On Saturday, October 31, as part of our schoolwide moral education program for junior high school students, we welcomed performer Chan-Heng for a special performance and lecture titled "I Am a Challenger: The Spirit of Never Giving Up."

Born in 1985 in the Utoro district of Kyoto, Chan-Heng experienced bullying and discrimination because of his Korean heritage as a Zainichi Korean (an ethnic Korean resident of Japan). Despite these challenges, he became the first Asian to win a gold medal at a performance competition in the United States while still in his third year of junior high school. Since then, he has performed on stages around the world. In 2020, he published his book Boku wa Chosenjin ("I Am a Challenger") through Home-sha/Shueisha. Today, alongside his international performances, he gives lectures to elementary, junior high, and senior high school students throughout Japan. Through rap music and world-class performances, he shares powerful messages about human rights and how to live one's life, centered on the theme of "never giving up."

The event began with a breathtaking performance by Chan-Heng, filling the venue with enthusiastic applause and cheers. Students were captivated by the world-class skills unfolding right before their eyes.

In the lecture that followed, Chan-Heng began by explaining the history of the Korean Peninsula and Japan, providing context for his own family roots. He then spoke passionately, sometimes with humor, about his family, his elementary school years, and the severe bullying he experienced because of his Korean heritage. Particularly moving were his personal accounts of the words of encouragement he received from his family and those around him during difficult times, his experiences of being stateless, and the emotional struggles his family faced when he needed to acquire citizenship to pursue his dreams. Drawing on his own experiences, he shared the complex feelings and realities of discrimination and identity that cannot be fully understood through textbooks alone. The students' reflections afterward showed just how deeply each of his stories had resonated with them.

At the end of the lecture, Chan-Heng performed an original rap song. The students listened attentively, reflecting on the powerful messages conveyed through his lyrics.

We would like to express our heartfelt gratitude to Chan-Heng for his unforgettable performance and inspiring talk.