Densho Digital Archive - Kitako Izumizaki Interview (denshovh-ikitako-01-0010)

<Begin Segment 10>

MA: So let's talk about December 7, 1941, so the day that Japan bombed Pearl Harbor. What were you doing when you heard about this news and what were you thinking?

KI: You know, that's when we had our own strawberry ranch, we had rented the land, and it was a shock, just a real shock, you know. That's, but I remembered, though, that, was it before or after Pearl Harbor that they told us to put out blackout curtains. I can't remember if it was before or after. And we really felt like everybody was staring at us, 'cause we were the only Japanese in Aptos, because Rio Del Mar was quite an elite community of whites, lot of people used to just come in the summer. Now it's a bedroom community like everywhere else, but at that time, it was people from the city that had lots of vacation time.

MA: And you had moved, your family had moved out there prior?

KI: We were, we were living in Arana ranch, I mean, there was a community, her ranch was on one side of the highway, and the Rio Del Mar community was on the other side of the highway, but it was a single highway.

MA: So you felt like you really were, stuck out because there weren't other Japanese Americans.

KI: Yes, 'cause I remember sometimes people used to shout at us, you know, "Douse your lights," and just to be mean, maybe, but you know...

MA: How did your parents react to this news?

KI: Well, not, they didn't get too excited because we were all living together, but I told 'em that, "Now you have to move across the street," 'cause we were on the wrong side of the street, you had to be on the other side of the highway. And then we had to go look for a place for them to live, and they had to, and they don't speak much English or understand English, and so I felt sorry for them. And then we had to stay home and run the farm.

MA: So there was that law that the Issei couldn't live west of the, of Highway 1?

KI: Yeah, Highway 1.

MA: And your folks did that at that point and had to move.

KI: Yeah, so we had to move 'em out.

MA: Where did you find housing?

KI: In Soquel, 'cause we were living in Rio Del Mar, by Aptos, and so the close one was a motel. So we went and rented one of those. 'Cause all they'd have was a place to stay, so that's what we did.

MA: And they couldn't even go back to work on the farm?

KI: No, no, no, they can't cross those, they had to just stay there. So we have to go visit them and take 'em stuff.

MA: How did the relationship with the Chinese and Filipinos change after Pearl Harbor, or did it at all? Did they have reactions to...

KI: Well, the only bad reaction I know is what I read in the paper, where the Chinese people would say, "I'm not," that, "I'm Chinese," and walk around. But in Watsonville, well, one of our good friend was Chinese, you know, who was my classmate and everything, no.

MA: Do you remember hearing about any, you know, anti-Japanese violence or anything that happened to people in Watsonville?

KI: Not in Watsonville, I don't think. The only ones that we hear is out of town, you know, where some people got shot at, and a girl got raped or something. But in Watsonville, I don't think so. Maybe I was so busy worrying about other things it never occurred to me to think anything like that happened around here. But I know we were all very, very nervous, stayed, tried not to, you know...