<Begin Segment 11>

FC: You knew, you were in the same prison with Gordon Hirabayashi?

JA: Well, he was there. He was there but then he was out in the farm and we were in the main line. We were too, we were "dangerous."

FC: Oh, you were in the "big house"?

JA: Yes, yeah. We were in the main line.

FC: So you were considered...

JA: Very "dangerous," because for what the FBI reported. See, all of this report went from Min Yasui, I don't know what the route was. But it went to Clarence Arai, from Arai to WRA, to FBI. Because I got interrogated shortly thereafter about my repatriation. Clarence Arai, he was the head of the seditious committee for JACL. And I got interrogated. And he was saying, he told me that, "You can't repatriate, expatriate." I says, "Why? I'm an alien." And we argued about that.

FC: After, so you're saying that shortly after you had your talk with Min Yasui, you were called in or picked up --

JA: Called in by Clarence Arai.

FC: And he was... he was head of JACL internal security or something like that.

JA: I didn't know that. I found out after reading the Daniels, or Roger's book, I found out. He was my attorney to start with. You see, my will was made by him, December 26, 1941. So I took my physical shortly after the war. And I wrote the will, 26th.

FC: Are you saying that Min Yasui, Clarence Arai of the JACL, fingered you for arrest?

JA: Well, I don't know. But then there is a letter that went from, from the leave clearance officer that I'm not going. So as a suggestion and a favor to us -- meaning WRA -- do something. And the draft notice that came, here I was supposed to have gone, inducted May 21, 1944. Made out June 10, 1944. And I didn't get that until some time later. See, I had these documents with me.

<End Segment 11> - Copyright © 1993, 2005 Frank Abe and Densho. All Rights Reserved.