"Haru-fuchi (revered female elder) was born in Shizunai, Hokkaido. When she began attending elementary school at the age of nine, she was bullied by Japanese children, who often threw stones at her. After she was severely injured by a stone, she stopped going to school. Although the conspicuous tattoo around her mouth made her a target of discrimination, she was proud of her culture and tried to teach Ainu values to young Ainu people until she died. She was a generous and understanding person who was greatly respected."

From: Ainu: Spirit of a Northern People. Eds. William W. Fitzhugh and Chisato O. Dubreuil. Washington DC: Arctic Studies Center, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution in association with University of Washington Press, 1999.