Emiko Tsuchida
@emikotsuchidaEmiko Tsuchida is freelance writer and digital marketer living in San Francisco. She has written on the representations of mixed race Asian American women and conducted interviews with some of the top Asian American women chefs. Her work has appeared in the Village Voice, the Center for Asian American Media, and the forthcoming Beiging of America series. She is the creator of Tessaku, a project that collects stories from Japanese Americans who experienced the concentration camps.
Updated December 2016
Stories from This Author
Emiko Tsuchida on How Her Grandmother’s Story Helped Her Write Her Own
March 11, 2024 • Emiko Tsuchida
Though I often focus on my grandfather’s acts of defiance and resistance when I talk about my family’s camp experience, the truth is that my dedication to family history — and the development of Tessaku — would not exist without my grandmother, Itsuye. Since I was young, I was fascinated with the fact that the incarceration, set off by a string of incredibly complicated, global events, somehow found its way to impact our family so deeply. I knew that what …
Setsuko Moriya — Part 3
Feb. 19, 2023 • Emiko Tsuchida
Read Part 2 >> What is that story? He didn't have any papers, so I guess he got on the ship. But he worked on the ship, so he might have learned to cook there, too. But when he got here, you know how they quarantine you for many days, many weeks? At that time, he escaped and came to Washington. It was in February and it was so cold to swim that water, from the boat to Washington. So …
Setsuko Moriya — Part 2
Feb. 12, 2023 • Emiko Tsuchida
Read Part 1 >> So they're doing chicken farming and so I imagine for them they, they had to give up their farm when the war broke out or after the order was signed. Is that right? Well, I think in those areas everybody was friends, so some white family did take over the farm for them, took care of it. It could have been, "You just watch the farm and it's all yours for a while, right?” But they still …
Setsuko Moriya — Part 1
Feb. 5, 2023 • Emiko Tsuchida
“When you think about now, politically, we listen to the news of what’s happening in Washington. In those days, my father was not political. He was just here to make money and to survive.” — SETSUKO MORIYA Growing up in downtown Sacramento before the war, Setsuko (Shimono) Moriya recalls the tight-knit community of the old Japantown. In the heart of what was once a thriving downtown scene, Setsuko’s parents operated a busy restaurant serving American food. Her father, Masuichi Shimono, …
Doug Matsuda - Part 2
Dec. 5, 2021 • Emiko Tsuchida
Read Part 1 >> When did your dad start sharing what happened in camp? I would ask him every once in a while and he would tell me little things. He’d say, “You know the first week we were there we had to make our own meals. Nothing was set up yet so we had to eat outside. So one day we were all ready to eat, everything was all set and the food was cooked and everything, and this …
Doug Matsuda - Part 1
Nov. 28, 2021 • Emiko Tsuchida
“If I was my dad, I would’ve done the same thing. You’ve taken everything away from us, now you want us to fight for this stinkin’ country? No way.” —Doug Matsuda In the middle of a cold, January night in 1943 in the Arizona desert, eight young men ventured out between rows of barracks to convene in front of Block 215, room D. Carrying heavy wood clubs and donning handkerchiefs to mask their faces, they went over once more the …
Leland Inaba - Part 4
Nov. 21, 2021 • Emiko Tsuchida
Read part 3 >> Now, jumping ahead to when the redress happened and the Civil Liberties Act was passed. What do you remember about receiving the apology or what was your reaction to getting the letter and then the redress? I don't think I even read the letter. You didn't read the letter? I don't remember. I don't even remember receiving the money. I guess my parents probably put it in the bank for themselves. That was $20,000 per person …
Leland Inaba - Part 3
Nov. 14, 2021 • Emiko Tsuchida
Read Part 2 >> And I meant to ask you before, was your mother working before you left for camp in Riverside? She was my dad's receptionist at his office because, you know, he couldn't really afford he was just building up his practice. And so she answered the phone, made appointments and stuff like that. So she went to work every day and we had a housekeeper or a maid look after us. [Holly] If you're looking for vivid …
Leland Inaba - Part 2
Nov. 7, 2021 • Emiko Tsuchida
Read Part 1 >> So do you remember your parents saying anything about this tension or the war that had broken out between the two countries? No, they didn't talk about it. I think it was easier to handle hidden away or pushed to the background than to talk about it, you know because first of all, my dad was taken away right away because he was considered an alien. And so my mom had to take over everything else, …
Leland Inaba - Part 1
Oct. 31, 2021 • Emiko Tsuchida
“I think the main thing is that they had themselves had nothing to do with the problem between the two countries. There’s nothing you can do to promote or diminish it. It’s out of your hands. It’s almost like God’s will. What can we do?” — Leland Inaba Leland Inaba grew up on a farm in Riverside, California, a city nestled in the larger Southern California area known as the Inland Empire. Before the war, it was humming with Japanese …
