Interviews

1. Activities growing up in Peru

2. Family's deportation from Peru to U.S. after the bombing of Pearl Harbor

3. Conditions aboard U.S. transport ship while being deported from Peru

4. Learning English upon discovering that family could not return to Peru

5. Playing baseball along with American Nisei and Kibei

6. Denied redress as a Japanese Peruvian

7. Thoughts on the post-9/11 atmosphere in the U.S.

Art Shibayama

(1930-2018) Nisei born in Peru. Taken to the United States during WWII.

Family's deportation from Peru to U.S. after the bombing of Pearl Harbor

Every time a U.S. transport came into the port of Callao, words got around and head of the family went, father or head of the family went into hiding, including my father. So then the, the police, the police came to our house several times and not finding my father. The last time they came after him, again, my father wasn't there so, so they took my mother and put her in jail and my sister, who was eleven at the time, went with her because she didn't want, she didn't want our mother to go by herself. And as soon as my father found out about it he gave himself up and came out of hiding. And that's when my mother and sister were released. And I guess they gave us around a week, or I should say we had about a week to get ready and then we, we boarded a U.S. Army transport called Cuba.

Peru United States Army World War II

Date: October 26, 2003

Location: Washington, US

Interviewer: Alice Ito

Contributed by: Denshō: The Japanese American Legacy Project.

Interviewee Bio

Nisei male. Born June 6, 1930 in Callao, Peru. Grew up in Peru, raised by both parents and grandparents. During World War II, taken with parents to the United States on a U.S. troop transport ship. Lived in the Crystal City internment camp, Texas, until family moved to work at Seabrook, New Jersey, a produce work company camp. Drafted into the army in the 1950s, even though considered an illegal alien, and served in Germany. Raised a family in Chicago, Illinois, and San Jose, California after military discharge. In recent years, attended several pilgrimages to Tule Lake incarceration camp, California, as well as reunions of Japanese Peruvians. Involved in the Campaign for Justice, an effort to obtain redress for Japanese Latin Americans. He passed away on July 31, 2018 at age 88. （July 2018)

*The full interview is available Denshō: The Japanese American Legacy Project.