Densho Digital Archive
Manzanar National Historic Site Collection
Title: Susumu Iwasaki Interview
Narrator: Susumu Iwasaki
Interviewer: Richard Potashin
Location: Orange, California
Date: April 11, 2009
Densho ID: denshovh-isusumu_2-01-0025

<Begin Segment 25>

RP: I wanted to ask you about the, the redress, the letter of apology from the United States government.

SI: Yeah.

RP: In 1988 and also there was a $20,000 check that went with that.

SI: Yeah.

RP: How did you feel about that?

SI: Well, I was, something's better than nothing, that's what I thought. Well, if they're gonna give you twenty thousand, well, what, you think you can ask for more? No, I don't think so. So, but, maybe... I always told myself, if it's now, we will, probably got more. But, the only bad thing about it was I was kinda pissed on that was, people that was in there and had died before the thing came about, they didn't get anything. Which was a bad deal. My brother and my dad, they didn't get it because they, they passed away before the bill, bill came through. Which I think they should, they should have got their twenty thousand, too. Or to their family. But what can you do? Nobody was gonna fight for you. It would probably have taken ten years before you can get, get that money, so...

<End Segment 25> - Copyright © 2009 Manzanar National Historic Site and Densho. All Rights Reserved.