Densho Digital Archive - John Nakada Interview (denshovh-njohn-01-0008)

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RP: Do you recall your first experience with prejudice or discrimination?

JN: I guess my first experience of prejudice was, well, in 1941 December 7, 1941. That's when Japan bombed Pearl Harbor. And on Friday everybody in school was my friend and Pearl Harbor was on a Sunday. When I went back to school on Monday, two of my friends were the only ones that would talk to me, the only ones that would go to recess with me, the only ones that would eat lunch with me. Now when you're in grammar school and that happened to you, that prejudice is very, very... that was my first... I didn't know prejudice was, when you're in grammar school. And so all those parents must have told their kids that I was the enemy because of Pearl Harbor. Now to me that's... I still remember that so vividly. I still remember my two friends, John Corbin and Pete Masters, and that's what you call a true friend, and I still know them now. Isn't that amazing? [Laughs] So that's my first experience of prejudice. My second real bad experience of prejudice was when we came back after the camp, came back to Azusa, because we had a home to come back to, and when we came back there was only one market that would even sell us food. All the rest of the markets had "no Japs allowed." And the reason that Safeway, the manager knew us and they, sold us some of our produce. So the manager says, "Yeah, we'll sell you food," you know. So we could've starved there if it wasn't for that one market and that person that... thing. So to me that prejudice and all the stores that, "No Japs Allowed," couldn't go to a movie --

RP: This is after the war.

JN: Right after the war, the war was done they still had all these signs, "No Japs Allowed," so that's the two things that I really remember prejudice.

RP: So how did that make you feel?

JN: Pretty rotten because, see, when I got out, I graduated grammar school in camp and I was a freshman in high school and I was getting into fights every day because they would call me a dirty Jap, a sneaky Jap, and yellow Jap, you know, and when I heard "Jap" to me that's derogatory so I was in fights. And in camp I learned judo so one on one I did real good. [Laughs] But when ten people jump on you, there's nothing you could do.