Change is inevitable — but embracing it with intention is what shapes culture, community, and legacy.
Join UPRISERS®, PacSun, and our community partners for EMBRACING CHANGE, a guided field trip through Little Tokyo that explores how a neighborhood defined by resilience continues to adapt, rebuild, and thrive.
Led by guides rooted in history and transformation — Mike Murase, Mariko Lochridge, and Mika Arata — this walk invites you to experience Little Tokyo through the lens of reinvention. From post-war rebuilding to pandemic pivots, each stop reveals how individuals, families, and small businesses have met moments of change with creativity, courage, and care.
Visit the JANM Plaza, once the site of mass displacement and now a space of reflection and pride. Step inside legacy businesses like Kouraku and Mr. Ramen, where tradition meets innovation. Discover how new voices like HYPLAND and TaNoTa Takoyaki are shaping the future of the neighborhood, and how places like Terasaki Budokan and Far Bar continue to bring generations together.
Little Tokyo is not just history — it's a living archive of the people, places, and power that shape its past, present, and future.
About the Event
UPRISERS® presents Embracing Change — a two-part experience happening Saturday, May 24th from 10AM to 4PM in Little Tokyo, Los Angeles.
Join us for a day of storytelling, creativity, and community rooted in the power of transformation.
The day kicks off with a two-hour walking tour through Little Tokyo, highlighting legacy small businesses that have thrived through decades of change. The tour will be led by internationally respected activist Mike Murase and award-winning historic preservationist Mariko Lochridge and UCLA exchange student Mika Arata, who will share stories of resilience, reinvention, and deep cultural roots.
After the walk, stick around for a community gathering featuring light bites, refreshments, and a live community quilting session led by artist Angeles Morales — where you can stitch your own message into a growing tapestry honoring Little Tokyo’s past, present, and future.
Attendees will also get a first look at UPRISERS’ newest collection, WE SEE YOU THEREFORE WE LOVE YOU, and its new YouTube series Sew It Goes, with a hands-on upcycling workshop hosted by maker Susu Schwaber — where you'll turn discarded fabric scraps into one-of-a-kind flower bouquets. A special message will also be shared by Consul General Kenko Sone from the Consulate-General of Japan in Los Angeles.
The event is free and open to the public, but RSVP via Partiful is highly encouraged to stay in the loop on all updates.
++ UPDATE: The walking tour is sold out as of Friday, May 16th but our live community quilting session at Far Bar still have spaces available. ++
📢 Historical Field Trip With Acclaimed Tour Guides:
Mike Murase has spent over five decades embracing change as a political activist and community organizer, building multiracial solidarity across Asian American and African American communities. He co-founded the UCLA Asian American Studies Center, GIDRA, Little Tokyo Service Center, and the LA Free South Africa Movement. Mike has led 100s of walking tour through Little Tokyo and is also the author of ‘Little Tokyo: One hundred years in pictures’. Today, as a member of Nikkei Progressives, he continues working toward a more just and inclusive future.
Mariko Lochridge is a former Reuters journalist who reported breaking news from over a dozen countries before turning her focus to community impact. In response to the sweeping changes brought on by the pandemic, she began channeling her storytelling skills as the bilingual Small Business Programs Coordinator at Little Tokyo Service Center, helping hundreds of Nikkei businesses across Los Angeles County adapt and survive. As the creator of the Small Biz Hype Squad, Mariko pioneers innovative, community-driven strategies to help legacy businesses evolve and thrive. She is recognized as a subject matter expert in legacy business preservation, small business growth, and community partnership.
Mika Arata is an exchange student from Japan currently studying sociology at UCLA. As a volunteer with the Little Tokyo Service Center, she has contributed to the development of this walking tour by researching and documenting the stories of legacy businesses. Her work highlights how communities adapt to change—preserving cultural history while embracing new challenges. Through her research, Mika explores how personal stories reflect resilience, connection, and transformation.
🧵 Community Quilting with Angeles Morales
Sit, stitch, and share at our live community quilting session with artist Angeles Morales. Inspired by the stories from the walking tour, you’ll add your own patch — a wish, a memory, or a message for Little Tokyo’s future. Together, we’ll piece together a quilt that’s all about change, community, and where we’re headed next. No sewing skills needed — just your voice and your vibe.
👕 Collection Preview: "WE SEE YOU THEREFORE WE LOVE YOU"
Get an early look at our newest collection, WE SEE YOU THEREFORE WE LOVE YOU — a love letter to ourselves and our community.
This drop is a reminder that no dream is realized alone. When we stand together, we are seen — and in being seen, we are loved.
Now available at pacsun.com/uprisers and weareuprisers.com.
ABOUT UPRISERS
Founded in 2019, UPRISERS® is an AAPI-founded lifestyle brand that reimagines the traditional life cycle of seasonal collection drops by creating pieces inspired by its community’s traditions, lived experiences, and resilience. In 2024, UPRISERS released its Suehiro Forever collection — a thoughtful intersection of environmental and community sustainability. By utilizing existing materials and historical artifacts, the collection transforms the past into priceless pieces of wearable history, showing how legacy can embrace change. Today UPRISERS continues its deep commitment to honoring where we come from while evolving with and for the community.
ABOUT MICHELLE K. HANABUSA
Born and raised in Los Angeles, Michelle K. Hanabusa is a 4th generation Japanese and Okinawan American and the Founder & Designer of UPRISERS®. Deeply connected to Little Tokyo—where she hosted a pop-up shop in 2018—Michelle builds on heritage to inspire transformation through fashion. Since 2019, UPRISERS® has grown into a nationally recognized brand partnering with Netflix, Panda Express, and Coachella. An award-winning AAPI advocate and entrepreneur, Michelle’s work in sustainable fashion and community storytelling has been featured by ABC News, WWD, and Business Insider. She speaks widely on reducing waste and empowering women in male-dominated industries.
