Discover Nikkei

https://www.discovernikkei.org/en/interviews/clips/658/

The role of the media in influencing people's opinions

My dad, years ago when we were still young, said, “When you control the radio,” in those days of radio and newspaper, “you control the people's mind.” At that time I was too young to realize what he was saying, but as I grew older I realized Dad was right. What they read in the paper they'll believe. If they write anything they want in the paper that they want people to believe, they'll do it and the people will be against you. And when he found out that I guess the majority were against me because my stand... I was quite surprised, I would say. That you'd think that there would be more people that would think about this draft and say, “Is that right?” Now to myself, I thought, to start with, they have, they called me an alien, they had convicted me almost, in fact they did being a Japanese and an alien and unwanted enemy alien without any due process of law, and I thought that was very, very bad. And that I alone can't do anything but I'm gonna do what I planned on doing and hopefully that people would understand but then when the people took the other stance and said that I'm a draft evader I felt real sad that the people thought that way.


discrimination draft resisters interpersonal relations resisters World War II

Date: July 25, 1997

Location: Washington, US

Interviewer: Larry Hashima, Stephen Fugita

Contributed by: Denshō: The Japanese American Legacy Project.

Interviewee Bio

Nisei male. Born 1925 in Seattle, Washington. Spent prewar childhood in Seattle's Nihonmachi. Incarcerated at Puyallup Assembly Center, Washington, and Minidoka incarceration camp, Idaho. Refused to participate in draft, imprisoned at McNeil Island Penitentiary, Washington, for resisting the draft. Resettled in Seattle. (July 25, 1997)

Aiko Yoshinaga Herzig
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Herzig,Aiko Yoshinaga

Lack of political power led to camps

(1924-2018) Researcher, Activist

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Aiko Yoshinaga Herzig
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Herzig,Aiko Yoshinaga

Feeling imprisoned at camp

(1924-2018) Researcher, Activist

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Aiko Yoshinaga Herzig
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Herzig,Aiko Yoshinaga

World War II hysteria against Japanese in New York City

(1924-2018) Researcher, Activist

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Jack Herzig
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Herzig,Jack

His testimony has more credibility because of his race

(1922 - 2005) Former U.S. Army counterintelligence officer

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Vince Ota
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Ota,Vince

Different tension between East Coast and Los Angeles

Japanese American Creative designer living in Japan

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Francis Y. Sogi
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Sogi,Francis Y.

Being an American soldier and an "enemy alien"

(1923-2011) Lawyer, MIS veteran, founder of Francis and Sarah Sogi Foundation

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Francis Y. Sogi
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Sogi,Francis Y.

Not relating to Japan Americans' experiences on the mainland

(1923-2011) Lawyer, MIS veteran, founder of Francis and Sarah Sogi Foundation

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Bert A. Kobayashi
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Kobayashi,Bert A.

Postwar discrimination

(b.1944) Founder of Kobayashi Group, LLC

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Bert A. Kobayashi
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Kobayashi,Bert A.

Less information about Hawai‘i in mainland

(b.1944) Founder of Kobayashi Group, LLC

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Lorraine Bannai
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Bannai,Lorraine

First learning about the incarceration experience in college

(b. 1955) Lawyer

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Lorraine Bannai
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Bannai,Lorraine

Feeling angry upon reading of Supreme Court case, 'Korematsu v. United States'

(b. 1955) Lawyer

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Dale Minami
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Minami,Dale

Reasons for conformity and competitiveness in Gardena, California

(b. 1946) Lawyer

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Dale Minami
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Minami,Dale

Reflections on the importance of history

(b. 1946) Lawyer

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Mako Nakagawa
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Nakagawa,Mako

Thoughts on relationship between Japanese Peruvians and Japanese Americans at Crystal City, Texas

(1937 - 2021) Teacher

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George Yamada
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Yamada,George

Japanese American railroad workers are fired following the bombing of Pearl Harbor

(b. 1923) Chick sexer

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