<Begin Segment 13>

FK: How important do you feel that it is for future generations to know about the concentration camp period? How important do you think that is?

SK: How important do I feel it is? I think the... it isn't so much about the camp itself, I think it's more about the rights of an American and the rights of anyone. And I think that that's one of my big reasons why I speak out on it when the time is appropriate. And it's very interesting that there's a lot of people who still don't know that this went on. And when they talk and then they, they says, "You mean that happened, and you were one of them?" Of course, then they'll start questioning me. But I feel very strongly about the fact that that should be, that should be a topic that should be brought up in their history classes. But I, and I think that Bainbridge is doing a very good job on that. I did that, I did some of that in Highline where I taught, but there weren't too many of us, too many of us out there in Highline, but they, I did a few things. And then I know in Puyallup I haven't been able to contact anyone really. I tried a couple of places, but I... and then of course, I got very busy with my own life. But I said one of these days, I'll bring it up again. [Laughs]

FK: So what relevance do you think it has right now to our children who are gonna be adults in the future?

SK: How will it affect the...

FK: Yeah, learning about the internment of Japanese Americans?

SK: I think it's very important that they know that this happened. And I would like to see, make sure that they are aware enough to that, that this can happen again. And you see so many things happening today that saying okay, kids, you better... I think the kids should be educated on that topic. Not so much of our... basically, it's the fact that we have, we have our rights and we have our obligation to keep those rights going.

FK: We're going to be building this memorial at that site in Eagledale where we left. What would you like that memorial to say to people?

SK: What would I like them to say about it?

FK: What would you like to have them leave with when they, after they leave the memorial?

SK: I think we would like to say that democracy is a very fragile thing, and I think that we need to constantly keep aware of what's right and what's wrong in our country, and what we need to keep working on. And I think there are still a lot of people out there who don't know too much about what happened and what's even happening today. I mean, there are so many things that you see affecting your immigrants and so forth, and I just hope that... yeah, I think that that would help. I'm glad, I'm glad the memorial is out there, and the one in, the one down in California. And I think there's something back in D.C. that we saw, too. So that was... so when we walked through some of those places, and people are discussing and I, they overhear us discussing it, and they say, "You mean you were involved with that?" and they start asking questions.

FK: As we continue to work on the memorial and other things that we do here as a community, do you have any advice you'd give us or any things you'd tell us that we should be doing?

SK: I think you guys are doing a good job. [Laughs] I don't know, I didn't think that far enough ahead, but I think that you guys are doing a very good job here on the island. And I wish others would, I wish they would do something. Not necessarily put up a memorial, but at least keep it, keep the information out there, so that we Americans will be a little bit wiser and think twice before we do anything like that again.

FK: We've covered a lot of things, are there any things you want to... are there any other things you want to cover or any other things you want to say?

SK: Not really. I just, I just appreciate the fact that you're, you're doing this to get the information out to people and for future generations. And there's... a lot of us are on our way out the door, now. [Laughs] We're getting a little bit older... and forgetful. [Laughs]

FK: Well, I think you did pretty well, myself. Okay, thank you.

SK: You're welcome.

<End Segment 13> - Copyright © 2006 Densho. All Rights Reserved.