Yi Jougkeun was born in Shimane Prefecture in Japan in 1928 as the oldest of nine children. His father came to Japan from Korea in 1923, and his mother came later. They moved to Hiroshima when he was in elementary school, and he describes the discrimination his family faced there. He talks about being more comfortable speaking Japanese, which he used in public and considered his mother tongue, but he was encouraged to speak Korean at home or with family members; he identified as Japanese and used his Japanese name and didn't start using his Korean name until 2012. He talks about working for the Japan Railway Bureau; he was on his way to work, having just crossed the Kōjin Bridge, at the moment the bomb exploded. He was severely injured and burned in the bombing of Hiroshima, and he remembers his mother weeping as she removed maggots from his wounds, wishing that he would die so that he could be at peace. He also mentions using engine oil to treat the burns on his face. He discusses his disdain for the ABCC (Atomic Bomb Casualty Commission); he says they were more interested in studying hibakusha than helping or treating them. He stayed in Japan after the war, and talks about having to hide his Korean identity in order to avoid discrimination and to find work; he talks about how one of his friend's mothers suspected he was Korean just by looking at him, which shocked him and made him worry that other people could tell. He talks about his experiences working with the Peace Boat organization.
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