On June 29, at the Terasaki Budokan, Okaeri hosted Okaeri Matsuri, the second iteration of an event launched in 2023 to center and celebrate the Nikkei LGBTQ+ community.
Despite the sweltering heat, hundreds of attendees, both returners and new faces alike, showed up to participate in the festivities. Many wore summer yukata and jinbei, while others styled more avant garde outfits inspired by pop culture, anime, traditional kitsuke, and their own personal style.
Walking through the rainbow-colored welcome gates, attendees were greeted with offerings including a raffle, game booths, food and kakigori booths, a Tanabata-inspired display, a tanzaku activity, ondo dancing, and a performance lineup featuring Drag Queens Gia Gunn and Bibi Discoteca, minyo dancers Mariko & Cam, and L.A.-based taiko group TaikoProject.
The inception of Okaeri Matsuri (formerly known as Queer Obon) in 2023 was driven by the realization that, despite the long-standing presence of LGBTQ+ individuals in the Nikkei community and the dozens of cultural festivals and events that happen each year, there was no space that specifically centered LGBTQ+ identity while also celebrating individuals' Nikkei heritage.
Additionally, many LGBTQ+ Nikkei have expressed that they did not feel able to be themselves at more traditional events. Due to factors including traditional gender norms and long-ingrained cultural and social expectations, many felt they could not dress the way they wanted, act in ways that felt natural, or show affection to those they cared about, for fear of being judged or excluded by the rest of the community.
With the goal of creating a space that could address these needs, Okaeri referenced traditional Obon, matsuri, and cultural celebrations, and incorporated additional elements that helped anchor it firmly in both the LGBTQ+ and Nikkei spaces.
One such element was the creation of an original "Okaeri Ondo" song and dance to encapsulate the spirit of welcoming queer and trans individuals as family. The song and dance, made in collaboration with Great Leap, debuted at this year's Okaeri Matsuri. However, its creation was the result of a yearlong community effort that included a series of workshops to create the lyrics and dance choreography.
The song itself was an original arrangement with vocals and instrumentals contributed by members of the Nikkei community, and the dance was co-led by matsuri committee member Mariko Rooks and Drag Queen Gia Gunn.
On debuting the "Okaeri Ondo," Rooks reflected, "Getting to share our community-created song and choreography this year was especially meaningful after working so hard to build this project. Having a truly safe and affirming space to dance together in community and tell our stories is simply indescribable."
Dance was another medium where LGBTQ+ Nikkei acceptance was embodied. Performers blended elements of traditional Japanese dance, queer identity, and pop culture in their performances, and attendees shared in the experience through the communal ondo dances, which featured both traditional and contemporary numbers.
In this way, performers and attendees alike were able to articulate queer joy while simultaneously challenging traditional norms and expectations.
Drag Queen Gia Gunn, who drew on her backgrounds in Nihon buyo and minyo dance in her performance, also reflected on the role of dance in creating a specifically Nikkei LGBTQ+ space. Gunn noted, "We as Japanese queer people have very few spaces and Okaeri Matsuri is a sacred place where we can gather and experience queer joy in its purest form! I love seeing everyone dancing as it reminds me of when I was a little kid, and it was so magical."
Indeed, recalling memories of festivals we grew up going to was a common theme among attendees and performers alike. TaikoProject encapsulated these feelings well, sharing that "Some of our current members identify as LGBTQIA+ and it is an amazing opportunity to perform...for Okaeri's community as a symbiotic relationship of sharing our art...while being provided [a] space that feels like home.
"[By] performing at this year's Okaeri Matsuri we hope that you might feel nostalgic of Nikkei events you remember while growing up, or empowered through the energy, power, and vibration from the drums."
However, a celebration like Okaeri Matsuri hasn't always been assured. As one of this year's matsuri committee members reflected, "After concluding last year's Queer Obon, we were uncertain whether we'd be able to repeat it. Not everyone agrees with this kind of event, and the small size of our planning committee makes things even harder. This year we planned the whole event with a committee of just nine members."
Such comments speak to the realities of trying to carve out a space for a group that has long been marginalized and ostracized, sometimes even by their own families and communities.
Yet, the need for a space that centers queer Nikkei is clear. According to the ACLU, in 2023 alone over 500 anti-LGBTQ+ bills were introduced across the country, and in January of 2024, nearly 300 new bills were proposed. Though, thankfully, many of these bills never make it into law, they reflect the difficult landscape in which LGBTQ+ Nikkei live each day, making the need for a safe, affirming, and communal space ever more necessary.
Even in California, though, it's not always easy to find such spaces for queer Nikkei, which is why an event like Okaeri Matsuri matters. It provides a culturally informed yet affirming space for LGBTQ+ Nikkei that otherwise wouldn't be possible, and its creation, despite obstacles and resistance, reflects the idea that the Nikkei LGBTQ+ community will always persist and find joy in their authentic selves.
As Mariko Rooks beautifully sums up: "Having so many generations of queer Nikkei in the same space is such a powerful testament to our community's longevity and futurity. Being able to imagine myself attending Okaeri Matsuri in 20 or 30 years with a wife/partner, just like many of the community members I see in our Okaeri spaces, gives me so much hope and joy.
"We've always been here, we will continue to be here, and we are here for each other."