Paper short abstract:

I explore the significance of hope for a better future, how 'offering' courage in times of uncertainty becomes a source of creativity in Soka Gakkai with possibilities for daily transformation amidst a contradictory reality of the persistence of American bases in Okinawa and few actual commons.

Paper long abstract:

At the periphery of the capitalist state, Okinawa bears the brunt of Japanese imperialism, war, and long stagnant military occupation. This paper looks at how 'commons' are created, experienced and negotiated in the context of the Southern Japanese island of Okinawa. In 2014 and 2018 gubernatorial elections, an 'All Okinawa' ethnic identity was built to mobilize a majority voice based on opposition to the construction of a new American military base. In reality, many complex feelings and different levels of opposition, and non-voiced support reveal regional and class differences, the significance of economic compensation, and a glocalised American-Okinawa culture all of which are smoldering in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and recent elections characterized by identity politics that failed to bring desired results. Recent fieldwork and ethnographic interviews amongst local Soka Gakkai members and various youths growing up around the American bases in Okinawa City, Chatan, Ginowan and Henoko show how diverse interests, economic and educational class disparities, the longing for employment security relate to physical closeness or distance to the American military bases, which trump any easy ideological message of 'common' opposition. Amidst these diverse positions and regional political cultures, I explore the significance of hope for a better future, and how 'offering' courage in times of uncertainty becomes a source of creativity in Soka Gakkai as part of daily possibilities for transformation even if Okinawa as a place retain its status as a 'buffer' state characterized more by its diversity and complexity than by its common voice.