Interviews

1. Memories of childhood in Peru

2. Forcibly deported to the U.S. from Peru

3. Food on the ship to the U.S.

4. Family welcomed at Crystal City

5. First meal at Crystal City

6. Enjoying undokai and sports in Crystal City

7. Postwar sponsorship (Inglês)

8. Immersed in Japanese culture and language

9. Proud of his Japanese, American, and Peruvian identity

(b. 1936) Japanese Peruvian incarcerated in Crystal City

Proud of his Japanese, American, and Peruvian identity

Still, I prefer both to be proud of. Sure, okay, I'm an American citizen now, but I was proud when I had Peruvian and Japanese, I was proud, and I still am. They'll probably tell me, "Oh, you're not Peruvian Japanese anymore, you're an American." Okay, so what? I'm not going to argue with you, I'll be happy with what I have, not what you have.

identity Japanese Americans Japanese Peruvians

Date: September 20, 2019

Location: California, US

Interviewer: Tom Ikeda and Yoko Nishimura

Contributed by: Watase Media Arts Center, Japanese American National Museum and Denshō: The Japanese American Legacy Project.

Interviewee Bio

Jimmy Naganuma was born in Callao, Peru to his Issei parents in 1936. He was eight years old when his family were forced to board a ship, to be incarcerated at Crystal City, Texas, during World War II. They remained there even after the war had ended, without a place to go. They were able to leave via a sponsorship by a reverend in San Francisco, California, where they were able to find jobs and housing. (June 2020)

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