Emma Y. Hatayama, M.D.

              EMMA Y. HATAYAMA, M.D.
MRS. HASEGAWA: Today is August 15, 1980. I, Helen Hasegawa, am privileged to be in the office of Dr. Emma Hatayama at 1049 "R" Street, Fresno, California, 93721.
Before we get into the interview proper, I would like to have you give us your full name, your place and date of birth, and your place of longest residency.
DR. HATAYAMA: My name is Emma Yoshiko Hatayama. My residence address is 11200 East Adams, Del Rey, California, 93616. I was born on June 16, 1919 and I have resided at my present address, except for a five to six-year period of my postgraduate training.
MRS. HASEGAWA: Before we go on with some information about yourself, would you like to tell us about your parents? Tell us from what part of Japan they came and why they chose to settle in this Fresno County area.
DR. HATAYAMA: My parents came from Hiroshima-Ken, Saikai-Gun and were married in 1902 and immigrated to Hawaii in 1903. They remained there until 1906 then came to San Francisco in the spring of 1906 at which time the city of San Francisco was still burning from the earthquake, and they were forced to land in Oakland, California. Then they took the train to come to Fowler where they had relatives and friends who were waiting for them and stayed there for a period of time.
MRS. HASEGAWA: What did they do in Fowler?
DR. HATAYAMA: They had several jobs, initially. One was working in a labor camp. My mother was a cook, and my father worked in the fields. Then they moved to Fowler City proper which at that time was a very thriving small town, and they started a small business of their own. It was to serve meals and make senbei, otofu, and that kind of thing.
MRS. HASEGAWA: That's interesting! Why did they leave Hawaii in the first place? Or even leave Japan?
DR. HATAYAMA: My father was the oldest in his family, and he said the opportunities were very little in Hiroshima-Ken at that time. And he felt that there were better opportunities in Hawaii and the United States. And with that in mind, he had migrated. He worked very hard in Hawaii on a sugar cane plantation on the island of Hawaii. He felt that, after staying there for about three years, that there was very little opportunity to improve. They were kept at this plantation level, and he was conscious of the fact that there were other areas that were opening up, specifically in California. So, he made the move just about that time when the earthquake in San Francisco had occurred, and they had just boarded the ship and so, as I said before, they landed in Oakland.
MRS. HASEGAWA: It's unusual, since he was the oldest son, that he would leave his family home or place.
DR. HATAYAMA: He was the oldest of six boys, and my father was the adventurous one of the group. And he had been working very hard from approximately age 14. Even in Japan, he felt that he hadn't actually given up his position as firstborn. He felt as every immigrant at that time, that it was going to be a short stay in the United States or Hawaii, and he would be back as soon as he made his fortune. And, with that idea, he left.
MRS. HASEGAWA: How old was he when he ventured out, and how old was your mother? They were married before they left Japan?
DR. HATAYAMA: Right. My mother was 17, my father was 23. Neither spoke English at all, so they were somewhat daring in that, as all Isseis were, to attempt the trip.
MRS. HASEGAWA: I should say! Did they ever tell you about when they were in Hawaii how they were treated by the overseer or plantation manager, or whatever they were called?
DR. HATAYAMA: My mother mentioned the fact that there were many races working side by side. The Portuguese were there, the Chinese, and the Japanese, and most of the overseers were Portuguese. They were big fellows. It was expected of all of the workers to go to the fields daily regardless of rain or any working conditions. And, only if they were severely ill, were they allowed to rest. I can't recall their salary at that time, but it was very meager. It could have been about $1 a day for the men, but I can't recall what the wages were for women.
MRS. HASEGAWA: Were the hours long?
DR. HATAYAMA: Yes, I think it was from sunup to sundown kind of thing. However, they were given living quarters—not meals--but living quarters, such as they were.
MRS. HASEGAWA: Could you tell us a little bit about their living quarters? Did your mother ever tell you about them?
DR. HATAYAMA: They were apparently somewhat like the barracks with the rooms side by side with different families in each, with the buildings elevated because of the rain. The surrounding countryside was apparently quite beautiful with the flowers, and so on. But the working conditions were not ideal, as it wasn't anywhere.
MRS. HASEGAWA: That's right. Then after they came to the Fowler area and established their own little business, would you like to go on from there?
DR. HATAYAMA: They stayed with that for a few years, then they decided to buy a ranch and moved to the present address in Del Rey, at which time they had not known too much about grape growing, but they were willing to learn, and they started. I can't recall the exact year, but it could have been 1911.
