Densho Digital Archive - Lily Kajiwara Interview (denshovh-klily-01-0014)

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RP: In the early '80s and later on into the '90s, there was a movement to obtain redress and reparations for Japanese Americans who had been incarcerated during World War II. First of all, were you involved in that process?

LK: No. I was never a member of the JACL, and so I read about it and I knew about it, but I was never actively involved in it. But I did know about it because I was teased many times at work, because several people knew about it and they said, "Well, you're going to get twenty thousand dollars." And when I got my twenty thousand dollars, I had to show it to them that, yes, I did get twenty thousand dollars. But I was teased about it unmercifully. But I'm sorry to say I was not involved in any of the background of that, but I was a recipient.

RP: How did you feel about the official apology?

LK: Well, I think it was great. I'm only sorry that my mother didn't get twenty thousand, and my mother was the one that I think had the most, the hardest time. She had to... well, she did have a hard time, because her family just kind of disintegrated. And then she had these two little ones with her, and then she had my handicapped sister with her. It was not an easy time for my mother. Now my dad, on the other hand, was very resilient. He took everything in stride. He never said a word that this was wrong or anything, there's this saying shikata ga nai, you know, he said, well, this is the way it is and he accepts it. He lost everything, his farm, all he'd worked for, and he changed occupations when he was midstream in life, started over again, he was very successful as a gardener, he won many awards as a gardener. So he just made a completely different life for himself and he lived to be ninety-seven. So I hand it to my dad, he did, he was very intelligent. He knew when things happened that there's nothing he could do about it and just go on with your life, which is good. He never felt angry about the war.

RP: How about yourself? How did you feel later?

LK: It changed my life, it really changed my life. I would have had a completely different life if it had not been for the war. Of all things, I think if I had, if it had not happened, I think I would still be on a farm, I would not have had the experiences that I had. I might have gone to college maybe, but I don't know, maybe not. I would have gotten married early in life and had children and been living on the farm. But I do know these experiences that I had after being sent to Minidoka and going to New York completely changed my life. I wouldn't say a hundred percent better, but it changed my life.