Not recognizing father after reunion at Crystal City, Texas
…and next thing you know we pull into the campground. And these men are milling around and we're looking around to see which one is Papa and then I hear my sister saying, “There he is. There he is,” and I'm looking around, and I see nobody that looks like this distinguished man in this picture. And when he finally comes to the window and he talks to my sisters and I'm thinking, “This is my father?” I was so disappointed. [Laughs] I do not recognize him and my kid sister was scared of him, ran away from him. I was too big to run away from him. I wish I could have. I didn't like this man. [Laughs] He looked dirty and he looked kind of disheveled and I was expecting this handsome, distinguished, well-dressed, groomed man.
And this man was a disappointment, but my sisters were hugging him and they were so happy to see him, and my mom looked pretty happy. And I tried to pretend like I was happy. I wasn't. It took me a while to really get used to him, and he was, he really was, he was very different from what I hear from my friends. He was a gentle person. He was a loving person. I guess later on when I took his story, the fact that the baby ran away from him just hurt him really bad. He said, “My own daughter, my own daughter is running away from me.”
Date: May 27, 1998
Location: Washington, US
Interviewer: Lori Hoshino
Contributed by: Denshō: The Japanese American Legacy Project.
Explore More Videos
Camp stories impact on her career
Sansei judge on the Superior Court of Los Angeles County in California
Concentration camp from a Japanese mother’s point of view (Japanese)
Shin-Issei from Gifu. Recently received U.S. citizenship
Fair Play Committee
(1916-2010) draft resister, helped form the Heart Mountain Fair Play Committee
Wanting to take a stand
(1916-2010) draft resister, helped form the Heart Mountain Fair Play Committee
Ostracized by the camp newspapers
(1916-2010) draft resister, helped form the Heart Mountain Fair Play Committee
Arrested in camp for trying to leave
(1916-2010) draft resister, helped form the Heart Mountain Fair Play Committee
Dusty Weather at Topaz, Utah
(b. 1934) Award-winning Disney animation artist who was incarcerated at Topaz during WWII
Mother in Camp
(b. 1934) Award-winning Disney animation artist who was incarcerated at Topaz during WWII
Donating clothes to the Japanese interns (Japanese)
(1900–1996) The mother of Nikkei Brazilian immigration
Interrogation by police (Japanese)
(1900–1996) The mother of Nikkei Brazilian immigration
Makegumi - Movement to regognize the defeat of Japan (Japanese)
A central figure for the “Makegumi” (defeatists)
Necessary apologies (Spanish)
(b. 1962) Peruvian Poet, Okinawan descendant
Strictly American, but sympathize with Japan
(1919-2020) Member of the 1800th Engineering Battalion. Promoted Japan-U.S. trade while working for Honda's export division.
Father's Service in WWII
(b. 1930) Half Japanese and grew up in both Japan and the United States.
Moving to Upland Post-Camp
(b. 1930) Half Japanese and grew up in both Japan and the United States.