Densho Digital Archive
Densho Visual History Collection
Title: Minoru Tajii Interview
Narrator: Minoru Tajii
Interviewer: Martha Nakagawa
Location: Gardena, California
Date: February 14, 2012
Densho ID: denshovh-tminoru_2-01-0012

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MN: Going back to your schooling, you went to kindergarten and then grammar school...

MT: So we went to different grammar schools. Whenever you move, whatever district you go to, and you go to that school.

MN: And then you already shared with us while you were in kindergarten for two years. Now, when you went to grammar school, is this when you were growing up and you were climbing the date trees?

MT: The tree? Oh, well, yeah, that was when I was about, I would say maybe, yeah, somewhere around about twelve. A great big eucalyptus tree, the branches... oh, gee, how big would I say? The branch must have been around three feet, circumference. And for no reason at all, one hot day, the branches broke. But the branch didn't fall all the way down, it was still hanging onto the tree, so we used to use that as a playground. We used to climb up, down, up and down on that. My father used to get mad 'cause we might get hurt, but that was our playground.

MN: But you used to also climb the date trees, right?

MT: The what?

MN: The date trees.

MT: Oh, yes. Well, they used to have a lot of dates in those days just growing on the side of the street. So whenever the dates were on the trees, then we'd want to eat 'em, so we used to walk. We don't catch the bus, we used to walk. We don't catch the bus, we used to walk, leave home early, 'cause the school started at eight. So we'd leave home early and go out, pick the dates. There's one that we used to call... well, it's black dates, but we used to call it "nigger dates." It's a small, like a daizu, size of a daizu. But they're very, very sweet, and we used to like that better than the regular dates. So we used to go past the school, go way out there and pick it, come back to the school, and eat it all day in class. But it's hard because you just put one in your mouth, the teacher can't see it, but you got to spit the black skin out, and the seed. So you're very careful and you put it in your pocket, and then when it's recess time, you empty your pocket.

[Interruption]

MN: ...grammar school, let's see, Mt Signal grammar school.

MT: One of them, yes.

MN: One of them. That was the one that you went for eight years, right, about eight years?

MT: Oh, no, longer than that, because like I say, I went to kindergarten there, that was part of Mt Signal school. Then when the war started, I was still in the Mt Signal area.

MN: So which high school did you attend?

MT: El Centro.

MN: What about your older brother?

MT: He went to Calexico. The school buses, both of them, came right in front of our house. That was the borderline. But my friends who were going to El Centro, his friends are going to Calexico, so he says, "I'm going to get on that bus," and I got on the other bus. [Laughs]

MN: What was the ethnic makeup of El Centro High?

MT: Oh, it was mostly white. Because blacks could not come to our school. They had to go to separate school there.

MN: What about the Mexicans?

MT: Mexicans would come to our place. Only one was blacks, but why, I don't know. The Portuguese could come our place, but if you were black, you have to... that was something you can't understand.

MN: Now, you also shared like your father had a sweet tooth. There was always candy in the house?

MT: Yes. Well, actually, us kids, he wanted to make sure that we don't get... what would you call it? You know, you go to other people's house, and if the candies come out, you know how kids are, say, "Oh, well, I don't have any at home," so they're going to want to eat it all up. He didn't want us to be like that, so he made sure we always had Babe Ruth, Butterfinger and things like that, Oh Henry!, those are three of the popular ones. And we always had a box of it. We could eat it whenever we want, but we didn't eat that much because it's always there in the house. But some of the other kids, when they come to our house, and oh, boy, they used to go hog wild on it. But my dad, he'd just buy another box.

MN: Let me ask you about the movies. Did your parents take you to see Japanese movies?

MT: Yes, and boy, I always went. My brother, he didn't like it. He stayed home and just listened to the radio. But me, every time a Japanese movie came, I was there.

MN: Where were the movies held?

MT: At the Buddhist church. That was the only big place that they had, anyway, for the people to get together. Funerals, all that, yeah, always had at the church.

MN: At the El Centro Buddhist Church?

MT: Yes. That was the biggest one. It was bigger than Calexico's or -- well, Calexico's was pretty small. But even Brawley. Brawley's supposed to be bigger, but El Centro was the biggest one.

MN: So what kind of movies did they, Japanese movies did they show?

MT: Well, in those days, before the war, they were war movies like that. That and samurai. I liked the samurai the best.

MN: So how often did the El Centro Buddhist Temple show these Japanese movies?

MT: Oh, gee, not even once a month. That's the reason when whenever they had one, I never missed it because my father and mother would always go. I loved getting out of the house. My brother, he didn't want to get out of the house. Me, I wanted to get out of the house where a bunch of people are. It's more fun that way.

<End Segment 12> - Copyright &copy; 2012 Densho. All Rights Reserved.