Interviews

1. Reasons for conformity and competitiveness in Gardena, California

2. Not fully understanding parents' World War II incarceration while growing up

3. An emotional response from mother upon talking about incarceration experience

4. Role of the redress movement in helping Nisei to open up about their wartime experiences

5. Memories of hearing the verdict in Fred Korematsu's coram nobis case

6. Impact of the Korematsu coram nobis case, historically and personally

7. Impact of the original Korematsu case on current events

8. Reflections on the importance of history

Dale Minami

(b. 1946) Lawyer

Role of the redress movement in helping Nisei to open up about their wartime experiences

When redress started, though, in the late '70s, or the idea started gaining momentum, then my parents started talking openly. I think, I mean, they talked very openly, they started talking more and more and more and more. And then when I got involved with Korematsu and the coram nobis cases with Hirabayashi and Yasui, too, my parents just would, you couldn't stop 'em after that. [Laughs]

I think they felt vindicated. At one point they felt, they realized—like a lotta Japanese Americans that I have talked to—once redress was either passed, not even passed, but when the movement went forward and they got used to the idea that, “Yeah, we were victims,” I saw a total loosening of the voices of Japanese Americans. They were able to speak again about the camps, and not in a—in a very, very strong way about how they felt. They were being, opened up about their feelings. They felt free to talk about one of the terrible things, some of the terrible things that happened to them.

civil rights imprisonment incarceration Redress movement World War II camps

Date: February 8, 2003

Location: Washington, US

Interviewer: Tom Ikeda, Margaret Chon

Contributed by: Denshō: The Japanese American Legacy Project.

Interviewee Bio

Sansei male. Born in Los Angeles, California on October 13, 1946, and grew up in Gardena, California. Received B.A. in Political Science from University of Southern California, graduated magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa in 1968. Received J.D., 1971, from Boalt Hall School of Law, University of California. Mr. Minami was a co-founder of the Asian Law Caucus, Inc., a co-founder of the Asian Pacific American Bar Association of the Greater Bay Area, the Asian Pacific Bar of California and the Coalition of Asian Pacific Americans.

He was involved in significant litigation affecting civil rights of Asian Pacific Americans and other minorities, including Korematsu v. United States, a lawsuit to overturn a 40 year old conviction for refusal to obey exclusion orders aimed at Japanese Americans during WWII, originally upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court in landmark decisions; United Pilipinos for Affirmative Action v. California Blue Shield, the first class action employment lawsuit brought by Asian Pacific Americans on behalf of Asian Pacific Americans; Spokane JACL v. Washington State University, a class action on behalf of Asian Pacific Americans to establish an Asian American Studies program at Washington State University; and Nakanishi v. UCLA, a claim for unfair denial of tenure which resulted in the granting of tenure after widespread publicity over discrimination in academia.

Mr. Minami has taught at University of California, Berkeley and Mills College in Oakland, CA and has been a Commissioner of the State of California's Fair Employment and Housing Commission, a Commissioner on the State Bar of California, Commission on Judicial Nominees Evaluation, the Chair of the Attorney General's Asian/Pacific Advisory Committee and a Member of Senator Barbara Boxer's Judicial Screening Committee. He was Chair of the Civil Liberties Public Education Fund Commission, appointed by President Clinton in 1994. Mr. Minami is a partner with Minami, Lew and Tamaki in San Francisco, and specializes in personal injury and entertainment law. (February 8, 2003)