Teenagers in camp inhabited that world between the sheltered innocence of young children and the careworn existence of their elders. As much as possible, they sought to stave off boredom and replicate the life they should have had in freedom; they went to school, hung out with friends, sought romance.
Amy Morizono Eto brought comfort from home that would brighten the lives of numerous teens in Topaz: her collection of Duke Ellington records and a record player.
Growing up in Oakland, California, Amy had learned the Charleston and other dances from some of the Black customers who frequented her father’s grocery store. In camp, she put this knowledge to good use.
While volunteering as a secretary to the manager of Block 10, she taught her younger brother and some of his friends to dance in preparation for the high school dances that were sometimes held in the recreation hall. Then the girls heard about these impromptu classes and wanted in.
That’s how the music of Duke Ellington brightened the lives of a group of teenagers in a concentration camp in the Utah desert. Read Amy’s story, “Dancing to Duke.”
Please join us for an upcoming Topaz Stories event at the AZ Gallery in the Tanforan Shopping Mall, San Bruno, CA on August 13, from 1-2:30. Register here (the event is free).
Plan to visit the Topaz Stories Exhibit in Salt Lake City.
Contact us if you have a Topaz Story to share.
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The Topaz Stories Team
Media Coverage:
Watch Topaz survivors tell their stories (abc4 news, 4/22/2022)
Listen to the “In the Hive” podcast with interviews with Ann Dion, Jonathan Hirabayashi, and Topaz survivors Jeanie Kashima and Joseph Nishimura (KCPW, 4/28/2022)
Read How a Utah exhibit about Topaz Camp looks to find empathy in ‘an ugly stain on American history (ksl.com, 4/22/2022)
Read “Topaz Stories rise from the dust,” (Department of Culture & Community Engagement, 4/2022)
Listen to KQED Forum, Day of Remembrance interview with Ruth Sasaki, 2/15/2022
Listen to Max Chang and Ruth Sasaki interviewed (KRCL RadioActive, 2/9/2022
Read On Topaz Stories and ‘Authentic Voice’, the Discover Nikkei interview with Ruth Sasaki (10/14/2022)
Listen to Remembering the Japanese American Incarceration, the Topaz Stories podcast with Ruth Sasaki and Jonathan Hirabayashi (6/2/2021)