When Pearl Harbor was attacked by Japan on December 7, 1941 U.S. citizens feared another attack and war hysteria seized the country. President Franklin Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, forcing 120,000 loyal Americans of Japanese ancestry to relocate to ten isolated concentration camps throughout the U.S.
Through the years the Seal Beach International Friendship Association has presented various stories and films emerging from this dark period of American history. Member Cherry Ishimatsu was a 17-year-old senior in Palo Alto when Pearl Harbor was attacked. “I knew immediately that we would be looked upon as the enemy. I was aware of the discrimination that already existed, so with the declaration of war, we would immediately be regarded as the enemy.”
Her family was one of thousands of others that were immediately visited by the FBI. Within a few days they had to leave their homes and businesses with only what they could carry, suffering great financial losses. “Jerome Camp located in Denson, Arkansas became my home for the next three years. I thought I would never be allowed to return to California,” she wrote.
Join members and friends of SBIFA to hear Cherry’s experience of what it was like to be “herded” more than halfway across the U.S. and to live as a teenager in a Japanese concentration camp for three years. A question-and-answer time will follow.
SBIFA’s dinner meeting will be held on Thursday, Oct. 15 at 6:30 p.m at the Mary Wilson Library Senior Center, 707 Electric Avenue, Seal Beach and is open to the public. A Japanese “bento box” dinner will be served. Cost is $15 for non-members or $27 for couples; $12 for members or $22 for member couples. Students age 21 and under are $10. Seats and parking are limited. Reservations are required and will be taken on a first-come, first-serve basis. Pay by check or exact amount at the door. A courtesy call is requested if you must cancel so that those on a wait list may be accommodated.
SBIFA, a Seal Beach grass-roots non-profit organization, presents programs of multi-cultural and travel interests and offers annual student scholarships to a graduating high school senior residing locally.
