Interviews

1. His family's migration to Salinas, California

2. Father created a partnership to grow and ship vegetables

3. Father's business partner operated their farming business during WWII

4. Father was convinced the constitution would protect him

5. Japanese were not welcomed back to Salinas

6. Felt no hostility in Los Gatos, California after the war

7. Able to settle easily in Los Gatos with foresight and luck

8. Requested assignment in Europe to avoid combat in the Korean War

9. Taking over his father's business after father's accident

10. Mochitsuki tradition

11. Feelings about redress

12. Mr. Hirasaki brought World Fair Japanese pavilion to Gilroy

Tom Yuki

(b. 1935) Sansei businessman.

Japanese were not welcomed back to Salinas

Politically speaking, Salinas was also taken over by the people from Oklahoma, the Dustbowl people from Oklahoma who took over the farming and supervisory position in Salinas, and of course politically speaking they didn’t want the Japanese to come back because it was competition. And as a result, Salinas has been for a long time did not want the Japanese to return.

As a matter of fact, my father’s company wrote a letter to him telling him that we employees of the Salinas Valley Vegetable Exchange—that’s the name of the company my father owned—that he would not return to Salinas. And as a result we did not go back to Salinas. So that’s the reason why we relocated to Los Gatos.

California postwar racism Salinas United States World War II

Date: March 22, 2018

Location: California, US

Interviewer: John Esaki

Contributed by: Watase Media Arts Center, Japanese American National Museum

Interviewee Bio

Tom Yuki was born on June 29, 1935, in Salinas, California. His father belonged to a farming partnership before World War II and was able to continue the business while incarcerated at Poston, Arizona, with the help of his business partner via telephone and telegram. After returning from Poston, the family moved to Los Gatos, California, and continued with their business. Tom went to the University of Santa Clara and joined the military, assigned to France as a Quartermaster officer. He was working as a contract administrator in a corporation when his father died, leaving Tom to take over the business as managing partner of Yuki Farms. Tom has served as board member to many organizations including his current role for the Japanese American National Museum. (December 2018)

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