<Begin Segment 45>

TI: So you're working there, and it was about this period of time, '53, '54, that the United States started allowing Isseis to become citizens.

FS: Yes.

TI: Now, so what, did your, did your parents become --

FS: Oh, yeah. I... let's see, that was 1952, and -- this is, this is really something. We, we, they announced this thing, it was 1952, and so they, they were, they were allowed to take the citizen's exam in Japanese. And so my brother Roy and I would coach -- before they went down to the tests or something -- we would coach them on, on the material. As I recall, it was a series of meetings or series of, yeah, questions for the, for the Issei, and so they would go down once a week and do this, so we would coach 'em. And my mother was, my mother was just hilarious. You know, "Where was the Constitution signed?" And, "Mom, it was Philadelphia." And there's nothing in Japanese that quite fits that, the "Philadelphia." And it would, "Hooloodaupiya." And we were rolling on the floor from this, but they, they did go down, they did pass this thing. I'm sure all the Issei who would, who tried passed the thing, and they were then citizens. It was, it was really quite an occasion. But often, I... I could feel, I said, "Hey, Fred, you had a part in this one." And it was with, with some pride that I'm aware that they became citizens because, because of us in the 442nd.

TI: So because of, of the, of what the 442, the accomplishments and the sacrifices, you felt that you earned this...

FS: Yeah, absolutely. Yeah, I said, "By God, you had a piece of this one."

TI: Well, in the same way, do you think the, because of what the 442 did, that it opened up other, other things, other doors?

FS: Yes, absolutely, I think so.

TI: What are some of those things that, that come to mind, that you think that really, the 442 helped?

FS: Well, you know, I... what I see in talking to my friends in Hawaii is that, hey, if it hadn't, if it hadn't been for 442, the 442nd, the young Nisei realized that working together, they could, they could change things in Hawaii. And gradually -- well, over time, they came politically active, and they, they got voted in to the territorial legislature, people like Dan Inouye and Spark Matsunaga led them, they formed unions in Hawaii to make sure that they and their parents got a, finally get a fair shake from the plantation owners, and they recognized that political action was the thing. And that's finally, I think, that brought Hawaii into statehood, is these, these young Japanese Americans who were joined by other minority groups, finally pulled this off in Hawaii. And the political activity that, that started in Hawaii then moved to the mainland. And you could see the chronology of these things, the guys became active in, in California, and people became, you know, county commissioners and state reps and all of these things. And that, that, I think that's, that's the way, this wasn't a tidal wave, but it was a wave and it gradually grew and grew. So they, there's, there is a sense of finally gaining some sense of equality in this country.

TI: Now, in talking about you -- I'm jumping around a little bit -- but currently, you're on the Washington State Commission for Fish and Wildlife.

FS: Yes.

TI: Is that part of this wave, do you think?

FS: Well, it is in a way. It, if you said in 1950, "Hey, Fred, why don't you try for the Fish & Wildlife Commission?" I'd say, "You're crazy. They're not going to appoint a Japanese American to an outfit like that." And, but it's a matter of the Nisei gaining confidence in themselves, I guess. Who am I to know that, but yes. And, and the other, other minor ethnic groups like the Chinese Americans and others are following this thing. You see, now see in places like Seattle and, well, on the west side, Portland, there are Asian, Asian Americans in state legislatures and in, in congress as a result of this. But there had to be this sense of confidence that, "I can do this. I'm as American as that, as that blond-headed guy across the street." Something, something took place. Times have changed.

TI: And you think it, part of it started, or was part of, the 442 experience was part of all this?

FS: Well, it had to be. It had to be. We made, we made the sacrifices, it was a sense of, "Hey, I earned this." It's not that you owe me, it's this, that we have earned this. But I always tell those guys in Hawaii, "You guys started this thing."

TI: Yeah, and in a similar vein, when I, when I read about the redress movement in the '80s, and how that started gaining momentum, how it was powerful to have, at that point, Representative Wright, speaker of the house from Texas, actually be the, the key sponsor. And one of the reasons he talked about, going back to your story, was he pointed back to the rescue of the "Lost Battalion," who were Texan boys.

FS: Yes.

TI: And as part of the reason to do that.

FS: Yeah, that's right. So there, there was just, there was, there was a momentum there, you finally get a sense of confidence in yourself that you can do this thing. Japanese have always been kind of hold back, enryo. And, but that's changed in this period. And you and my son and so on... while there is this latent prejudice, but they move with confidence through society.

TI: No, I agree totally. We're the beneficiaries of what your generation has done.

<End Segment 45> - Copyright © 2006 Densho. All Rights Reserved.