MRS. HASEGAWA: Were they able to buy their own place, or did they have someone –
DR. HATAYAMA: At that time, the restrictions had not come in. It was about one or two years prior to the passage of the Alien Land Law. And so, there were no restrictions at the time.
MRS. HASEGAWA: And so they started their own vineyard.
DR. HATAYAMA: Yes. My father then worked his own vineyard plus working for the surrounding neighbors, who were all Caucasians. Our most notable neighbor was Charles Chandler, Sr., who also told his tale about his parents coming over by wagon train and homesteading. So this is how they got their start. He was very sympathetic and gave my father continuous work.
MRS. HASEGAWA: Is this Mr. Chandler related to the Chandler Airfield?
DR. HATAYAMA: Yes. He had five sons, you know. I think they are all gone now. Charles Chandler, Jr., (they kept that Charles Chandler all the way through) is the grandson now who is carrying it on. And, is it Roscoe Chandler who was the Dean of Stanford Medical School at one time?
MRS. HASEGAWA: Did you have other neighbors who were kindly and sympathetic?
DR. HATAYAMA: We had another neighbor directly adjacent to us (their origin was Denmark) called Karsberg, and this is where we were introduced to the coffee hour in the morning and the coffee break in the afternoon with Danish pastries and all the things that go with the Danish culture. And to the other side of us we had a German neighbor the Rennwantz's who were very formal but a very nice family. And this was our immediate surrounding neighbors.
MRS. HASEGAWA: So you had many so-called Caucasians in your neighborhood.
DR. HATAYAMA: Of different backgrounds.
MRS. HASEGAWA: Who helped your parents get started.
DR. HATAYAMA: Yes, they were very cordial, very easy to get along with.
MRS. HASEGAWA: Your parents didn't have any feeling of being ostracized with such friendly, helpful neighbors, did they?
DR. HATAYAMA: Not on the farm. I don't know whether they had any other experience, but these things were not mentioned. But, being on a farm, and insulated by very nice neighbors, we really didn't experience anything in the way of racial discrimination.
MRS. HASEGAWA: It sounds as though you had very happy early years getting started.
DR. HATAYAMA: Well, they were rough years, financially speaking. But, socially, no one socialized that much, but there wasn't animosity or anything of that sort. It was rather a peaceful community, nobody traveled too far. Everyone visited, and so on.
MRS. HASEGAWA: In the course of taping some other histories, so often groups of Japanese families got started in different areas so they had that feeling of security by being close to someone of the same origin as they, themselves. But in your case, I see that –
DR. HATAYAMA: Well, eventually, we had Japanese neighbors about one-half mile away, and these were the Nakatanis. Both of them have since died, but they lived about a half a mile away, which was comforting to know.
MRS. HASEGAWA: Then when did the children start coming?
DR. HATAYAMA: There are five of us. My sister Herma was born in Hawaii in 1905, then Howard in 1909, Ayako in 1910, and Narumi in 1913.
MRS. HASEGAWA: These last four were born on the farm?
DR. HATAYAMA: Howard and Ayako were born in Fowler. Narumi and I were born on the farm in Del Rey.
MRS. HASEGAWA: And what are your brothers and sisters, their children, doing now?
DR. HATAYAMA: My sister is Herma Okinawa. She has two children and three grandchildren. She now lives in Orange City and Orange County. Her husband George and she are both retired. She has one son Byron working for a foreign car agency and Ronald who is an architect working in Tustin in partnership with other architects.
Howard, now deceased, and wife Reiko have three children. Sharon is a school teacher. Lilace is a librarian and is at UCLA Research Library. And Leigh is working at the Los Angeles Airport as a Superintendent of Operations at LAX.
My second sister is Ayako and husband Floyd Honda. They have one son Earl who is working for his father at Honda's garage. Ayako and Floyd are now retired and working as farmers.
My second brother Narumi and wife Aiko have five children. Carol is a physician; Wayne is an electrical engineer, working for Pacific Telephone. Joyce is a medical technician. Rodney graduated from UC Davis from the Veterinary School and is working in a clinic at this time. David is still attending school and hasn't quite decided what to do.
MRS. HASEGAWA: Did all your brothers and sisters marry Japanese people?
DR. HATAYAMA: Yes.
MRS. HASEGAWA: How about the grandchildren?
DR. HATAYAMA: Grandchildren; all have married Japanese except for one who has married a Caucasian.
MRS. HASEGAWA: Interesting! There are increasingly more intermarriages, especially among the Sanseis. Now, we'll come to you. Would you like to tell us about your early life?
