On February 19th, two months after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, my great-grandfather, Kenzo Sakanashi, was arrested by the Federal Bureau of Investigation on suspicion of being an enemy alien. He spent over two years separated from his wife and three children in prison camps from North Dakota to New Mexico. Only after consistent…
Thank You, Uncle Ken, And The 442nd Regimental Combat Team
Finding My Japanese American Heroes I was nine years old when Hideo Nomo joined the Los Angeles Dodgers. He was the first public figure that I ever felt like I could own as a Japanese American. He wasn’t a nerd, he was a jock. He was someone I wanted to be associated with. He gave…
A Son Never Forgets: 13 Lessons From My Last Conversation With Dad
(Reposted from 2010, Age 24) “In the fall of 2003, during football season of my senior year of high school, my dad began to notice a pain in his back. After going in for a scan that revealed a tumor, we discovered that the tumor was cancerous. This news came the day before Thanksgiving, 2003….
Leaving My Favorite City In The World
I never thought I would say this, but in less than two weeks my family is leaving Seattle to begin a new life in Tokyo. Growing Up Japanese American Even though I am 100% Japanese, I never wanted to live in Japan. I never even considered the idea. My father’s family left Japan over 100 years…
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