Densho Digital Archive - Dale Minami Interview I (denshovh-mdale-02-0003)

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Q: Can you say something about the reaction of the media?

DM: The reaction I received from the media, in talking to the media today and in the past has been fairly surprising to me. Not having had that much experience with the media, it was interesting that nearly all the reporters we talked to were very sympathetic, and the way they wrote the story was sympathetic. I think they seem to agree, the people we talked to seem to agree that what was done to Japanese Americans, what was done specifically to Fred Korematsu, was a great wrong. And to that degree we had more "congratulations" and "way to gos" and "we appreciate what you did," from the press, and I think that's surprising to me, you know, because you always believe the press is objective, or they're supposed to be objective, and yet they're human, too. And to see that response doesn't mean they're any less objective, because, you know, the stories that get written up don't necessarily mean that they just side with us and against the government. But just in their personal reactions was very supportive, and that was pleasant. It was nice to hear.

Q: Any hostile reactions?

DM: Not so much from the press. We've had similar reactions to our case that the Japanese redress effort had, and the NCJAR suit had, which is, you know, the basic ignorant mind: "Well, Japan was the one who bombed Pearl Harbor, so we were justified in putting the Japanese away." Not, of course, distinguishing Japanese from Japanese Americans, not distinguishing ethnicity with political allegiance. But not much of that, to tell you the truth. Most of all it's been supportive, and I think Fred and Gordon and Min, the people who brought these cases, are sympathetic individuals. They're really upstanding citizens, they're bright, strong people, and they're sympathetic figures.

Q: What's been their reaction to today's motion?

DM: I heard that Min Yasui is very happy. I talked to Fred. Fred is more, I think, shell-shocked than anything else. He's very surprised. He said... I said, "Well, how do you feel, Fred?" And he said, "I can't believe it, I'm so surprised." He expected this court suit, like all court suits to, you know, drag on another twenty-five years, forty years, or whatever. But he was surprised that we were able to reach a resolution, or what looks like a step in the resolution so quickly. He waited forty years. And now to file a suit in January and get it resolved in October, early October, was very surprising to him.