<Begin Segment 6>

RP: What do you recall about the, I guess I'll call it Nihonmachi in Sacramento, the Japanese section? Did you spend much time down there?

FY: We lived in the Japanese town.

RP: Tell us a little bit about it. What do you recall about it?

FY: What do I... well, I enjoyed it, 'cause it was very safe there. There was not one case of delinquency there, and as I said, our life was sort of always around church activities.

RP: So you very rarely left that area?

FY: Yes, rarely. That's right, and then my mother wanted us to learn Japanese culture, so I took tea ceremony and flower arrangement, piano lesson, and this is all after school, so I was very busy.

RP: This was all in that community?

FY: Yes, that's right.

RP: And what activities were centered around the church? Can you tell us a little bit about that?

FY: Oh, I went to Sunday school every Sunday, but I really didn't know what true Christianity meant until I went to Japan. Because in Japan, I guess they were only about one percent of the population were Christians. But those Christians were truly Christians. So, and then I also went to, I went to a Christian school, and also on Sunday went to Dr. Toyohiko Kagawa. Have you ever heard of him? Well, he is a famous Christian person, and I went to church there.

RP: In Japan?

FY: Yes, in Japan. I would say that he was the most noted Christian, and he came to America to give lectures, too.

RP: So he had a strong influence on your life?

FY: Yes, I think the school and that church did influence me a great deal.

RP: What was the relationship like between the Japanese Christians and the Japanese Buddhists? Did they respect each other's tradition?

FY: Yes, they did. Because my family in Japan were Buddhists.

RP: There were never any major disagreements or problems?

FY: No, not at all. Because there's only one God, and all the different nationalities, it all leads up to one God. Don't you believe that?

RP: Tell us a little bit about your school, your time before you went to Japan. Which grammar school did you attend?

FY: Lincoln school.

RP: Was that in Japantown?

FY: Yes, most of... well, there most of the students went to that school, Lincoln grade school.

RP: It was predominately Japanese American?

FY: Yes.

RP: Then how about high school? Was high school a little more integrated?

FY: Yes, it was. It was Sacramento High School.

RP: And it sounds like you spent a lot of time with Japanese Americans, living in Japantown.

FY: Yes.

RP: What was it like to begin to relate to other ethnic groups, Caucasians, Mexicans, Chinese?

FY: I don't think, no, I did not relate to any of the Caucasians until college.

<End Segment 6> - Copyright © 2008 Manzanar National Historic Site and Densho. All Rights Reserved.