Mike Masaoka Oral History - Washington, DC - Tape 2

The interview with Mike Masaoka on August 21, 1982, discusses the post-Pearl Harbor internment of Japanese Americans. Masaoka details the FBI's seizure of 7,000 Japanese leaders, including businessmen, Buddhist ministers, and community officers. He highlights the discrimination faced by Japanese Americans, who could not become U.S. citizens and were automatically designated as enemy aliens. Masaoka notes the lack of espionage or sabotage by Japanese Americans, contrasting this with the actions of German and Italian agents. He also discusses the economic pressures from farmers and businessmen that influenced General DeWitt's decisions and the community's quiet acceptance of their situation.