<Begin Segment 5>
FA: Did you go to any meetings? Do you recall any meetings of the Fair Play Committee in Heart Mountain? What were they like?
DK: The meetings, it was well-organized. We had speakers, and I got elected as a treasurer. And, but I only attended, I think, one or two meetings because I was picked up.
FA: Describe to me, Dave, what was the attitude, the spirit of, the kimochi of the meetings, the feeling of those meetings?
DK: The feeling... I can't recall if it was after the second or the third meeting, they took a vote at the mess hall, which was filled to the brim. And I would say ninety-nine percent said they weren't going to go, by raising hands. So it was quite elating to hear that.
FA: Again, the feeling there of you and the others? Was, were you bitter, were you angry, or were you... you said, or were you guys happy, or excited?
DK: Excited for...
FA: Well, that word, but, I mean, what was, what was the feeling?
DK: Oh, at the meeting?
FA: Yeah.
DK: Oh, I was glad to see that so many were going to take that route.
FC: Were you... at these meetings, were those who did not want to resist, those who were considering accepting the draft, did you or anybody at these meetings intimidate them, or intimidate anyone or bully or pressure anyone to resist who didn't want to resist?
DK: After the meeting... [coughs] excuse me. I believe it was the last meeting that I attended. After the meeting, somebody got up and spoke that, that the group was doing the wrong thing, and they should show their loyalty by complying with the civil service. There was several people that got up to try to, they formed a small group, and they were trying to advise these young fellows to comply with the selective service.
FC: But as far as you know, no one went out and beat 'em up for what they said.
DK: No.
FA: Dave, did any of the speakers at the meeting tell the others, listeners, what to do, how they should go?
DK: The speakers at the meeting never directly told them to resist the draft. Only, only advice they gave was that if you're going to resist, there will be a lawyer affiliated with the Civil, Civil Liberties Union, and will be helping us.
FA: Who spoke at the meetings, Dave? The meetings you attended, who spoke? Did you speak?
DK: Well, I introduced the speaker, Paul Nakadate.
[Interruption]
FA: You introduced the speakers, you introduced Paul Nakadate. Was he the only speaker?
DK: At that meeting, yes.
FA: What kind of speaker was Paul Nakadate?
DK: Oh, Paul Nakadate was, he's a good speaker. I thought he was a very good speaker. And he told us, he advised us, rather, as to what could happen and that we'd have to go to trial and we'd be sentenced to whatever the going rate at that time was for selective service violators.
FA: That's what he told you, Dave. I'm asking you what -- I mean, I wasn't there. I never met the guy.
Male voice: What was the mood like? Was everybody angry and shouting?
DK: No, they all sat quietly and had to listen to, as to what he had to say.
FC: What kind of speaker was he? Did he swear a lot, did he yell, did he scream?
DK: No, no.
FC: Did he have a microphone, a megaphone, did he use a lot of gestures, was he quiet?
DK: Paul Nakadate was a, well, he's a college grad so he was quiet and collected and a very good orator.
FA: Again, Dave, I never met the guy. I need to understand myself. Why, why did people like him? I hear this a lot.
FC: Why listen to him?
FA: Why, why do people say he was a good orator?
DK: Well, how, how Paul Nakadate was able to, to describe what the Fair Play Committee was going to do for the potential selective service resisters.
FA: Did you think he had a lot of guts, or was he kind of a shy guy?
DK: I think all the FPC members were pretty gutsy.
<End Segment 5> - Copyright © 1993, 2005 Frank Abe and Densho. All Rights Reserved.