Discover Nikkei

https://www.discovernikkei.org/en/interviews/clips/929/

Interviews

Kinoshita,Cherry

(1923–2008) One of the leaders behind the redress movement.

Erasing the Bitterness

But as to whether it accomplished what we were looking for, I think it did in the sense -- as we said in talking about this -- how it brought out the feelings. How it finally...people were able to, I think, put closure to the whole thing. I mean, it keeps going on. I mean, like these things, it keeps coming up, but I think it puts closure to the emotional part of any bitterness that at least the government apologized. At least there was admission by vast numbers of people that it was wrong. That you know, there wasn't disloyalty. I mean, being incarcerated, the implication that there was something that we had to be incarcerated for. You wiped that out.

And so I think, I think that yes, it did. There might be, there might have been some other things that could have been better maybe. But I think essentially our goals will be met and this is ongoing, too. I mean, we're still talking about it so you know, there is no point at which we say until we're gone I guess.

And maybe it'll take historians many more years to... that's, that's a question I have: will this be forgotten, or will this remain in history? Will it be said that in 1942 there were 120,000 people sent to concentration camps? But along with it, will it be said that through the efforts of this small minority, the government did apologize. I think that's an important part of history.


imprisonment incarceration Redress movement

Date: September 26, 1997

Location: Washington, US

Interviewer: Becky Fukuda, Tracy Lai

Contributed by: Denshō: The Japanese American Legacy Project.

Interviewee Bio

Cherry Kinoshita was born in 1923 in Seattle, WA. As a teen she was incarcerated at Puyallup Assembly Center in Washington and later Minidoka in Idaho. During her two and a half years behind barbed wire, she wrote for the camp newspaper, The Minidoka Irrigator.

In the ’70s she became active in the Seattle JACL movement for redress. One of Kinoshita’s many contributions was a grassroots lobbying effort to inform Washington State lawmakers on the injustice suffered by Japanese Americans during World War II. In dealing with politicians, Kinoshita’s secret weapons were persistence and patience. Notably, a congressman from the State of Washington introduced the first redress bill in 1979.

Kinoshita also organized a coalition of 16 major Japanese American organizations as redress supporters. At 60, in the midst of campaigning for redress, Kinoshita earned a Bachelor of Arts degree with honors in sociology from the University of Washington. (April 15, 2008)

Margarida Tomi Watanabe
en
ja
es
pt
Watanabe,Margarida Tomi

Donating clothes to the Japanese interns (Japanese)

(1900–1996) The mother of Nikkei Brazilian immigration

en
ja
es
pt
Margarida Tomi Watanabe
en
ja
es
pt
Watanabe,Margarida Tomi

Interrogation by police (Japanese)

(1900–1996) The mother of Nikkei Brazilian immigration

en
ja
es
pt
Doris Moromisato
en
ja
es
pt
Moromisato, Doris

Necessary apologies (Spanish)

(b. 1962) Peruvian Poet, Okinawan descendant

en
ja
es
pt
Ben Sakoguchi
en
ja
es
pt
Sakoguchi,Ben

Getting measles at the camp

(b. 1938) Japanese American painter & printmaker

en
ja
es
pt
Ben Sakoguchi
en
ja
es
pt
Sakoguchi,Ben

Differences between Parents

(b. 1938) Japanese American painter & printmaker

en
ja
es
pt
Ben Sakoguchi
en
ja
es
pt
Sakoguchi,Ben

Allyship after camp

(b. 1938) Japanese American painter & printmaker

en
ja
es
pt
Ben Sakoguchi
en
ja
es
pt
Sakoguchi,Ben

Being an outsider

(b. 1938) Japanese American painter & printmaker

en
ja
es
pt
Ben Sakoguchi
en
ja
es
pt
Sakoguchi,Ben

His mother’s experience of the camp

(b. 1938) Japanese American painter & printmaker

en
ja
es
pt
Robert T. Fujioka
en
ja
es
pt
Fujioka,Robert T.

Grandfather's interrogations during World War II

(b. 1952) Former banking executive, born in Hawaii

en
ja
es
pt
George Takei
en
ja
es
pt
Takei,George

Allegiance Musical

(b. 1937) Actor, Activist

en
ja
es
pt
Tom Yuki
en
ja
es
pt
Yuki,Tom

Feelings about redress

(b. 1935) Sansei businessman.

en
ja
es
pt
Kay Sekimachi
en
ja
es
pt
Sekimachi,Kay

Leaving everything behind

(b. 1926) Artist

en
ja
es
pt
Takayo Fischer
en
ja
es
pt
Fischer,Takayo

The Emotional Toll of Being Incarcerated in Camp during World War II

(b. 1932) Nisei American stage, film, and TV actress

en
ja
es
pt
Takayo Fischer
en
ja
es
pt
Fischer,Takayo

Sister’s Trauma from being Incarcerated during World War II

(b. 1932) Nisei American stage, film, and TV actress

en
ja
es
pt
Mia Yamamoto
en
ja
es
pt
Yamamoto,Mia

Being a Criminal Lawyer

(b. 1943) Japanese American transgender attorney

en
ja
es
pt