<Begin Segment 14>

SF: Looking back over the draft resistance, do you think that you changed your own feeling about doing that over the years?

AH: I always felt, and I always reply that way, that under the circumstances that existed at that time, I would feel I had no other choice. With the experiences that we have now, I would feel that no, the government would not put you in that kind of a position again. And, I sincerely hope so. But it did happen to me once, and the doubt remains in the back of my mind. I hope my children will not experience that experience when they feel a lot more American than I did. I had gone through all that discrimination and the third-class citizenship attitude was just embedded in me. But I think the younger generations, Sansei generations, have much more confidence in this country and the way the government is run.

[Interruption]

SF: Do you think what you did has any important implications for how one should, how citizens should act in a democracy?

AH: Well, yes. I think so. I think us Niseis were very quiet in that we accepted what we felt was not right, but we did not fight it. I think society now has changed, just completely flip-flopped. And your voice can be heard. And that whatever happens, I think you should take a stand. Like I was starting to say, that that's one of my big concerns is that my children will have the opportunity -- which I don't think a lot of us had in this Nisei area where college grads graduated to get dishwashing jobs. Either that or went back to Japan to use their education. They weren't allowed to become... like Boeing's, they wouldn't work there. But now it's full of Japanese. I... when I started to work, I joined operating engineers union, which wouldn't have happened in the old days. Society is completely different. But, you have to be careful as to what might happen to you if you don't speak up and ask, demanding for your rights. And so like I tell a lot of kids who come through Wing Luke on the tours and we go through this "evacuation" portion. And I tell the kids, "Now, when grow up to be the leaders of the country, you look after your own rights as well as look after the rights of the others." And that's the way I feel. You have to speak up now. Speaking up is common and allowed now. I don't know, like Gordon Hirabayashi and the group, they took their stand and spoke up and got sent to prison. But I don't think that'll happen right now, I think you'll be heard out. I hope.

SF: Okay, I think that's a good ending note.

AH: Yeah, like I was saying, I enjoy going out to talk to these groups through Wing Luke. I was sent out to a number of colleges. Even spoke to University of Washington Culinary Workers group, and U.S. West employees, out in Bellevue. They're all very curious about what happened during the war. What happened to the Japanese. Why it happened. And I think it's important for that message to go out. I returned to Green River Community College three times already. I don't know how much longer I could keep it up. But one at PLU, Pacific Lutheran University, is that in Tacoma, PLU? It was a whole auditorium. I was surprised. With a panel of... 442 veterans. There was five of us, one from Hawaii. And they specifically asked me to talk about being a "no-no." And that's the first time I spoke in public about that. And it was kinda hard. Really coming out in the public and talking like that. I was pleasantly surprised, later on I got a letter from the professor that organized this panel meeting, that after our session was over and the person from Hawaii spoke up and sent him a letter saying that he was proud to be sitting next to me on the panel and talking. So that was a nice feeling. So, that's about it. Enjoying a good laugh now.

SF: You deserve it. That's great.

<End Segment 14> - Copyright © 1997 Densho. All Rights Reserved.