Interviews

1. Activities growing up in Peru

2. Family's deportation from Peru to U.S. after the bombing of Pearl Harbor

3. Conditions aboard U.S. transport ship while being deported from Peru

4. Learning English upon discovering that family could not return to Peru

5. Playing baseball along with American Nisei and Kibei

6. Denied redress as a Japanese Peruvian

7. Thoughts on the post-9/11 atmosphere in the U.S.

Art Shibayama

(1930-2018) Nisei born in Peru. Taken to the United States during WWII.

Activities growing up in Peru

In 1940, I think, when they took census, there were twenty-six thousand Japanese and Japanese Peruvians in Peru and ninety percent were in Lima and Callao. But as far as housing and things, we were scattered all over the place, so there were no, no Japantown. Well, they had picnics like Fukuoka-kens (prefecture) and Kumamoto-kens, Okinawa-kens. They had their own, and we all had our own picnics. And like, like once a year in the school, they had the undokai (sporting event), which was a big thing. They'd divide the kids into red and white groups and you do different things like running and jumping all day, and you have a contest between red and white.

Nikkei Peru sports undokai United States

Date: October 26, 2003

Location: Washington, US

Interviewer: Alice Ito

Contributed by: Denshō: The Japanese American Legacy Project.

Interviewee Bio

Nisei male. Born June 6, 1930 in Callao, Peru. Grew up in Peru, raised by both parents and grandparents. During World War II, taken with parents to the United States on a U.S. troop transport ship. Lived in the Crystal City internment camp, Texas, until family moved to work at Seabrook, New Jersey, a produce work company camp. Drafted into the army in the 1950s, even though considered an illegal alien, and served in Germany. Raised a family in Chicago, Illinois, and San Jose, California after military discharge. In recent years, attended several pilgrimages to Tule Lake incarceration camp, California, as well as reunions of Japanese Peruvians. Involved in the Campaign for Justice, an effort to obtain redress for Japanese Latin Americans. He passed away on July 31, 2018 at age 88. （July 2018)

*The full interview is available Denshō: The Japanese American Legacy Project.

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