This week’s Topaz Stories were all written by Nisei, second-generation Japanese Americans. They give us a glimpse of the pre-Topaz world–the world that was shattered by the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.
Grace Mori Saito Tom was an 11-year-old Oakland schoolgirl on “December 7.” Roy Iwata grew up in Sacramento and remembers the values, such as “Pride,” instilled in him by his father. In “A Family Divided,” Yae Kami Yedlosky writes about the uncertain times after Pearl Harbor when an arbitrary line was drawn down University Avenue in Berkeley that had ramifications for her family.
Many thanks to Nancy Roskoff, Roy Iwata’s daughter, who shared with us her father’s memoirs; and to Yae Yedlosky for sharing her and her friend Grace’s memoirs, from which their stories were excerpted.
Technical note: We will generally try to release new stories on Saturday; This means that there may be a window of time (hopefully not more than an hour or so) on Friday evenings after 9 pm (Pacific time) when a certain amount of maintenance is going on. If you see any unlinked content, or links that appear to be broken, please be patient. Thank you!