<Begin Segment 24>

AI: Now, speaking of service, in more recent years, and I understand in the 1990s, you received an award from the Japanese government. Can you explain what that was and why, what that was for?

PB: Well, there's certain things that I did. One of the things is that in my city, there is a program called the Sister City Committee, and at that time I was going to Japan with different groups. I, I, it was associated through a travel agency with my sister. And I made an association in Chiba Prefecture with a city called Ichikawa. And subsequent to that the next city to me, Torrance, set one up with Kashiwa. But this association became very good. We would bring students over. We would send students over. Our city councils would alternate years go to Japan. Japanese would come over to Gardena. We set that up. And as a result of it, other cities decided to do this as a good means of forging more cordial relationships with countries. Well, Japan happened to be the most appropriate because we did have some Japanese in our town. That is one reason, I think that they may have. Other than that, because we have a consul general in Los Angeles, that whenever we had any occasion that, whether we had Nisei Week or something to do with Japan or Japanese, I would be sure that the Japanese people and the Japanese consul general's office was invited and they would partake. Because I think the friendship, not only with Japan, but -- I've set the same thing up with Mexico. I set up in a place, Huatabampo, a relationship, a sister city, more because the people there needed things. We donated a fire truck to them. They're very poor, so we donate material things, so their city will be better off than we are. We have a lot of things in Gardena that we really were much richer than those countries. The Japanese relationship was a little different because they're pretty well-off. But I think that these things where you have friendships with Japan and the relationship, and I've gone to Japan quite a number of times, and I'll still be going again because of my ancestry. That might have something to do with why I would get a medal from the Japanese government. But anyway, I'm very proud of it. So whenever I go to the consul general, and we were there last month because it was the emperor's birthday and I was invited, I proudly wear the little emblem that says I got a medal from the Japanese government. And I wonder at all before they gave it to me that they have thought about my fighting against them during the war -- [laughs] -- because maybe if they knew that they wouldn't give it to me.

But at least the association and my friendship and the furtherance of friendship with Japanese cities and Japanese people, and I do that because of my heritage, and I want to keep that up. And I'll be going back to Japan here in a few more months, and I hope that I'll be able to do something good for the people. And because of it I have a lot of people that still come from Japan. And I help them in their business. I've helped people from Osaka, from throughout Japan, whenever they come to the United States. In the real estate I used to take care of a lot of Japanese companies in their purchases in Las Vegas, Los Angeles, all over, take care of their property. But I do that because I know that they need the help language-wise and their knowledge of things in this country are a little different than in Japan. So that may not be the reason for the award, but at least I'm very proud of the fact that, to be recognized by the Japanese government.

AI: Well, I think it's clear, too, from what you've said that you are proud of your Japanese heritage and the culture of the Japanese heritage, and that at no time in your life did you ever deny your Japanese heritage. Now, now in the more current days, there are some Japanese Americans, younger Japanese Americans who may actually deny that that Japanese culture or Japanese heritage is a part of them. They, they feel and act thoroughly American. I think, too, that you were the first Japanese American in many settings that you went into. Perhaps you encountered whites, others of other ancestry saying, "You don't seem like a Japanese American, or, "You seem, you don't seem like other Japanese Americans. You're just like any other American." What kind of response do you have to those folks who either say, "Well, you don't seem Japanese American," or to younger folks who really don't feel a sense of their heritage. Do you have something that, that you might, some thought about that?

PB: Well, my heritage, I'm almost, we've talked about it, almost a Sansei, which means third generation in this country. No, I'm very proud of the fact that my folks came from Japan. I never, never, ever say that I'm of another ancestry. If anybody asks me, I'm proud to say that I'm of Japanese ancestry. In many times when people question it or look at me to see whether I'm Chinese, or Thai, or whatever I am, I'll come out right at the beginning and say, "My grandparents came from Japan." And I have no qualms. I'm proud of the fact that I'm Japanese, and I will never say that I'm other than of Japanese ancestry. I'm an American first. That's one thing that my folks said, as I told you when I went into the army, they said, "You're an American first." But I know that looking at me, and I will never change, eating American food every day, it's still the same. I will still look Japanese. So I will never deny the fact that I'm Japanese, and I'm proud of the fact that my folks came from there, and I have nothing to be ashamed of, and I'm proud of that. But, over and over, I say the main thing is I'm proud that I'm an American, that I was able to fight and do these things. And that's one of the reasons why, when you, we were talking about different memorials and monuments, that I will always support that, because we want to show other people that even though we're Japanese Americans, we're first and foremost proud Americans, and we're proud of the fact that we are Americans and doing well for this country.

<End Segment 24> - Copyright © 2000 Densho. All Rights Reserved.