Mary Kitagawa (''nee'' Murakami; born 1935) is a Canadian educator. As a Japanese-Canadian growing up in

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

, her family was placed in various Japanese Internment Camps during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. After the war, she accepted a position in Kitsilano Secondary School and was later awarded an honorary degree from the

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a public research university with campuses near Vancouver and in Kelowna, British Columbia. Established in 1908, it is British Columbia's oldest university. The university ranks among the top thre ...

Early life

Kitagawa was born and raised in

Salt Spring Island Salt Spring Island or Saltspring Island is one of the Gulf Islands in the Strait of Georgia between mainland British Columbia, Canada, and Vancouver Island. The island was initially inhabited by various Salishan peoples before being settled by ...

to a family of five. When she was seven years old, her father was arrested as part of the incarceration of Japanese Canadians across British Columbia's coastline during the Second World War. The rest of her family would eventually join her father in various Internment Camps and lose possession of their farm. After the war ended, she returned to Salt Spring Island in 1954.

Career

Kitagawa wished to begin her teaching career at home on Salt Spring Island but faced prejudices due to her race. As a result, she began her teaching career at

Kitsilano Secondary School , motto_translation = Let There Be Light , staff = 121 , founded = 1917 , schoolboard = School District 39 Vancouver , superintendent = Scott Robinson , director = Magdalena Kassis (Director ...

, where she would meet her future husband. After her children were born, she began work as a substitute teacher and eventually enrolled in the

(UBC). In 2011, Kitagawa successfully advocated UBC to gift the 76 Japanese Canadian students who were forced out of UBC following the

Attack on Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service upon the United States against the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii ...

honorary degrees. She was later the recipient of the 2013

Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal (french: Médaille du jubilé de diamant de la reine Elizabeth II) or The Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal was a commemorative medal created in 2012 to mark the 60th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's ...

and National Association of Japanese Canadians Leadership Award. Kitagawa and her husband Tosh also sat on the Community Council for the Landscapes of Injustice project at the

University of Victoria The University of Victoria (UVic or Victoria) is a public research university located in the municipalities of Oak Bay and Saanich, British Columbia, Canada. The university traces its roots to Victoria College, the first post-secondary insti ...

. In 2018, Kitagawa received the

Order of British Columbia The Order of British Columbia (french: Ordre de la Colombie-Britannique) is a civilian honour for merit in the Canadian province of British Columbia. Instituted in 1989 by Lieutenant Governor David Lam, on the advice of the Cabinet under Premier ...

for her activism efforts for Japanese Canadians.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kitagawa, Mary Living people 1935 births Canadian educators Japanese-Canadian internees People from the Capital Regional District Members of the Order of British Columbia