Seian Hokama oral history interview, part 1 of 1, July 9, 2003

Seian Hokama describes his family's history, his childhood growing up in Okinawa, and his return to Hawaii as a young adult. Hokama recounts being drafted into the military before Pearl Harbor and being recruited for the Military Intelligence Service for his knowledge of the Japanese language and culture. He goes over his time interrogating prisoners and winning a medal for alerting the US about an imminent Japanese attack on Bougainville. Finally, Hokama talks about his time teaching new recruits the Okinawan dialect in preparation for an invasion and his life after service as a cafe owner and insurance man.

video/m4v

01:04:30

MISH_Hokama

1914-02-20

Yes