Densho Digital Archive - Gladys Koshio Konishi Interview (denshovh-kgladys-01-0014)

<Begin Segment 14>

RP: On the West Coast, and I imagine it was all over the country, that the Isseis' assets, bank assets were frozen. Was that the case, do you recall happening to your...

GK: Yes. My brother, my sister -- of course, being so young, I don't think I was aware or if they had any discussions I was probably out playing or whatever. But they said that, yeah, that the bank closed their accounts, and particularly in Fort Lupton when my brother's bank account was closed, there was a gentleman who owned the drugstore, Mr. Kauffman, and he told my brother that if he needed any money at all, he would be there to give him whatever he needed. So I have no idea how long the bank accounts were frozen.

RP: You say this was your brother's bank account?

GK: Yes, my brother.

RP: Was he in partnership with your dad?

GK: My dad, uh-huh. And my other brother, the three of 'em were in that partnership, yeah.

RP: So you had people in the community like Mr. Kauffman who stepped up and offered support.

GK: Yes, I think so.

RP: Were there other individuals that you recall doing that? Coming and...

GK: And...

RP: ...and saying, "We don't hold this against you?"

GK: Yeah. Well, I think, I think Frank was talking about the Ford garage, the Ford dealership, yes, he was supportive. But you know, all the years that the war was on, I, there was always a sign in all the stores that said, "If you're an American, speak the English language." And that just would hit me all the time, and I felt like my folks weren't, you know, they weren't able to go to town because they didn't speak the English language, and I don't know that they did go. I think my sister-in-law and I did all the grocery shopping because my older sisters were gone, and I think, so my sister-in-law and I would do most of the grocery shopping. I'm not sure that my mother went shopping. And because of that, if you didn't speak the English language, you didn't want to get caught.

RP: There was a sense of hostility in that regard.

GK: Uh-huh.

RP: Your sisters had married and gone away?

GK: My sisters, yeah, my sister, my older sister, I think, she was gone. She got married in February of '42, so she was gone. And then my next sister, Grace, I think she lived in Denver and she was going to, she was working and going to a beauty school, so she wasn't at home. So the next one was me, and so my sister-in-law and I would go shopping, do the grocery shopping.