Growing up close to his paternal grandparents in southern Oregon, Toby Asai Loftus was always intrigued by the other half of his family,his mom’s big Japanese-American community where he loved visiting. Although he proudly called himself Japanese-American, he looked more like his dad’s northern European side of the family. Rejecting easy labels, he began a long search for his true identity.
I Am An American Live is a production of the award-winning nonprofit The Immigrant Story. The stories were presented live at The Patricia Reser Center for the Arts, Beaverton, OR on Saturday, April 15, 2023. This series of events is part of the programming by the Oregon Rises Above Hate coalition, with the aim of drawing attention to the historic xenophobia experienced by the Asian American community in Oregon and across the U.S.
This free event is made possible by a generous contribution by Anne Naito-Campbell. Additional funds for Programming has been provided by Ronald Naito Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, and by a grant from the Oregon Heritage Commission and Oregon Parks and Recreation.