<Begin Segment 11>

TI: So after successfully raising half a million dollars, you then transitioned to more an executive role with the JACL. Can you tell me, sort of, your move there and how that came about?

HK: Well, I ran for office for national presidency and I won by three votes, and at the Chicago convention in 1986. And we totally put our effort into redress, and I think under my presidency, I think that the goal and the work of all staff and volunteers was redress strictly. I mean, there was no... this was important and we had to do it. Because so many Nisei were -- older Niseis were dying off. And so it become a number one thing to pursue and no question, and anybody that had a question on it... [laughs]

TI: In those two years under your presidency, what were the major obstacles or challenges for JACL at that point regarding redress?

HK: Well, it was to get the Congress, enough congresspeople to support it. And that was tough because a lot of them still didn't know about Japanese Americans. And my personal feeling is if we didn't have those Nikkei congressman, this would never come to pass. And if I can just cite one example, you know, just about a month ago, Senator Torricelli from New Jersey -- and he's on this hearing, the fundraising -- not the fundraising, the, the hearings they're having right now in the Senate. And that he made the following statement, that he cautioned those, the senators up there, that they must not broad brush and give the whole Asian a bad name just because a few Asians got involved in this illegal contribution act. But you know, and he based that on his, the Kefauver hearings -- where the Italian Americans were broad brushed, that hearing had to do with the Mafia. Now the thing is, it was later, reporter dug up, that he would have to be five days old to have heard the Kefauver hearing, okay? So Sunday, all these political talk people (had a) field day joshing Toricelli. The thing is, but there is no Japanese American or Asian commentator. Because if I was on these Sunday talk shows, I would have stressed the important part of the point that he was making, not joshing him. But not one, no one mentioned. So my point is -- and there is no Asian Americans on the talk shows on Sundays. Consequently if it wasn't for those congressmen, this issue would never have been taken up, is my belief. So I think we owe them, and the veterans, the veterans, you know, the 442nd people, it's those two things.

TI: And so you recognized that it was a shared commonality, I mean, some of the experiences the Italian community went through and for him to have that sensitivity to sort of also direct that or share that with the Japanese or Asian communities.

HK: Well, he didn't want, he didn't want those people to give the broad brushing, give the whole Asian a bad name just because there was a few, you know. Because that's what he said that they did when Kefauver held the hearing against the Mafia way back, so the Mafia and Italians so the whole Italian Americans, now, there a bunch a crooks. So that's the point, the point is but they just, they didn't emphasize his point, but they just joshed him because he would have to be five days old.

<End Segment 11> - Copyright © 1997 Densho. All Rights Reserved.