Densho Digital Archive - Henry Nishi Interview II (denshovh-nhenry

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RP: Did you have any inclination to enlist at all after Pearl Harbor?

HN: I didn't... I didn't volunteer. But I knew the draft, they were still drafting people. And it was, I guess, when... oh, I had left camp after a couple of years. I went to Omaha, Nebraska. I was working for a, a dairy processing plant in Omaha, Nebraska. That's when I got the draft, draft notice and I went to Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, to be inducted, which I was inducted. But for whatever reason, they didn't want, I guess each, it was whatever the person who was in charge, put me on inactive status, instead of being, being active right away. They gave me the physical and, but I wasn't put on active, active duty. So I returned to camp. Then soon after that, then I was, I was noticed, got notice for active duty. And I got inducted at Salt Lake City.

RP: Fort Douglas?

HN: Fort Douglas, yeah.

RP: At the time you were being evacuated, I guess we've heard a few stories about other Niseis who wanted to enlist at that time, volunteered to join the military and they were, they were turned away primarily because of their ethnicity. "We don't want any of you people at this time." Sometimes the language was a little stronger than that. Did you feel that that might have been part of their decision in terms of well, "Go ahead and evacuate," rather than. "We don't really want you," but...

HN: I wasn't familiar with what was happening but I, from what I heard from friends that were already in the service, they were stationed like in Camp Roberts. And I guess primarily they were in Camp Roberts. They were, I understand, a lot of them were, they were kinda put on... I don't know what you'd call it. But they were kinda, what would you call it? Confined. That's what I heard from some of my friends that were in the army. They were not free to just do whatever they want. They were actually confined.

RP: Confined to menial responsibilities...

HN: Yeah, yeah.

RP: And in some cases I think they weren't even allowed to have guns.

HN: That was only in California of course, but I don't know if, I think in other states, I mean if, I think the draft went on as usual. But each draft board, I think, had their own ideas as to what, what to do. I don't know if they were told to, given any instruction, specific instructions to do whatever. But I think, I think it was more like each draft board had made their own decisions because... yeah, 'cause I don't understand why when I was inducted they put me on inactive duty. They must have had a reason for it, but...

RP: How long did you spend in camp before you were...

HN: I think I came back to camp and it was a matter of two, three weeks.

RP: Then you were put on active duty.

HN: Yeah.