Interviews

1. Being ordered to keep a diary that was later confiscated, ostensibly by the FBI

Katayama,Robert

Hawaiian Nisei who served in World War II with the 442nd Regimental Combat Team.

Being ordered to keep a diary that was later confiscated, ostensibly by the FBI

We were instructed to keep diaries of our daily activities, including the boat trip from Honolulu to Oakland, California. Upon arrival in California, those diaries were confiscated. They showed up — I got mine back in 1987 or 8 — at the [National] Archives. And as I understand it, it was an FBI ploy to find out what the individuals were thinking, who had volunteered.

442nd Regimental Combat Team United States Army World War II

Date: August 12, 1995

Location: Hawai`i, US

Interviewer: Robert Nakamura, Karen Ishizuka

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

Interviewee Bio

Robert Katayama, son of a Japanese father and Hawaiian mother, left Farrington High School in Honolulu to volunteer for the United States military after the outbreak of World War II. He wanted to prove his patriotism for his country and was later surprised to learn that Nikkei on the mainland were also volunteering—despite being held in concentration camps by their own government. He served with the legendary 442nd Regimental Combat Team, a unit comprised entirely of Japanese Americans.(August, 1995)