<Begin Segment 3>

EK: So, could you maybe walk us through what happened, so, from the point that it passed?

BB: Yeah. It passed, and the department then basically said, "You're it, and you're going to go ahead and set it up," which was kind of terrifying in itself. Because there was nothing to learn from, no one had set up a program like this before. There was no model to go to, there were only things that you shouldn't do. And there was a couple at the time, one in particular, that weighed heavily on what I was thinking at the time. And so the first thing I did was, I was looking for people that could be helpful to me in the community. So I picked up the phone and called Aiko Herzig, who was heavily involved in redress, and to try to get the lay of the land with her and see what was, what I could learn from her.

EK: And did you know Aiko beforehand?

BB: No.

EK: No, you just knew her connection.

BB: [Narr. note: I read an article that she had written and learned that she had lived in the DC area.  I called and went over and sat in their living room.  And then all of a sudden, she did the brain dump.  I felt so insignificant. I didn't know 1/100th or 1/0000th of what she knew about the history.  Aiko laid out a number of issues coming from the various community groups.  There were the politics on the hill, and most of all, a lot of background.  It was very apparent to me that there was much to do and we needed to get it done quickly.]

<End Segment 3> - Copyright © 2019 Emi Kuboyama. All Rights Reserved.