The Shadow of the Tohoku Region: Eikichi Kawasaki and the Shinkonos from 1945 to 1975

The Shadow of the Tohoku Region: Eikichi Kawasaki and the Shinkonos from 1945 to 1975

Eikichi Kawasaki was the fourth president of the Tohoku Shinno Doshikai and acted as a coordinator of local yakuza organizations. He played an important role in the yakuza community in Tohoku, including bringing the Asamushi Hot Springs War in Aomori Prefecture to an end in about seven weeks. In the postwar period, Hakucho-kei and Shinno-kei organizations took root in Tohoku, and tekiya, in particular, strengthened their ties to the yakuza while supporting local festivals and commercial activities. During the postwar turmoil, gangs from the Kanto and Kansai regions entered the Tohoku region, and conflicts with local organizations intensified, but Kawasaki was instrumental in reconciling these conflicts. From the 1950s onward, the influence of national organizations expanded, and the relationship between tekiya and yakuza changed. While tekiya diversified their commercial activities, some were incorporated into the yakuza's subordinate organizations. As police control tightene
d, it became increasingly difficult to maintain independence, and as a result, many local organizations were dismantled or absorbed.