanto and Kansai regions moved out of the urban areas and into the Tohoku region. Under these circumstances, the tekiya organizations in the Tohoku region deepened their relationship with the yakuza in order to protect their own turf. In particular, organizations such as the Tohoku Shinno-Doshikai (Association of the Tohoku Shintō Shinkin) allied themselves with the yakuza to protect the tekiya's interests, sometimes maintaining their power through warfare. Although tekiya were not inherently directly involved in illegal activities such as gambling, they enjoyed mutual benefits by accepting the "bouncers" provided by yakuza organizations and their function as coordinators in turf wars.

The war that broke out at Asamushi Hot Springs in Aomori Prefecture occurred precisely in the context of these times. There are various theories as to the details, but it is believed that a conflict arose between the local gangs and the Kanto gangs as they moved into Aomori. The conflict lasted for about seven weeks, but Eikichi Kawasaki was the coordinator and brought the situation under control. His ability to coordinate shows that he was not just a martial artist, but also a man with negotiating skills. In Tohoku at that time, local organizations were strongly united with each other, and organizations from other regions could not easily enter the area. Kawasaki is believed to have worked hard to resolve the conflict while taking into account the interests of the region.

In the 1950s, the Yamaguchigumi and Inagawa-kai began to make full-scale inroads in the Tohoku region. In particular, in the 1980s, the influence of Kanto and Kansai-affiliated organizations increased throughout the Tohoku region, and local organizations gradually lost their power. During this period, local-based organizations such as the Tohoku Shinno-Doshikai began to seek alliances with national organizations, and some of them even moved to become affiliated with major organizations.

In the process, the relationship between tekiya and yakuza in the Tohoku region also underwent changes. As urbanization progressed, tekiya began to move away from their traditional festival-centered business model and into other economic activities such as pachinko parlors and the restaurant business. At the same time, yakuza organizations shifted their focus to urban land development and financial businesses, and changed to a more modern business model. In the process, some tekiya organizations were absorbed by yakuza organizations and lost their unique presence.

In addition, the relationship between tekiya and yakuza also changed as the police tightened their control over gangs from the 1950s onward. In order to survive, traditional tekiya organizations had to shift to legitimate activities while maintaining their distance from the yakuza. However, some organizations remained under the influence of the yakuza, and after the implementation of the Anti-Yakuza Law, some organizations began to function essentially as subordinate organizations of the yakuza.

The Tohoku Shinno Doshikai, led by Eikichi Kawasaki, was not unaffected by these changes in Tohoku tekiya society. He worked hard to maintain the unity of the local organization while protecting the tekiya's interests, but as the times changed, the relationship between tekiya and yakuza was irreversibly transformed. In particular, as major gangs from the Kanto and Kansai regions expanded into the Tohoku region, local tekiya organizations gradually lost their unique influence and were consequently incorporated into the yakuza community.