<Begin Segment 39>

AI: So what impact did that have on you as you were facing these questions and having these discussions with these young Sanseis?

CN: Well, the impact it had on me was that it was like opening a Pandora's box and that was one called anger. My anger was frightening. I wondered if there would ever be an end to this bottomless pit called this box of anger. And what helped was to really talk about it. And not just on the surface, but really talk about how humiliating it was to have to sit -- and you asked me a question, you see how I glided over that -- how right after Pearl Harbor was bombed, how humiliating it was to sit there, have to sit there and listen to President Roosevelt's speech. And feeling that eyes were, were on you and also feeling that this is all not only so sudden, not only so unfair, but it was hard to understand why this was taking place. And now we could read history books as to what was going on at this time just prior to the bombing of Pearl Harbor. And it was a horrible thing, but the U.S. was blind to a lot of things, too. And so I'm not saying, therefore, it's okay, but we have to look at both sides, of course. And this is what the students and I had to do, to really study up on it, and read it, and discuss it. And also that I feel very strongly that our experience has certainly colored the experiences as well as the mindset of the Sanseis.

AI: Could you expand on that a little bit?

CN: Yeah. In studying all this, I really felt, and I think others have said the same, that our experience during World War II was so painful and so humiliating that without our discussing it with each other, we, most of us decided to raise our children as if they were white. Don't talk about what happened during World War II. In fact, don't even talk about the Japanese culture. We could eat rice and we could go to Buddhist church and all, but tread lightly and keep all this other stuff away. So what happened was that the Nisei parents didn't talk about any of this. They worked very hard to be prosperous, to be successful, and they made it, but their children grew up not even realizing that this was something that you can't erase and that the eyes of the public see you differently from what your parents see you. The Nisei parents wanted very much not only for them to be successful, but their children to be successful. And all of you have been successful. You are successful, but the core, the spirit of the Japanese culture as well as the pride, I think, was missing. And so it was -- and you can't blame the Niseis for doing what they did. It was, you know, as parents, we wanted to protect our children and as long as we could be successful, it'll be okay. And, as I say, you forget that our features don't change, our colors don't change. And that's one of the things that I think really was sad. But, because the Sanseis were full of questions and all, that you have plugged up the holes on what has happened. You try very hard to put yourself into the Nisei's shoes, and I think the Niseis -- you look upon the Niseis with more understanding and more appreciation than we Niseis gave the Isseis.

<End Segment 39> - Copyright © 1998 Densho. All Rights Reserved.