DR. HATAYAMA: Well, being the youngest, and everyone having gone to school, I practically grew up almost alone. My mother became ill when I was about 3, and my father took over the supervision of my daytime care, so I spent a good deal of time accompanying my father at work, which was on the farm. Or if he left the farm, I rode with him; constantly going to town, sticking by him, regardless of what. So, actually, he served as a very good babysitter! So my preschool years were spent in the company of my father, almost exclusively!
MRS. HASEGAWA: That was unusual, wasn't it? Because usually it is the mother who cares for the children.
DR. HATAYAMA: Right. My mother took a long time to recover and also at this time we had a Danish neighbor. The daughter had married and their name now was Coleman, and they had a daughter who was approximately my age, a year younger than I. And we grew up together, and so I spent a good bit of time with her. And even to this day, we're good friends.
MRS. HASEGAWA: What is her name now?
DR. HATAYAMA: She is now Mrs. Vern Bretz. Her name is Winifred.
MRS. HASEGAWA: I remember meeting the Colemans once, and they seemed like such warm people and so much at ease with the rest of us, who were Niseis. They were really part of the group.
DR. HATAYAMA: And so my schooling was at Rosedale, the country school where we had two classrooms. And in my class were eight students, and three of us were Japanese, which is a high percentage at that time; three out of eight. I graduated from Rosedale, went on to Sanger High School, graduated from there, went to Fresno State College, and then entered Woman's Medical College in Philadelphia in 1941.
MRS. HASEGAWA: Before we go on, would you like to tell us about your contacts, or how your teachers influenced you and their encouragement, or whatever. Sometimes some of the students got words of discouragement as far as going into certain fields when they were ready for college. Did you meet any prejudices?
DR. HATAYAMA: Not really. I think I was fortunate in having at least two teachers I remember for their guidance, and also for their teaching ability.
MRS. HASEGAWA: What grade was this?
DR. HATAYAMA: This was back in the fourth grade. I had gone from the lower grades on up to the upper grades. It would be the grade school level where Mrs. Beatty took me aside and began to drill me more definitely in English and made sure that I got all the little intricacies straightened out. She would use the recess period. I was not a good athlete. Incidentally, during my elementary grade years I had glasses on, and I would either break my glasses when I was playing and she would bring me back in, take me aside, and drill me on English at that point. Now, I wasn't the only one she singled out. She would take students out and wherever their weaknesses were, she would just drill with them. I was
lucky to meet someone like that. At the high school level, again, I wasn't aware of that much racial prejudice as far as job opportunities were concerned. So, in those pre-World War II era, one could sign up for a precollege course which included extensive English courses, foreign language, and so on. And I didn't meet anyone who would discourage me.
Actually, they encouraged me to go on. And, once again, I was lucky to meet an English teacher Miss Woodford, who was an excellent instructor. MRS. HASEGAWA: And then you went to Fresno State College?
DR. HATAYAMA: Yes.
MRS. HASEGAWA: And in 1941, did you already apply to a medical college?
DR. HATAYAMA: I had graduated from high school in 1937. And, like everybody else, I thought I would go into the teaching field. This was the first time I suddenly became aware of the fact that, at the college level, there was this discrimination of job opportunities. So I had signed up, not realizing this, and when I found that job opportunities were absolutely near zero, I changed my course.
MRS. HASEGAWA: Did your professors tell you this?
DR. HATAYAMA: No, they did not! There was no one to advise us, but I did talk to older Niseis, and it became apparent that many places were closed. And it became imperative that I decide what I wanted to do, so I chose the science world which would probably be the most tolerant.
MRS. HASEGAWA: What about your parents. Did they encourage you in any specific way toward making your decision?
DR. HATAYAMA: Not actually. They were willing to back me financially, and they said whatever I wished to do was fine with them. Except that it had better be in a field in which I could find work. And I think they were not aware as much as I, in college, that certain fields were closed. We were confined on a farm and in farming there is no discrimination; therefore, they were not that influential in making a decision. So I had to make my own choice.
MRS. HASEGAWA: So then you went into science –
DR. HATAYAMA: And gradually got into medicine. And a college counselor, again, was very good about advising me not to stay on the West Coast. He was probably the only college professor I ever met, besides Mary Baker, who was actually aware of the racial discrimination against the Orientals.
MRS. HASEGAWA: Who was this professor?
