Chapter is
closed on
WWII redress
Japanese Americans who
By Susan Kreifels
were displaced or interned
got some cash
Star-BulletinFor some, it restored confidence in a nation that promised equality, then broke its word. Others have still not forgiven.
Yesterday the sun set on the federal Civil Liberties Act of 1988, which provided redress to about 82,000 Japanese Americans who were interned or displaced during World War II. Of those, 2,665 were from Hawaii.
Suspicious of Japanese Americans after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, the U.S. government made those living around military bases or other strategic areas leave their homes. They scattered themselves among family, friends, any temporary housing they could find.
Others were interned on Sand Island or the mainland.
"The redress really helped all of us to begin once again," said Alice Kobayashi Hokama, 70, whose family was forced to move from their Aina Hina home near a power plant. "It gave us more confidence about being Americans . . . to feel good about it."
But Helene Kimura Minehira, 73, is not so forgiving. "I feel so bad that my parents weren't here to see this," said Minehira, whose family property was condemned and never recovered.
"Somehow I cannot close this. When things like this come up, I go through the whole ritual again. I ask why, with a capital W."
Minehira helped dig up the documents that led to the redress, and it has emboldened her. "I'm not afraid of the government anymore. I can tackle anything."
Clayton Ikei, president of the Japanese American Citizens League of Honolulu, estimated fewer than 100 Japanese Americans in the state, mainly on the neighbor islands, failed to apply for redress by yesterday's deadline. Those who made it in time received $20,000.
For Kenneth Uyeda, 75, yesterday was "the closing of a chapter. Only in a country like the United States could a redress appeal take place. At this point in time democracy means something."
Uyeda didn't see democracy at work 57 years ago when the United States declared war with Japan. His family was forced at bayonet point from their North King Street home near the rail line. He remained bitter for a decade after the war.
At the same time his family was evicted, Uyeda, then a freshman at the University of Hawaii, was called for duty in the Territorial Guard. "The Constitution at that time didn't mean much to me. We weren't protected under it."
After the war, his parents were able to provide a good education for their eight children. Uyeda and a brother served in the Army. Pride in the family's achievements eased their bitterness.
Although Uyeda sees the redress as the chapter's end, the book continues. He worries about the backlash against immigrants on the mainland, and fears the discrimination his family faced during the war could happen to other ethnic groups.
"Much of it is economic. When you take food from a person's mouth, the worst feelings come out. Then the Constitution and Bill of Rights play secondary importance . . . It (discrimination) rears its ugly head again."
Ikei agreed.
"Although this closes the chapter on redress, it certainly doesn't end the struggle," Ikei said about the sunset of the law.
The league continues to work on other issues such as promotion of ethnic studies in the United States and hate-crime legislation in Hawaii, and passage of laws that would protect Asian workers in th Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, a U.S. commonwealth in the Western Pacific.
"We must educate the public that this can still happen again to other racial minorities," Ikei said.
The United States is attempting to atone with an apology and a monetary settlement to Japanese Latin Americans, who suffered the same indignities as thousands of Japanese-Americans.
More than 2,200 Latin Americans, most with Japanese ancestry and a majority from Peru, were forcibly brought to the United States during the war. The government has never provided an official explanation.
Fewer than 20 of the estimated 700 to 1,000 eligible Japanese Latin Americans have applied for redress, said Robin Toma, a lawyer representing the Latin Americans.
Unlike their Japanese-American counterparts, Japanese Latin Americans became eligible for a $5,000 payment only two months ago -- if redress money was left. About $8 million remained in the fund.
Minehira said she would have preferred getting back her family's land.
"When I got the check, I told officials it was for my parents," she said. "Sorry, it was the best I could do for you."
The Japanese American Citizens League of Honolulu is hosting: Events scheduled
What: Celebration of Justice and Courage, 10th Anniversary of the Civil Liberties Act of 1988
