Interviews
Father in camp but learning from history books
Oh, just my father was in concentration camp. Again, it’s a typical Japanese American household, you don’t hear very much about it, it’s kind of quiet, so I think I read more about it in books than I have been hearing about it by my actual, my father, but in the end, he was ten, or ten years old maybe, or twelve years old in the camp so, it was a big part of his childhood, but in the end, it’s still a pretty quiet subject.
I think that, I’m glad I can read about it in books, but in the end, you know, personal experience is important and I’d like to hear more about it. It’s something that you know, I don’t even know if he wants to talk about, it’s not something that he’s angry about, but it’s also something hard for me to ask about, ‘cause I know the answers are usually quite short (laughs).
But, I think in the end, I mean, I you know, did my reading on it, and I know the history behind it. I still don’t know why it had to happen, but in the end, you know, it’s one of those things that where, it’s just a big part of our, you know, part of Japanese American history in America, so I mean, it’s my job to know about it.
Date: November 27, 2005
Location: California, US
Interviewer: John Esaki and Janice Tanaka
Contributed by: Watase Media Arts Center, Japanese American National Museum
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