<Begin Segment 16>

BN: Did you, during this period, did you ever talk about your experience at Manzanar and the whole...

WS: I don't think so.

BN: Because you didn't want to, or because no one asked?

WS: I think no one asked, I don't know.

BN: I mean, did you tell your children?

WS: No. It's interesting, huh, because it was a bad time for American law, yeah.

BN: But then at some point things change, and people do start talking about it. I know you were involved at some point in Manzanar Committee also, right? Do you remember how that started?

WS: Involved in what?

BN: Manzanar Committee.

WS: Manzanar Committee... who was active in that?

BN: This was Sue Embrey's...

WS: Oh, Sue Embrey? I don't know... I don't know.

BN: Were you involved in the whole, the redress movement?

WS: Not really. NCRR was, I heard about them and I think I joined the group, that's about it.

BN: Did you join them while the redress movement was still going on?

WS: I think so.

BN: What did you like about them?

WS: Well, they're doing something.

BN: And at some point, you started going to Manzanar pilgrimages, right? And did you volunteer at the site also?

WS: I don't remember. I don't remember how I got involved. I don't know how I got involved in that.

BN: Do you think it's important for people to learn about Manzanar and the whole experience?

WS: Oh, yeah. Such a bad time in our history.

BN: What do you hope people take away, or young people especially learn about...

WS: I think they're just trying to learn about that, to pick people up and put them in a concentration camp for nothing? Yeah, it's something that we, people are just starting learn about it in a way.

BN: Do you see parallels with what's going on today?

WS: With what?

BN: You know, parallels with what is going on today with what went on in the days of Manzanar?

WS: With Trump?

BN: Or in general.

WS: Yeah, I think so. It's dangerous times.

BN: What do you think, as Japanese Americans, as someone who's lived through that experience, can we do in this time we're in?

WS: I think we should speak out once more, start telling about our history. Because people are just learning starting about it now. It's amazing.

BN: Okay, well, thank you very much. Thank you for sharing your story.

WS: Well, I don't know whether there's too much to share, but a lot has happened in California over the last few years. It's amazing how people don't know about it.

<End Segment 16> - Copyright © 2019 Densho. All Rights Reserved.