<Begin Segment 21>

Brian Niiya: So maybe just starting with the Civil Liberties Public Education Fund, how...

EK: You know, that was, you know, just one of those... I didn't even know what things were. I mean, I don't know why they even chose me. I'm just a housewife, I know nothing. [Laughs] [Interruption] And successful businesspeople, and I just felt so out of it. But they were so nice.

BN: Who's "they"?

EK: Pardon?

BN: Who's the "they"?

EK: The members, yeah. Like Dale (Minami), of course, was the leader, he was a wonderful, the most, I would say the most outstanding person who could do everything. He didn't really need anybody, but he's so gracious that he allowed me to be part of the group. Right now I can't even think of the other names, but Mr. Goto of Denver, Kelly Kuwayama, the hero of World War II, whose corner at the Smithsonian, I think it's still there. It was there when I went a few years back. And they were all so kind. But when I first went to the first meeting, I mean, all these people. I probably was not the only one, but I felt like I was the only one. They're all talking in acronyms. I didn't know what they stood for, all these various acronyms. And so it was an eye-opener. But...

BN: Did you know any of them?

EK: I didn't know anybody. I was a total stranger. I really feel that I'm almost embarrassed to have been there, because I didn't have the qualifications, I thought.

BN: Do you know how they got your name?

EK: Someone must have put my name in there. It might have been maybe the Campaign for Justice people. But the fact that it remained there was a miracle for me, but I thought, well, at least I could maybe give the practical side of things, being a housewife, I'm very practical. So I did give a little suggestion on practical side. But these people are so sharp, I mean, I'm so glad we have such top people, being the leaders of our Japanese American society, because they are just so wonderful people. They're so giving, they do so much pro bono work, and they're forever helping somebody else. So I was privileged to have come in contact with those kind of people that I would have never met. So I feel that I received so much more than I was able to ever give back.

BN: How many times did you...

EK: Oh, several times a year. A lot, actually. So I was flying into --

BN: Different places?

EK: Mostly Washington, (D.C.) or San Francisco.

BN: So you had to travel?

EK: Yeah, so I said, "Why don't we meet in Hawaii sometime?" And they said, "Because it's how people look at Hawaii. They think we'll just be playing." I said, but nobody played, I mean, we worked from the minute we arrived, there were so many things to do and people to hire and study about the funds and what kind of funding, it was like hard work. And it was, everything was new to me.

BN: Did your group actually, were you the ones actually reviewing the applications or were you mostly setting policy and hiring staff?

EK: Yeah, setting policy, but also we did go over all the applications, too, we did. But of course we hired people who knew more about funding to help us out. So they were very helpful. But these people were so neat. It was, to me, just a sheer honor, a privilege.

(Narr. Note: It has been about fifteen years since the CLPEF board ceased to be. Except for Father Drinan, we were a most diverse group of Americans of Japanese descent. It was a group full of energy and experiences, diverse in age, education, occupations, personalities, and backgrounds. We arrived to the meetings from homes in the east coast to the most western state, Hawaii. I think that I may have been the only "internee" who also was born in Peru, South America.

The board consisted of Father Robert Drinan (Law Professor), Leo Goto (businessman/restauranteur), Susan Hayase (Engr & Activist; our Vice chair), Elsa Kudo (Housewife, publisher of 1st edition Adios to Tears, real estate), Yeichi Kelly Kuwayama (businessman, WWII hero), Dale Minami (Esq & Activist; our Chair), Peggy Nagae (Esq & Activist), Don Nakanishi (Ph.D., UCLA, Amerasia Journal), Dale Shimasaki (Ph.D & our Exec Director), Martha Watanabe (our Deputy Exec Director).

It was a group so committed to accomplish the most with what little time and money we were allotted that everyone put aside personal feelings to get the job done most effectively and efficiently. I believe that we all wished there had been more funds to help more people. I believe that the reprinting of the "Report of the Commission on Wartime Relocation and Internment of Civilians-PERSONAL JUSTICE DENIED" has been and will continue to be one of the highlights as it has the "power" to reach people all over the globe for generations to come. In the short two years and busy personal lives, this board worked so well. I am very proud to have been a member.)

<End Segment 21> - Copyright © 2012 Densho. All Rights Reserved.