The Bridges Yuri Built

HOW YURI KOCHIYAMA MARCHED ACROSS MOVEMENTS

Written by Kai Naima Williams / Illustrated by Anastasia Magliore Williams


THE BRIDGES YURI BUILT: HOW YURI KOCHIYAMA MARCHED ACROSS MOVEMENTS introduces one of the 20th-century’s most notable freedom fighters, Yuri Kochiyama (1921 – 2014) to the next generation of young readers.

Debut children's picture book author Kai Naima Williams – great-granddaughter of Yuri Kochiyama – intimately chronicles the experiences and lessons, hardships and victories, and people and places that shaped Yuri’s life and influenced her activism. From Yuri’s incarceration in a Japanese-American concentration camp during World War II to her participation in movements organizing for better schools in Harlem to her close friendship with Malcolm X, Yuri never wavered in her belief in the power of people – especially young people – to bring about social change. Through imaginative writing and vibrant illustrations (Anastasia Magloire Williams), THE BRIDGES YURI BUILT is sure to inspire young readers to embrace Yuri’s unswerving belief that together we can build a bridge to a better world.