<Begin Segment 6>

MA: So anything else about Topaz that you'd like to share, or any memories?

AH: I know that -- and this is one thing that I did remember -- is that there was a young girl, she was about four years old, and that she was molested by a teenager. And I remember wondering why -- because I don't think anything was really done, I think the mom knew about it, but she didn't do anything. And I think back on it and I thought, "Gee, that was kind of bad that nothing was done," but then I ask myself now, what could have been done? I mean, it was a terrible situation, they had more problems (than) trying to handle something like that. It's one of the social ills that all community has, no matter where you are, big city, small town, whatever, and it's one of those things that happened. Which made me aware that if it happened once, it must have happened a number of other times. And I'm sure, understanding human nature, that there were things like domestic violence and things like that, too. And it might have been more so because of the stresses of the (Topaz) situation, too. I don't even, I just remember even after Topaz, when we went back to San Francisco, that there was a couple that was definitely a domestic violence, I remember that.

MA: A Japanese couple?

AH: Uh-huh, that lived in one of our apartments in San Francisco. And then I remember my parents and the neighbors would say, "There they go again," you could hear the banging and everything. I remember that. So, you know, no matter where you are, social ills happen. And I think back on it and that's probably what happened to that child.

MA: Yeah, thank you for talking about that.

AH: Yeah.

<End Segment 6> - Copyright ©2008 Densho and the Topaz Museum. All Rights Reserved.