DR. HATAYAMA: Dr. Burkholder, who has since died, was the pre-med student advisor. He advised me not to stay on the West Coast. He said the atmosphere was not very good. And, also, since I had not gone away to college, he thought it was better if I widened my field and go to the East Coast. He encouraged me to get away from home, which was good advice.
MRS. HASEGAWA: So, then, how did you happen to select the Philadelphia Women's Medical College?
DR. HATAYAMA: He was, again, instrumental. He sort of sorted it out and said, "How about here?" And I was fortunate to be accepted and went there in 1941, in August. I was not aware that there was going to be a war.
MRS. HASEGAWA: So you were already back east and attending school blissfully when the war broke out. How did you find the atmosphere back east?
DR. HATAYAMA: It was a totally different world. They were so busy discriminating against other races that they weren't even conscious of the Japanese at that time! And, even after the war started, the Orientals were very much in the minority in an eastern city, Philadelphia. But they were very busy discriminating against the blacks, the Jews, Italians, the Polish.
MRS. HASEGAWA: Were these students?
DR. HATAYAMA: In the community and as patients, you could see this discrimination, sorting the black against the white. Wards were kept separate, which was a new concept for me. I didn't realize you could do that.
MRS. HASEGAWA: That's unusual to have that.
DR. HATAYAMA: In a City of Brotherly Love. It's ironic, really!
MRS. HASEGAWA: And a place as far north as Philadelphia.
DR. HATAYAMA: Right. It was still practiced in 1941 when I was there.
MRS. HASEGAWA: In what way were the Italians discriminated against?
DR. HATAYAMA: It was a social barrier, apparently, placed by certain clubs. And the Jewish were also not admitted for the same reason, I think.
MRS. HASEGAWA: But the blacks were segregated as far as wards? How sad.
DR. HATAYAMA: Yes. It was an entirely new way of thinking which I had not experienced before. I was then classified as a "white." They didn't know where to put the Orientals, I think!
MRS. HASEGAWA: Were you conscious or aware of Pearl Harbor?
DR. HATAYAMA: I was conscious of Pearl Harbor. Of all the times to go to a restaurant! It was the first time we went to a Japanese restaurant on December 7, 1941. And that was at lunch, as I recall, the first time we got the news. And it was run by a Japanese restaurant owner who was married to a very attractive Irish lady. They had lovely children.
MRS. HASEGAWA: What sort of reaction did you have in the restaurant?
DR. HATAYAMA: People were very much upset. I had no idea what would happen to me, but I had a lot of reassurance from my classmates, and nothing happened. I think they assumed I was some other kind of Oriental, rather than Japanese. They weren't aware of a Japanese being among their midst.
MRS. HASEGAWA: It's just as well! DR. HATAYAMA: I suppose.
DR. HATAYAMA: Probably you had established yourself as an excellent student, and that is what counts in an academic world.
DR. HATAYAMA: There weren't that many Japanese students in the school, and they were all women students, which was unique in its own way.
MRS. HASEGAWA: That's right. So, you finished your medical school there?
DR. HATAYAMA: In January of '45. They had shortened our courses by cutting out all vacation, so in three years and a little fraction, I completed and finished my internship in Philadelphia. By the time I completed my internship and passed my State Board examination and received my license, the war was over, and I came back to California.
MRS. HASEGAWA: Then where did you open your first office?
DR. HATAYAMA: I needed further postgraduate study, so I did two years of residency at Fresno General Hospital and one year elsewhere. It was easy enough to get the position. There was no further discrimination, because I was Japanese or because I was a woman. I was quite welcomed and made comfortable. I opened my office in 1950 and continued there until 1975, when I moved to the present address.
MRS. HASEGAWA: Did you encounter any difficulty in opening your own office and starting your own practice because of the fact that you were a woman? At that time, there were not very many women physicians, were there?
DR. HATAYAMA: No. The attitude on the West Coast was slightly different than the East Coast, it's more relaxed toward women on the Eastern seaboard. In Fresno most male doctors were very cordial and made me feel very welcome. I started to work at the Fresno Veteran's Hospital on a part- time basis in 1950, and then worked at my office the other
half a day. And, in this way, I built up my practice and the male patients whom I saw at Veteran's Hospital also were seen in the office.
Antagonism to women physicians was really mild. Most of that had been broken down before, and also the patients preselected themselves. My receptionist would identify me as a woman physician, and they could then decide whether they wanted to come or not. There were very few refusals, less than a handful, actually. So there really isn't that much of a discrimination.
MRS. HASEGAWA: Probably whether you were Japanese or not they would have chosen not to have a woman.
