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“A Hellhole, Not a Relocation Center” - Los Angeles (1981)
Mitsuru Sasahara, a Sansei from Los Angeles, testified before the Commission about his family’s journey from prewar community life, to incarceration at Manzanar, to postwar struggles in Los Angeles. His testimony wove together personal memory, family loss, and his call for reparations.
Family Background: Born in 1934, third generation. His father, born in Honolulu in 1900, built a life in California as a gardener after being displaced from farm work in Orange County. His mother was born in Los Angeles County in 1908.
Neighborhood Before the War: Grew up in Atwater and Glendale, in a mixed Anglo and Hispanic neighborhood with only a handful of Japanese families. Recalled a childhood of shared lunches—tortillas, beans, Campbell’s soup, and rice balls—an “international palate.”
Pearl Harbor & Shock: Parents were stunned by news of the attack; neighbors remained friendly. Children went to school without harassment, and the family planted a “victory garden” to show their loyalty.
Evacuation: On April 26, 1942, the family was forced onto buses with only what they could carry. Mitsuru gave his prized cap gun to his best friend before leaving.
Camp at Manzanar: Lived in a one-mile-square desert compound ringed by barbed wire and guard towers. As a child, he recalled endless boredom, no real schooling for a year, and wandering aimlessly around camp. He described the conditions as “a hellhole” — rejecting the euphemism “relocation center.”
Family Division: His father considered leaving for Japan out of disillusionment, but his mother refused: “If you leave, you go alone.” They stayed together. After camp, the family briefly lived in a Fresno tool shed before moving back to Los Angeles in 1946.
Postwar Hardship: In Los Angeles, they endured cramped kitchenette apartments, communal bathrooms, and years of instability before his father could resume gardening. His father died in 1952, “a broken man,” which Mitsuru believed was tied to the trauma of incarceration.
Call for Reparations: Urged compensation for both individuals and destroyed communities — a means of justice for families who returned home to find their neighborhoods and centers gone.
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By Mas Moriya
5
66 ratings
Mitsuru Sasahara, a Sansei from Los Angeles, testified before the Commission about his family’s journey from prewar community life, to incarceration at Manzanar, to postwar struggles in Los Angeles. His testimony wove together personal memory, family loss, and his call for reparations.
Family Background: Born in 1934, third generation. His father, born in Honolulu in 1900, built a life in California as a gardener after being displaced from farm work in Orange County. His mother was born in Los Angeles County in 1908.
Neighborhood Before the War: Grew up in Atwater and Glendale, in a mixed Anglo and Hispanic neighborhood with only a handful of Japanese families. Recalled a childhood of shared lunches—tortillas, beans, Campbell’s soup, and rice balls—an “international palate.”
Pearl Harbor & Shock: Parents were stunned by news of the attack; neighbors remained friendly. Children went to school without harassment, and the family planted a “victory garden” to show their loyalty.
Evacuation: On April 26, 1942, the family was forced onto buses with only what they could carry. Mitsuru gave his prized cap gun to his best friend before leaving.
Camp at Manzanar: Lived in a one-mile-square desert compound ringed by barbed wire and guard towers. As a child, he recalled endless boredom, no real schooling for a year, and wandering aimlessly around camp. He described the conditions as “a hellhole” — rejecting the euphemism “relocation center.”
Family Division: His father considered leaving for Japan out of disillusionment, but his mother refused: “If you leave, you go alone.” They stayed together. After camp, the family briefly lived in a Fresno tool shed before moving back to Los Angeles in 1946.
Postwar Hardship: In Los Angeles, they endured cramped kitchenette apartments, communal bathrooms, and years of instability before his father could resume gardening. His father died in 1952, “a broken man,” which Mitsuru believed was tied to the trauma of incarceration.
Call for Reparations: Urged compensation for both individuals and destroyed communities — a means of justice for families who returned home to find their neighborhoods and centers gone.