In Their Own Words
Facing the Mountain focuses on the lives of four Japanese American men—Rudy Tokiwa, Fred Shiosaki, Kats Miho, and Gordon Hirabayashi—and their families. No four families’ experiences, of course, can encompass the entirety of what befell Japanese Americans during the World War II years. But these four are, in many ways, representative of what so many families lived through. Below are links to video recordings of each of them talking about those years.
Rudy Tokiwa
Rudy Tokiwa sat for two interviews with the Densho team in 1997 and 1988.
For highlights from these interviews, see these clips:
A visit from the FBI after the bombing of Pearl Harbor:
Life in the Poston concentration camp:
Volunteering for the military along with brother:
Singlehandedly capturing German prisoners:
442nd Regimental Combat Team ordered to pass in review:
Lobbying for Redress:
You can page through the entirety of these interviews at the Densho website using the orange buttons on the right-hand side of the screen:
https://ddr.densho.org/interviews/ddr-densho-1000-92-1/
http://ddr.densho.org/interviews/ddr-densho-1000-91-1/
Densho has also compiled a comprehensive encyclopedia entry on Rudy’s life here:
https://encyclopedia.densho.org/Rudy%20Tokiwa
Fred Shiosaki
Fred Shiosaki sat for interviews in 2003-2004 and again in 2006.
For highlights, see these clips:
Hearing about the bombing of Pearl Harbor:
Father’s loss of friend after Pearl Harbor:
Volunteering for the military without telling parents:
First experience with combat:
The Rescue of the “Lost Battalion”:
Meeting a member of the “Lost Battalion” after the war:
Both of Fred’s interviews can be found here:
https://ddr.densho.org/narrators/215/
Densho has also compiled a comprehensive encyclopedia entry on Fred’s life here:
https://encyclopedia.densho.org/Fred%20Shiosaki
Kats Miho
Kats Miho’s life is well documented at the Hawaii Nisei Story website, where you will also find some additional photos from Kats’s life.
In addition, see these clips for excerpts from some of Kats’s interviews:
Reporting for ROTC duty after the bombing of Pearl Harbor:
Guarding potential targets after the bombing of Pearl Harbor:
Discharge from the Hawaii Territorial Guard:
A racist incident during military training:
Visiting American concentration camps during the war:
The intense battle for Hill 140:
Seeing survivors of the World War II death camps:
Discovering an abandoned commissary:
Densho has also compiled a comprehensive encyclopedia entry on Kats’s life here:
https://encyclopedia.densho.org/Katsugo%20Miho
Gordon Hirabayashi
Gordon Hirabayashi sat for many hours of interviews in 1999 and 2000.
For highlights, see these clips:
Worries about issei parents after the bombing of Pearl Harbor
Deciding to resist the curfew:
Receiving encouragement from mother:
Receiving a ‘guilty’ verdict: “not surprising”
Feeling disappointed after Supreme Court decision:
Gordon’s complete interviews can be found here. Note that the first interview listed (recorded in 1987) is audio only. The others are all on video.
https://ddr.densho.org/narrators/19/
Densho has also compiled a comprehensive encyclopedia entry on Gordon’s life here: