Discover Nikkei

https://www.discovernikkei.org/en/interviews/clips/405/

The hardships of life in Japan during World War II

Well, of course, the Japanese life was so different. The weather was so different. And I came down with a -- it was, I think, within a year -- I came down with pleurisy and it's called the wet serous, I mean, I had a lot of water collect in my pleura. And the doctors were scarce but anyway, I was hardly able to breathe. And I remember I totally lost, lost my appetite. I wasn't eating, my mother was really concerned. And the doctor did come to draw some serous fluid from my pleura and it kinda helped me breathe. But everything was black market. You couldn't buy an egg, you couldn't buy food, even if you had the money. We didn't have the money, but even if you had the money you couldn't buy.

So, I remember my mother came back and with her hachimaki (headband) she had this one egg cradled in her hachimaki and she says, Marion, Marion, look what I found, look what I got you. (When I was well), I could eat, sit down and eat three eggs at one sitting, but here, this precious egg, she was so proud, she was, she got this egg for me. She said, How do you want me to prepare it for you? Boiled egg, soft boiled egg, fried egg? And I didn't even want that.

So I thought, you know, I mean, these are the loving thoughts that you just... I haven't forgotten. Well, I, I'm, I don't know how it ended up being, but anyway, I remember that that's how scarce food items were.


Japan World War II

Date: August 3 & 4, 2003

Location: Washington, US

Interviewer: Alice Ito

Contributed by: Denshō: The Japanese American Legacy Project.

Interviewee Bio

Nisei female. Born December 30, 1927 in Seattle, Washington. Lived in Japan for fifteen months as a child, before returning to Seattle to attend junior high school. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, father was picked up by the FBI and taken to the Department of Justice camp at Missoula, Montana. Removed to the Puyallup Assembly Center, Washington, before being reunited with father at the Minidoka incarceration camp, Idaho. Family volunteered to leave for Japan in 1943 on the U.S. government's exchange ship, the USS Gripsholm. Attended high school in Japan, and participated in military and air raid drills. During the U.S.'s postwar occupation of Japan, attended Doshisha University and worked for a U.S. army station hospital library. Returned to the U.S. and enrolled at St. Mary's teaching hospital in Rochester, Minnesota. Denied redress because of expatriation to Japan, but succeeded in obtaining redress in 1996 after filing a class-action lawsuit.

*The full interview is available Denshō: The Japanese American Legacy Project.

Cedrick Shimo
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Shimo,Cedrick

Strictly American, but sympathize with Japan

(1919-2020) Member of the 1800th Engineering Battalion. Promoted Japan-U.S. trade while working for Honda's export division.

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Terry Janzen
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Janzen,Terry

Father's Service in WWII

(b. 1930) Half Japanese and grew up in both Japan and the United States.

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Terry Janzen
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Janzen,Terry

Moving to Upland Post-Camp

(b. 1930) Half Japanese and grew up in both Japan and the United States.

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Sawako Ashizawa Uchimura
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Uchimura,Sawako Ashizawa

Kindergarten in Davao, Philippines

(b. 1938) Philipines-born hikiagesha who later migrated to the United States.

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Sawako Ashizawa Uchimura
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Uchimura,Sawako Ashizawa

Family was shipped back to Japan after the war

(b. 1938) Philipines-born hikiagesha who later migrated to the United States.

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Herb Ohta
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Ohta,Herb

Living in Hawaii after Pearl Harbor

(b. 1934) Ukulele player from Hawaii

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Harry Schneider
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Schneider,Harry

Coming to California

(1916 - 2013) Member of the U.S. Military Intelligence Service

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Sawako Ashizawa Uchimura
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Uchimura,Sawako Ashizawa

Life in the Philippines

(b. 1938) Philipines-born hikiagesha who later migrated to the United States.

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Harry Schneider
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Schneider,Harry

Learning Japanese with the MIS

(1916 - 2013) Member of the U.S. Military Intelligence Service

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Iwao Takamoto
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Takamoto,Iwao

Camouflage Net Weaving in Manzanar

Japanese American animator for Walt Disney and Hanna Barbera (1925-2007)

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Harry Schneider
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Schneider,Harry

Miscommunications

(1916 - 2013) Member of the U.S. Military Intelligence Service

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Harry Schneider
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Schneider,Harry

Writing Letters

(1916 - 2013) Member of the U.S. Military Intelligence Service

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Iwao Takamoto
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Takamoto,Iwao

Developing Art Skills in Camp

Japanese American animator for Walt Disney and Hanna Barbera (1925-2007)

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Iwao Takamoto
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Takamoto,Iwao

Return to Los Angeles

Japanese American animator for Walt Disney and Hanna Barbera (1925-2007)

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George Kazuharu Naganuma
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Naganuma,George Kazuharu

Trip to Japan as a Boy Scout

(b. 1938) Japanese Peruvian incarcerated in Crystal City

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