Densho Digital Archive
Densho Visual History Collection
Title: Chris Kato - Yoshi Mamiya - Tad Sato Interview
Narrators: Chris Kato, Yoshi Mamiya, Tad Sato
Interviewer: Stephen Fugita
Location: Seattle, Washington
Date: August 14, 1998
Densho ID: denshovh-kchris_g-01-0005

<Begin Segment 5>

SF: Speaking of nudity and that sort of thing among the Issei, did they have a different sort of perspective about that than we might because of the Japanese influence, or pretty much they were very proper about it? I mean, how, how might their attitudes be different than ours today?

CK: I don't think there's any difference. I think they're trying to adopt to the American ways, I think, on things like nudity and things like that I think.

SF: Did they have the attitude that American society was too loose or that it was too restrictive or that it was...

TS: I don't think they ever mentioned that kind of thing --

SF: ...better than Japanese, worse than --

TS: You think?

CK: No. Only to their kids, I think, as far as conduct in the schools or...

TS: Yeah.

CK: At dances or whatever.

SF: What, what was that like? I mean, what kind of feeling did you get from the Issei?

CK: Well, they just didn't want you to get into trouble of any kind, with the law especially. And to be called into the principal's office...

YM: That was, that was --

CK: By a Japanese kid is a really, really a bad thing. So as far as discipline of Japanese Americans in the public schools, there was practically no kind of discipline being administered.

TS: But not in Japanese school.

CK: Oh, Japanese school, well, they because they hated to study the language, they would...

YM: They goofed up.

CK: Cut it up quite a bit.

TS: The girls did well.

YM: Oh, I don't know.

SF: What would they do to cut up?

CK: Oh, talk a lot, or...

YM: Tease the teachers.

CK: Hit others with slingshots or something like that. The wads of paper --

YM: They call 'em itazuras.

CK: Yeah.

SF: What was that again?

YM: Itazura would be...

CK: Mischief.

YM: Mischievous. (Yes). Nothing, nothing too...

CK: Mean.

YM: Mean or anything. But it's just to, some kids wanna attract attention or...

CK: Yeah.

YM: Something like that. But --

TS: But you have to remember some of the teachers cried.

CK: Oh, yeah.

YM: Yeah. So I hear.

SF: So speaking of language school, it was, a lotta people call it the "tip school"...

YM: (Yes).

SF: Or something like that.

CK: Yeah. Tip school, right.

TS: Yeah.

SF: Why was it called the "tip school?"

CK: I really never found out.

YM: I had, I had some kind -- somebody explained it to me, but I don't know if that was a --

TS: Well, what was it? I can't --

YM: I can't remember, but something to have to do with tipping?

TS: Oh, really?

YM: I don't know. I just really don't remember. But that stuck with everybody.

TS: "Tip school," yeah.

YM: You say, "tip school," you know what it meant.

TS: That was easier than saying kokugo gakkou.

CK: Yeah, right.

SF: So since everyone had to go to "tip school," was it kind of a place that the Niseis formed a lot of friendships?

YM: Oh, yes.

CK: Oh, yeah.

YM: Yes.

CK: I think so.

YM: 'Cause from first grade to, on to, I went to chuugakkouninen, but that doesn't mean anything, but that's when you're in high school, isn't it? Chuugakkou?

TS: Yeah.

CK: Yeah.

TS: Eighth grade, yeah.

YM: (Yes).

CK: No. Chuugakkouninensei --

YM: It's, middle, middle school is chuugakku, [Ed. note: narrator meant to say chuugakkou] so --

TS: Chuugakkou.

YM: High school --

CK: Two years. I went eight years.

YM: Eight years.

TS: Yeah.

YM: And then went two --

CK: You must have gone ten years.

TS: Ten years.

YM: Two years more, (yes).

TS: Yeah. Well, that's why you're so smart.

YM: Oh, no. No, no. No. But we --

CK: See this was not an ordinary school because you had people coming in from all over town, that's in the same grade as you are, in high school or middle school or elementary school. So it was a, so you got to know people that lived in Green Lake or...

YM: Beacon Hill --

CK: Beacon Hill or --

YM: Lot of it's...

CK: Although you lived...

YM: So distant.

CK: Down by the railroad station. You get to meet people from the Garfield area and Franklin area. So in a way, it's really good.

<End Segment 5> - Copyright © 1998 Densho. All Rights Reserved.