A Voice in the Dark: Takenaka Labor and Words that Shoot Discrimination (1928-1991)

A Voice in the Dark: Takenaka Labor and Words that Shoot Discrimination (1928-1991)

Takenaka Roh (real name: Tsutomu) was born in Kagurazaka, Tokyo. His father was Eitaro Takenaka, an illustrator. As a young man, he threw himself into the labor movement and joined the Japanese Communist Party, but was later expelled. Thereafter, he worked as a manual laborer in the field, and eventually, armed with words, became a reportage writer. He became a reporter for "Josei Jishin" (Women's Journal of Japan), and his work traversed the worlds of entertainment and politics, as well as the people living on the fringes of the city.

His brush did not only expose the scandals behind the glamorous scenes. Rather, he illuminated the voices of those who live in places where the light does not shine. In the back alleys of the Yamaya, between the waves of the Ryukyu Islands, and on the ground of discrimination. Takenaka always stood on the side of the "invisible" and was never afraid to cut into the social structure.

In the "Special Issue on Talking" magazine, he publicly stated that he "really wanted to take up the Buraku issue. He turned his brush squarely toward this issue that the media had always avoided. His focus was not to sympathize with the "discriminated against," but to expose the structure of the issue.

This attitude culminated in "Yamatani: The Origin of Urban Revolt. In this record of day laborers living in Tokyo's Yamaya, the truth about the city, where discrimination and poverty are intertwined, is laid bare. Another chapter in his history is the incident in which he was denounced by the Buraku Liberation League for his comments questioning the roots of Misora Hibari's singing voice. His narrative, which blurred the boundaries between entertainment and discrimination, and between the state and the masses, had the sharpness to cut through the contradictions of society.

People do not flock together because they are powerless. They are powerless because they flock together. Takenaka's thought can be summed up in this one phrase. He never belonged to any organization or system, and was always a solitary traveler of words. Takenaka passed away from liver cancer at the age of 63. His death was quiet, but his handwriting is still hot.

Related Writings and Commentaries

- The Valley of the Mountains: The Origins of Urban Revolt.
　A masterpiece that illuminates the structure of discrimination through the reality of workers in a corner of the city.

- Nippon Joge Gyo (Japan's Love Story)
　This work connects enka with the history of the common people, and unearths the memories of class and discrimination through the voices of the singers.

- Reportage Writer Jikki (The Beginning of a Reportage Writer)
　An autobiographical essay that weaves words from the frontlines of discrimination and exploitation, while staying close to those who have no voice.

- Weekly Meisei" series "Misora Hibari: The Unwritten Hibari" (in Japanese)
　A problematic work that addresses the roots of Hibari's singing voice and raises the issue of Buraku discrimination.

- Other works:
　Other works: "Black Flag Suikoden," "Ryukyu Republic," "Talent Empire," "Nihon Eiga Soudan," "Sekai Akaigun," and many others.

Takenaka Rō believes in words and listens to the voiceless. His brush continues to ask the reader questions, as if lighting a fire between silence and violence. Who do you stand next to?