Densho Digital Repository - Emlei "Emi" Kuboyama Interview (Densho ID: ddr-densho-1020-12-5)

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TH: In setting up that office, I mean, again, I know you didn't join until '94. What were some of the most memorable maybe stories or incidents that you remember of those early years because you can imagine setting up a brand new federal office, newly created with these powers with this kind of mission of redress, it's never been done before. What were some of the memorable, maybe, stories or incidents that that were passed down to you from those early...

EK: Sure. So certainly, I was not around at that point but I recall that what was really important was I think the department was not quite sure where to house the office and how to staff it. And thankfully, Bob Bratt, who's also been interviewed for this project, was approached to set the office up. And he was a young but experienced employee, career employee, at the Department of Justice, and he really lobbied for the office to be placed within the Civil Rights Division, where he was working. And he was also very knowledgeable about the internal workings of the department, which I think helped tremendously for the office to be able to operate in a pretty independent manner within the department. I think Bob and all of us were given trust and leeway to really make the decisions, and where they were not clear cut, we often involved those higher up. But I just recall there being a tremendous affinity by all the staff that have worked with this program. It was a lot bigger of an office before I got there. In the early days, I believe one hundred or so employees were there as they processed a lot of the more clear cut cases. And when I was there, the office was probably smaller than a dozen people, and we were left primarily with the more unique cases. But I think it was a really unique experience for most people. Most people there were early in their career, oftentimes right out of undergraduate or law school, and there was just such a clear vision for what the office was there to accomplish and a lot of buy-in by everyone involved. And, you know, people just loved their work and worked around the clock. And I certainly felt that and got to experience that even when I joined in 1994/'95.