<Begin Segment 30>

TI: You've been very open about sharing the experiences of the 1800, and so I've learned a lot. But it's only just recently that, I think, others or most people have heard about the 1800. And a lot of it probably has to do with you and your sharing of the story. What made you decide after all these years to come out?

CS: To do it? Well, I told you about Kiku Funabiki calling me, and that's how I got started. And I keep blaming her for getting me into all this. I can't retire in peace. [Laughs]

TI: So explain the story to me again.

CS: After the war, I got this call from a strange lady. I didn't know who she was, she said, "Will you please" -- it turned out to be Kiku Funabiki at that time -- she said, "Will you write an article about the 1800?" I said, "(No). Because that's water under the bridge, I want to forget it, because I have more important things to do to make a living." Well, she wrote an article that went to, I guess she must have sent it to all the Japanese papers. So after I read it -- it was a good article, and in fact, we both can't remember that article, 'cause we don't have copies of it. But that's when I decided, gee, if anybody's gonna write about the 1800, it has to be somebody that was in it. So that's when I started to write.

TI: And what was the reaction, and in particular, from other vets like the 442, MIS people?

CS: Oh, I think, see, like the 442 people, the veterans are all accepting (me) because they knew I had volunteered for the MIS. And they said under the same circumstances, they would have done the same thing I did, you know. So like JAVA and Grant Ichikawa and all those people, they accepted me. And, in fact, a lot of the MIS people keep inviting me to their convention. I said, "Hey, wait a minute, I was kicked out of the school. I can't go there." [Laughs] But I got along. The vets had accepted me, so all my talks and all that, I haven't had a negative one yet.

TI: Well, in fact, I was wondering. So when you told the story of leaving the MIS school, two by two, you would leave, what did your classmates... did they know why you were...

CS: No, nobody knew. We just all of a sudden, boom, we're out. That's why Harry Fukuhara says, "Hey, you're here one day and next day you're gone. We never knew what happened to you."

TI: And so what did Harry and other guys think had happened to you?

CS: Well, they didn't know. 'Cause with Harry, after I told him, he thought maybe we were sent to a special assignment or something, you know. But when he found out, and I gave him a copy of one of my speeches, "Is it okay if I pass it on to all of my friends? 'Cause all of the students were saying, 'What the heck happened to that guy?'" I was the only one in the class, (to be) booted out.

TI: And do you recall any of your former classmates contacting you or saying anything?

CS: No. Actually, I can't even remember their names. Just one Kibei fellow that went to Iwo Jima, and then Harry Fukuhara, only because I took a picture of him when he sat in front of me. Otherwise, I wouldn't have remembered his name.

TI: There were other Japanese Americans in the 1800. Again, I'm thinking about the press and what I've read, I haven't seen very many others, or anyone else, speak out like you have about the 1800. Do you know why that is, or why you think that is?

CS: I guess most of 'em were Kibeis, and the Niseis, except for Matt Matsuoka, who graduated from USC, we two were the only college grads. And Matt himself was ashamed. He was, I kept telling him, "What are you ashamed of? There's nothing wrong with what we did." So he didn't want to speak out. So I guess I was the only one.

TI: That's good.

<End Segment 30> - Copyright © 2009 Densho. All Rights Reserved.