After Pearl Harbor, Tadayoshi Sugiyama remembers being cautious and hearing rumors about General Dwight Eisenhower and evacuation orders. In April 1942, the Sugiyama family evacuate to the Turlock Assembly Center in Tracy, California.
Taira Fukushima discusses the importance of family. For example, when he is a student, he gets a paper route job, and with the money earned, he shares it with the family. In the 1930s, there was a notion that tuberculosis was hereditary. By getting…
Taira Fukushima and his brother Jim are together for 442nd and replacements. On the mainland, Taira is a medic aide, and Jim is a litter bearer. Taira has limited training as a medic, but Tech Sergeant Hirata and Sergeant Matsuda give him support…
Theodore "Ted" Yenari discusses graduating high school in 1938 and being aware about world events. He recalls asking his parents to go watch a play about antiwar and writing a school paper on Manchuria.
Matsushita begins the interview talk about his childhood and growing up in Idaho. He would work on his family's farm while attending school and doing a large variety of chores. He talks about his high school years and then about his whereabouts…
Tommy Mayekawa and his family evacuate to Santa Anita Assembly Center after receiving the evacuation orders. He describes the living conditions and life in the camp. Tommy and his family live in a horse stable, and his parents accepted the situation…
During the Military occupation in Japan, Tommy Mayekawa works for the Third Military Railway Service Headquarters as an interpreter. He guards the trains to make sure they are not pilferage.
Living in Yokohama, Japan, Tommy does not encounter…
Mano discusses his prefecture of origin and familial description. He also recalls home life with his parents, school years leading up to forced removal. In Mano's adolescent years, his family visited relatives in Japan.
Nagasaka discusses attending Japanese language school as a child and coming from a Buddhist family. He also talks about his recreational activities in school, such as handball, in which he was always the best. Next, he talks about the after effects…
Teramura continues his recollection of his school years in Oregon, his favorite subject being math. He discusses some of the impactful teachers he had and some of the discrimination that he faced during his childhood. After graduating from Oregon…
At Camp Savage, Yoshio Izumi is assigned to Headquarter Company and does clerical work. He is tasked with morning reports and supplies inventory. Yoshio recalls being inducted at the same time as John Aiso and seeing him at basic training at Fort…
Yoshisuke Jack Kunitomi discusses that when he was a child that he identified with being Japanese, but when he was older he identified as being an American. Next, he recounts his reactions to Pearl Harbor, his parents reactions, and the law…
Yoshisuke Jack Kunitomi talks about his reactions to evacuation, and the effects of evacuation to Little Tokyo. Next, he discusses the train trip to Manzanar, the food being served there, and the ingenuity of the Issei for building a secret alcohol…
