1 00:00:00,680 --> 00:00:05,120 Speaker 1: The black Samurai they didn't expect was in Japan. 2 00:00:06,960 --> 00:00:07,760 Speaker 2: Welcome back Know. 3 00:00:07,880 --> 00:00:11,880 Speaker 1: It alls to another episode of the most anticipated podcast 4 00:00:12,080 --> 00:00:17,120 Speaker 1: on the Black Effect podcast Network, especially in February, entitled 5 00:00:17,200 --> 00:00:20,720 Speaker 1: I didn't Know Maybe you didn't either. I'm your host 6 00:00:20,800 --> 00:00:24,040 Speaker 1: b Dot and this week we're traveling all over the 7 00:00:24,079 --> 00:00:27,400 Speaker 1: world study in black history and how black folk have 8 00:00:27,560 --> 00:00:31,560 Speaker 1: not just impacted, but transformed the world we live in today. 9 00:00:31,760 --> 00:00:37,440 Speaker 1: So get your digital passports today would travel to Japan now. 10 00:00:37,440 --> 00:00:39,360 Speaker 1: To be honest, First of all, do you have any 11 00:00:39,440 --> 00:00:43,920 Speaker 1: clue what a samurai is? These were elite warriors in Japan. 12 00:00:44,360 --> 00:00:48,200 Speaker 1: I'm talking about martial arts. They were disciplined, they were badass. 13 00:00:48,520 --> 00:00:52,279 Speaker 1: But be honest, when you picture a samurai, black is 14 00:00:52,360 --> 00:00:54,120 Speaker 1: probably not the color of your brain. 15 00:00:54,200 --> 00:00:57,760 Speaker 2: Pigs, and that's not your fault. That's the edit. 16 00:00:58,200 --> 00:01:00,520 Speaker 1: But before we get into the meat of the episode, 17 00:01:00,640 --> 00:01:04,080 Speaker 1: I have to give you three of the most useless 18 00:01:04,120 --> 00:01:07,240 Speaker 1: facts you'll never ever need, not a day in life. 19 00:01:07,640 --> 00:01:12,240 Speaker 1: Up first, there was a documented African man living in 20 00:01:12,319 --> 00:01:16,440 Speaker 1: Japan in the fifteen hundreds. Your second useless fact is 21 00:01:16,480 --> 00:01:19,280 Speaker 1: that same African man served under. 22 00:01:19,040 --> 00:01:21,679 Speaker 2: One of the most powerful warlords. 23 00:01:21,280 --> 00:01:25,760 Speaker 1: In Japanese history. And your third useless fact is he 24 00:01:25,880 --> 00:01:30,280 Speaker 1: wasn't a servant. He was a samurai. Yeah, and I 25 00:01:30,319 --> 00:01:31,520 Speaker 1: knew nothing about it. 26 00:01:31,840 --> 00:01:35,400 Speaker 2: I didn't know. I didn't know. I didn't know. 27 00:01:36,959 --> 00:01:37,560 Speaker 1: I didn't know. 28 00:01:37,680 --> 00:01:38,360 Speaker 2: I didn't know. 29 00:01:39,880 --> 00:01:42,720 Speaker 1: I didn't know. I didn't know. I didn't know. 30 00:01:42,920 --> 00:01:43,640 Speaker 2: I didn't know. 31 00:01:46,319 --> 00:01:51,720 Speaker 1: His name was Yasuki, yas uk E Yasuki. He was 32 00:01:51,760 --> 00:01:54,480 Speaker 1: an African man who got to Japan in the late 33 00:01:54,520 --> 00:01:55,520 Speaker 1: fifteen hundreds. 34 00:01:55,680 --> 00:01:56,320 Speaker 2: They say were. 35 00:01:56,240 --> 00:01:59,920 Speaker 1: Probably brought there through the Portuguese trade routes. Historians believe 36 00:02:00,080 --> 00:02:03,680 Speaker 1: Yasuki was from Mozambique, probably from the Makoah people. Some 37 00:02:03,880 --> 00:02:06,720 Speaker 1: records suggested he might have been a child soldier before 38 00:02:06,840 --> 00:02:10,200 Speaker 1: being brought to India and then Japan. And when Yasuki 39 00:02:10,200 --> 00:02:14,239 Speaker 1: stepped off that ship, Japan had never seen somebody like that. 40 00:02:14,600 --> 00:02:18,880 Speaker 1: I mean he was tall, dark skinned, physically imposing. I'm 41 00:02:18,880 --> 00:02:20,920 Speaker 1: talking about people followed him in the streets just to 42 00:02:21,040 --> 00:02:23,440 Speaker 1: look if you above sixty five, that's how they treat 43 00:02:23,480 --> 00:02:26,000 Speaker 1: you in places like Japan and China. Now they automatically 44 00:02:26,000 --> 00:02:28,280 Speaker 1: think you play in the NBA and they want an autograph. 