DR. HATAYAMA: Right. The woman part was the first barrier. And then the second, the Oriental apparently is not a barrier, wasn't even at that time.
MRS. HASEGAWA: That's so early after the war, too.
DR. HATAYAMA: I was surprised that there was no reaction. MRS. HASEGAWA: I wonder if enough time had gone by.
DR. HATAYAMA: Five years.
MRS. HASEGAWA: Five years, that's still pretty short.
DR. HATAYAMA: Yes. I was surprised that there was such a mild reaction. There were one or two, possibly.
MRS. HASEGAWA: I wonder if any of those had experienced service in Japan or any of those islands, where there was fierce fighting.
DR. HATAYAMA: Yes, some of them had. Some were prisoners of war who fared very badly, and these were some of my patients at Veteran's Hospital. They had no animosity for the individual. In that respect, I gave them a lot of credit.
MRS. HASEGAWA: So, eventually, you worked yourself away from the Veteran's Hospital.
DR. HATAYAMA: Yes, after five years. Partly because they weren't allowed to have part-time workers.
MRS. HASEGAWA: Then did you do some part-time work at the college?
DR. HATAYAMA: Yes. I worked at the Student Health Department for a period of time. I started about 1955 when Dr. Marshall Fiese, who was previously head of medical service at Veteran's Hospital, was at Fresno State College, and he asked me to help at the Health Center.
MRS. HASEGAWA: Before we go further with your career, is there anything about your early life that you might like to mention? That perhaps would add to our background? For example, when your father started the farm, did your mother go out in the field and work? How about your brothers and sisters?
DR. HATAYAMA: Yes, the whole family worked. Actually, my mother working along with my father at whatever manual work that was within her physical ability. And the children also worked. And as each child became proficient in English, my father used them as interpreters and so my sister Herma was always taken by my father to interpret whenever he needed a translator; when he had business with the banks or with an attorney, and so on. So, she learned to become bilingual rather quickly, as did my brothers as they grew up.
MRS. HASEGAWA: About how old was she when she had to start doing this?
DR. HATAYAMA: I imagine about eight or nine.
MRS. HASEGAWA: That's quite a responsibility for such a youngster.
DR. HATAYAMA: But they used them. It was better than not having anybody at all. Whatever she could translate, even the simplest, if it was beyond her ability, they were lost. But then by the time she was 14, she was quite fluent in some of these terminologies. About that time Howard would go along, and so there was always a translator in the family. I don't know whether this had anything to do with the fact that neither of my parents were very fluent in English. So we all worked, including myself, and since there is a little age gap between my older siblings and I, I got the chore of working at home. So I was doing the family cooking at age nine, and would go to work for our neighbor during the fruit season, and so on. But it was always within my physical limits. Incidentally, my sister Ayako, at the age of six, was sent to Japan to learn the Japanese language. When she completed high school, she returned to us, and then she picked it up from there.
MRS. HASEGAWA: There were quite a few families who sent some member of the family abroad.
DR. HATAYAMA: She lived with my father's side of the family and got back here just in time for the Great Depression.
MRS. HASEGAWA: Tell me more about your parents, and in what ways they guided the family.
DR. HATAYAMA: I think we were fortunate, my parents were healthy and strong. Except for my mother's operation and a prolonged period of convalescence in her mid 30's, she remained healthy and lived until age 89. My father was also very strong until his 69th year when he developed heart problems and lived until age 74. My mother's influence was mostly in the disciplinary area, and she was much for details and observance of the rules. My father, on the other hand, was less demanding in that sense, but he required work from all of us. He also instilled in us that spirit of inquisitiveness and investigation of new and old things. Also he made no distinction between his sons and daughters, and gave us equal opportunities in work. I am not sure whether he was so enlightened that he anticipated ERA, or, more likely, his philosophy was born of necessity and felt that everybody had to be useful. The girls were always included in all family decisions, whether social or financial.
I suppose, as in most families, the same rules were stressed: Honor one's country, teachers, parents. These precepts were emphasized at the Japanese Language Schools we children attended on weekends.
MRS. HASEGAWA: We hear many stories about the Great Depression and how so many Japanese families lost their farms, their cars, and so on. How did your family manage?
DR. HATAYAMA: We managed by being self-sufficient. We raised most of our food, vegetables, and so on. We also had our neighbors, the Colemans, who did all the dairy kind of thing. They had milk and butter, and we had the chickens and the eggs. Some of the staples had to be bought, but most of the time, we did a lot of make-do stuff, including hand-me-downs. They just cut it down to size, and there I was at the bottom, and I would get it. It was all right. Everyone lived in the same way, so there wasn't any marked difference between families.
