Discover Nikkei

https://www.discovernikkei.org/en/interviews/clips/309/

Interviews

Takeshita,Yukio

(b.1935) American born Japanese. Retired businessman.

Impression of Japan upon arrival

Well, I think this was a terrible place when I first came here. But, I don't know...I think, that’s all I could do, so I could take it. I didn’t have any trouble in language. Well, we first stayed at—my father was not the oldest son, so he didn’t have any place to live. His brother, older brother, had the house. And his parents were already passed away. So we first went and lived with my uncle, my father’s brother. We lived there...well, maybe we were guests for a week, but after you know, that time, there was nothing to eat here in Japan. They let us stay in a place, a little place, in the barn, and we remodeled it for living. So maybe a two-room place for five or six in the family. But, we stayed there maybe one and a half years, I think we stayed. ... I went to Japanese school—public school. My father worked at a station, a radio station, as an interpreter for the RTO, Railway Transportation Office, because they were many American military people, especially we lived near Yamaguchi where there’s a prefectural center. So there was always a military government and the CIC stationed there. So my father worked in the station. And in a year and a half, I think, we moved because that time farming was a very tough job for us because we were not used to it. We had to go barefoot, plant rice and harvest the rice. Now, even Japanese have tractors, rice planting machines, and they can do it with one man. But at that time, even rice planting, all the community would get together and do planting rice in the mud puddle with hands.


Finding Home (film) Japan migration rice

Date: September 11, 2003

Location: Tokyo, Japan

Interviewer: Art Nomura

Contributed by: Art Nomura, Finding Home.

Interviewee Bio

A 67-year-old Nisei/Sansei son of an Issei father and Kibei mother, both from Yamaguchi Prefecture, Yukio Takeshita was born in 1935 in Tacoma, Washington where his parents ran a laundry business. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, Yukio and his parents were incarcerated first at the Pinedale Assembly Center near Fresno, then sent to Tule Lake Relocation Center. Because his parents were No-Nos, they remained there after it was transformed into Tule Lake Segregation Center.

At the end of the war, the Takeshita family left Tule Lake and went to Japan where Yukio attended Japanese public school. He eventually graduated from university in 1958 with a degree in economics. He then worked for a company in Hiroshima. Ultimately, Yukio changed companies five times, which represented a highly unusual situation in Japan. He primarily worked in the import-export field and largely used the English language in his business dealings. He retired in 1998.

Yukio and his Japanese wife have two children, both Japanese citizens. He is a member of the JACL in Japan, where members are of different backgrounds, not just Japanese Americans. He received redress from the United States which made him feel that the U.S. still thinks of him as an “American,” however he identifies himself as an “American-born Japanese.” (September 11, 2003)

Kazuo Funai
en
ja
es
pt
Funai,Kazuo

First work in America (Japanese)

(1900-2005) Issei businessman

en
ja
es
pt
Kazuo Funai
en
ja
es
pt
Funai,Kazuo

Company in Tokyo burned down (Japanese)

(1900-2005) Issei businessman

en
ja
es
pt
James Hirabayashi
en
ja
es
pt
Hirabayashi,James

Family interrelations between mother and father

(1926 - 2012) Scholar and professor of anthropology. Leader in the establishment of ethnic studies as an academic discipline

en
ja
es
pt
Steve Kaji
en
ja
es
pt
Kaji,Steve

FOB's

Hawaii born Nikkei living in Japan. English Teacher at YMCA.

en
ja
es
pt
Barbara Kawakami
en
ja
es
pt
Kawakami,Barbara

Going back to Hawaii

An expert researcher and scholar on Japanese immigrant clothing.

en
ja
es
pt
Barbara Kawakami
en
ja
es
pt
Kawakami,Barbara

Picture brides and karifufu

An expert researcher and scholar on Japanese immigrant clothing.

en
ja
es
pt
Barbara Kawakami
en
ja
es
pt
Kawakami,Barbara

Eating cold rice

An expert researcher and scholar on Japanese immigrant clothing.

en
ja
es
pt
Ann K. Nakamura
en
ja
es
pt
Nakamura,Ann K.

Image of Americans

Sansei from Hawaii living in Japan. Teacher and businesswoman.

en
ja
es
pt
Robert (Bob) Kiyoshi Okasaki
en
ja
es
pt
Okasaki,Robert (Bob) Kiyoshi

Grandmother's influence on decision to go to Japan

(b.1942) Japanese American ceramist, who has lived in Japan for over 30 years.

en
ja
es
pt
Robert (Bob) Kiyoshi Okasaki
en
ja
es
pt
Okasaki,Robert (Bob) Kiyoshi

Band-Aid realization

(b.1942) Japanese American ceramist, who has lived in Japan for over 30 years.

en
ja
es
pt
Robert (Bob) Kiyoshi Okasaki
en
ja
es
pt
Okasaki,Robert (Bob) Kiyoshi

Japanese influence growing up

(b.1942) Japanese American ceramist, who has lived in Japan for over 30 years.

en
ja
es
pt
Robert (Bob) Kiyoshi Okasaki
en
ja
es
pt
Okasaki,Robert (Bob) Kiyoshi

Looking at your country from the outside

(b.1942) Japanese American ceramist, who has lived in Japan for over 30 years.

en
ja
es
pt
Robert (Bob) Kiyoshi Okasaki
en
ja
es
pt
Okasaki,Robert (Bob) Kiyoshi

Wife's family in Japan

(b.1942) Japanese American ceramist, who has lived in Japan for over 30 years.

en
ja
es
pt
Jane Aiko Yamano
en
ja
es
pt
Yamano,Jane Aiko

Lack of language skills

(b.1964) California-born business woman in Japan. A successor of her late grandmother, who started a beauty business in Japan.

en
ja
es
pt
Jane Aiko Yamano
en
ja
es
pt
Yamano,Jane Aiko

Having patience in Japan, being both

(b.1964) California-born business woman in Japan. A successor of her late grandmother, who started a beauty business in Japan.

en
ja
es
pt