45 00:02:28,520 --> 00:02:30,360 Speaker 1: It was reported that some of the people thought his 46 00:02:30,440 --> 00:02:33,160 Speaker 1: skin was painted. They tried to scrub it off. But 47 00:02:33,240 --> 00:02:36,799 Speaker 1: when it didn't budge all the fascination got serious. 48 00:02:37,120 --> 00:02:38,560 Speaker 2: But here's where the story flips. 49 00:02:39,240 --> 00:02:42,760 Speaker 1: Yasuki caught the attention of Oda Nobunaga, one of the 50 00:02:42,760 --> 00:02:47,920 Speaker 1: most powerful and feared warlords in Japanese history. Instead of 51 00:02:47,960 --> 00:02:50,480 Speaker 1: dismissing him, Babuna God did the unthinkable. 52 00:02:50,680 --> 00:02:51,600 Speaker 2: He elevated him. 53 00:02:51,760 --> 00:02:55,799 Speaker 1: Yasuki was given a residence, a stipend, weapons, and they 54 00:02:55,800 --> 00:02:59,960 Speaker 1: gave him the status of samurai. Nobunanga reportedly said Yasuki 55 00:03:00,120 --> 00:03:04,400 Speaker 1: he had the strength of ten men. Japanese records confirmed 56 00:03:04,560 --> 00:03:08,919 Speaker 1: that Nobunaga spoke with Yasuki directly and was super impressed 57 00:03:08,919 --> 00:03:11,320 Speaker 1: to find out that Yasuki was smart as hell. That 58 00:03:11,440 --> 00:03:18,040 Speaker 1: wasn't symbolic like samurai weren't mascots. They were elite warriors, trusted, armed, respected. 59 00:03:18,280 --> 00:03:21,320 Speaker 1: Now here's the part that messes with the narrative. This 60 00:03:21,480 --> 00:03:24,880 Speaker 1: was before a race became a global hierarchy, before black 61 00:03:25,000 --> 00:03:29,600 Speaker 1: automatically meant inferior everywhere play in Japan, Yasuki was judged 62 00:03:29,639 --> 00:03:34,560 Speaker 1: on loyalty, ability, and presence, not his skin color. It's crazy, 63 00:03:34,600 --> 00:03:38,440 Speaker 1: but anti blackness that had to be taught globally. It 64 00:03:38,520 --> 00:03:42,960 Speaker 1: wasn't automatic and that's a receipts level historical fact. Yasuki 65 00:03:43,000 --> 00:03:46,720 Speaker 1: fought alongside Nobunaga, he was trusted in battle, and when 66 00:03:46,760 --> 00:03:51,440 Speaker 1: Nobunaga fell, Yasuki's fate faded into mystery, not because he 67 00:03:51,520 --> 00:03:55,240 Speaker 1: wasn't important, but because history didn't quite know where the 68 00:03:55,320 --> 00:03:58,640 Speaker 1: file of black man who didn't fit the script. A 69 00:03:58,720 --> 00:04:02,600 Speaker 1: century after CARTERGI. Woodson create a space to preserve Black history, 70 00:04:02,840 --> 00:04:06,200 Speaker 1: stories like Yasuki's are finally resurfacing because if we don't 71 00:04:06,280 --> 00:04:09,680 Speaker 1: document global black presence, people start believing we was only 72 00:04:09,720 --> 00:04:14,440 Speaker 1: ever enslaved, never respected, never powerful, never everywhere. 73 00:04:14,600 --> 00:04:17,719 Speaker 2: And I didn't know. Maybe you didn't either. 74 00:04:19,560 --> 00:04:22,160 Speaker 1: Congratulations, your passport has been stopped. 75 00:04:22,440 --> 00:04:23,640 Speaker 2: Next up, Ethiopia