Diana Uribe is a Colombian historian who's popular due to her media presence in the country: radio, television, and the web.
You can find some of her old radio episodes on YouTube. Although I should mention, they are in Spanish. Anyway, there's one in particular I would like to talk to you about: *Japan History Chapter 12: The reconstruction of Japan. Returning from the ashes.* https://youtu.be/Xxsql60AZDY During the episode, Diana Uribe mentions more than once the "useless trades" with which she refers to different crafts, practiced within the families of the Tokyo and Nara prefectures, due to incentives from the mayors' offices. According to the historian, the intention of these crafts were to keep people occupied, so they could find peace instead of the despair of their defeat. She mentions origami as one of the "useless trades". I'm telling you this because I haven't been able to find any mention of this in English, on the web, and any reference about it in Spanish seems to be quoting Diana Uribe. I hope I'm wrong, but I have the feeling that it really didn't happen. I insistently looked for sources in English about it, but all I found in regard to Japan, origami, and WWII was Sadako Sasaki's story. Do you know anything about what Diana Uribe is talking about? Can you confirm or disconfirm her claims? Or, if not, can you please help me find more about it? I'm including two quotes from web articles that I translated from Spanish. I have the feeling they took the information from the historian's radio episode, although they don't state their sources: "The Japanese began to take advantage of the most adverse situation, the humiliation, the depression, the low self-esteem generated by the North American occupation. On the one hand, the "mayoral incentives" for so-called "useless trades" began. In the prefectures of Kyoto [Diana Uribe says it's Tokyo, not Kyoto] and Nara, the two oldest and most traditional cities, the mayors promoted the production of crafts (origami and painted pottery)." >From *The Day After: The Reconstruction of Japan* by Solusan. https://blog.solusan.com/al-dia-siguiente-la-reconstruccion-de-japon.html "After the two nuclear bombs, first: the god emperor Hirohito ordered his people to live (despite the shame and disgrace they felt because of the defeat). Second: The "Mayor's Office" offered "Incentives" from which the "useless trades" would derive, which consisted in making origami and crafts, but for what purpose? Maintaining the stimulation of the creative muscle and, according to the Buddhist doctrine, unemployment is a source of resentment and bitterness, feelings that they know are dangerous for a society undergoing reconstruction. And although it is true that the handicrafts of those Japanese families were bought (for a small price), the purpose was actually to create a social network that would keep the spirit afloat, to generate a concept of unity and solidarity, of community, to strengthen the ties within the families so that they, and the State consequently, could be well." >From *On the Reconstruction of Japan and the Useless Trades: Parallels with COVID-19 *by Gabriel Dary. https://elspotsm.com/sobre-la-reconstruccion-del-japon-y-los-oficios-inutiles-paralelismos-con-el-covid-19/ I'm REALLY curious about all of this. I hope at least one of you can help me out. Among other things, I'm curious about the name "useless trades". Did Diana Uribe propose the name? For some reason I can't imagine the Japanese calling it that. Also, if it did happen, why is it so difficult to find other sources about it on the web? If you wish to reply, you can do so directly through the mailing list or in private to my email address, if you prefer: gerardo(a)neorigami.com As always, thank you in advance *: )* -- *Gerardo G.* gerardo(a)neorigami.com *Knowledge and Curiosity in Origami:* *six private classes online* <https://sites.google.com/neorigami.com/classes>
