Discover Nikkei

https://www.discovernikkei.org/en/interviews/clips/659/

Living conditions in prison while serving time for resisting the draft

And we thought, “Well, let's break the ice. One way to break the ice is let's start playing a little bit of sports.” And so came the spring, we decided, “Well, let's apply for, to play baseball. Let's form a team and play within the group there.” And to play with them we got up all the best players that we can find and we played against them and we came out the champs.

And that was the... it broke the ice and people started to get friendly and they found out... “Well, you guys are just average kids. What are you guys doing here?” And this is where the questions started up like, “What happened? How come you're here?” We tell 'em that they just marked us as enemy alien, undesirable, put us into camp and they told us to go to, get into the army and we refused so consequently we're here. And they say, “Oh my God, you guys are just playing a political ping-pong. You're just being bounced around.”

And many of them sympathized with us, and come the following spring, many of 'em wanted to play on the same team as us. So anyway, that's how we got to know the people in the, what they refer to us as the main line, that's the maximum-security group.


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)

Bain,Peggie Nishimura

Difficulties finding apartment in Chicago after leaving Minidoka

(b.1909) Nisei from Washington. Incarcerated at Tule Lake and Minidoka during WWII. Resettled in Chicago after WWII

Kosaki,Richard

Under suspicion after Pearl Harbor

(b. 1924) Political scientist, educator, and administrator from Hawai`i

Kosaki,Richard

Change in attitudes after World War II

(b. 1924) Political scientist, educator, and administrator from Hawai`i

Shibayama,Art

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

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

Shimomura,Roger

Grandfather's arrival in the U.S., experiencing discrimination

(b. 1939) Japanese American painter, printmaker & professor

Shimomura,Roger

Dealing with racism within army unit in Korea

(b. 1939) Japanese American painter, printmaker & professor

Shimomura,Roger

Collection of artifacts depicting racial stereotypes influences art

(b. 1939) Japanese American painter, printmaker & professor

Yamasaki,Frank

Encountering racial discrimination at a public swimming pool

(b. 1923) Nisei from Washington. Resisted draft during WWII.

Yamasaki,Frank

Loss of happy-go-lucky adolescence in Puyallup Assembly Center

(b. 1923) Nisei from Washington. Resisted draft during WWII.

Yamasaki,Frank

Memories of dusty conditions at Minidoka incarceration camp

(b. 1923) Nisei from Washington. Resisted draft during WWII.

Yamasaki,Frank

Making the decision to resist the draft

(b. 1923) Nisei from Washington. Resisted draft during WWII.

Sasaki,Fred

Anti-Japanese sentiment at the time of World War II

(b. 1918) Issei businessman in Canada

Naito,Sam

Undergraduate studies interrupted following Pearl Harbor

(b. 1921) Nisei businessman. Established "Made in Oregon" retail stores

Naito,Sam

Difficulty getting work during World War II

(b. 1921) Nisei businessman. Established "Made in Oregon" retail stores

Terasaki,Paul

His experiences in Chicago after WWII

(b.1929) Pioneer medical researcher in tissue transfer and organ transplantation.