We had picnics and all the other things. My father was one of these people who, when he worked hard, he did, and then when the work was done, he'd say, "Come on! Let's go!" and he'd pile us in the car and we'd go down to the coast, or to the hills, or to the National Parks. He'd do this whenever he had the opportunity. Only problem with my father was, he never made plans ahead, always on the spur of the moment. He never set aside a day and said, "This is the day we're going to go," just when the work was done. That would be the guideline. Then he'd pick us all up, put us in the car, and we'd go look at something!
MRS. HASEGAWA: How wonderful! What a surprise that was!
DR. HATAYAMA: He liked to look at things! Anything that was to be seen, he'd go take a look at it.
MRS. HASEGAWA: Do you suppose that sense of inquisitiveness rubbed off on the children; wanting to see new places, seeing new things?
DR. HATAYAMA: I think it did! We have a tendency not to stay put.
MRS. HASEGAWA: I know that after you became established, you have traveled many places, to many countries. Is this part of that, an outgrowth of early experiences?
DR. HATAYAMA: I think so. Taking a look, not really judging it, but taking a look. If there's a new gadget, take a look; a new scene, take a look. We have a tendency to do that.
MRS. HASEGAWA: What countries have you visited?
DR. HATAYAMA: They were rather brief visits. I finally managed to get to Japan in 1971 which was a nice surprise, as the country had, technologically speaking, advanced considerably. It was a medical tour, so I was able to see some of their hospitals, their research methods, and departments. Especially in Tokyo, at the Tokyo Women's University, they were doing a lot of work with cancer of the stomach. Since then, I have made an effort to see other areas in Southeast Asia and parts of Europe, trying to include short visits to clinics and hospitals. These experiences have helped to make me realize what opportunities we have here in the USA, and also there are many useful things we can learn from other countries.
MRS. HASEGAWA: What changes have you noticed in the number, or the type of illness you've encountered among the Japanese?
DR. HATAYAMA: My Japanese patients would be a little bit difficult to estimate. I am caring for the first generation Japanese through the third generation. Possibly it's about 40 percent or less of my practice, and yet, that's rather a high percentage, if you consider the proportion of Japanese in the total community. I have fewer first generation, now, and most of them have come because I have some Japanese speaking ability. Just enough to get a history and give out directions. And, for that reason, I think, they seek help here.
MRS. HASEGAWA: No matter how small it is, I think they feel more comfortable.
DR. HATAYAMA: If it gets complicated, I have to use a dictionary, and so on, but they don't seem to mind. And, so now, as the first generation group becomes smaller in number, the language ability is not really necessary except that there is a new wave of Japanese immigrants who are the educated group, moving into the business world. They are also bilingual but they are stronger in their native Japanese. So a certain amount of Japanese language appears to be desirable, though not absolutely essential. Of course, the second and third generation have no language barriers.
The type of diseases I see are mostly cardiovascular and hypertension, since my practice is limited to internal medicine. The first generation Japanese have their share of cardiac disease, but, unfortunately, the Nisei is starting at a much earlier age.
MRS. HASEGAWA: Do you think it is the diet or the pace of living conditions?
MRS. HASEGAWA: It's hard to say. There's no way of correlating it because many of them have very good eating habits and tended to be very active and slim. Their diet may be a little bit more abundant than their Issei parents, but it is hard to say why they're starting at a much earlier age.
MRS. HASEGAWA: What about high blood pressure?
DR. HATAYAMA: I see that more among the Issei. The hypertension is not as marked in the second generation as far as I can see. I don't see the crisis or the severe hypertension in the second generation; however, we do see the heart disease as more serious in the second generation.
MRS. HASEGAWA: What social and economic changes have you seen in your community over the years?
DR. HATAYAMA: I think the greatest change is in the job opportunities which at the present time is unlimited. It's only the individual desire to succeed in any field. They should be able to enter anything they like, which is a marked change from my period of time. As far as social activities, I think again it's wide open, depending on what you wish to do. You can join most of the social clubs.
MRS. HASEGAWA: Would you like to tell us what kind of organizations you belong to?
DR. HATAYAMA: I am not a social person. I am part of the Medical Organizations and most of these are required, so I join those. I'm not active in my church, because of the time factor, but try to participate whenever I can.
MRS. HASEGAWA: Do you observe any Japanese customs? Did your mother try to keep up some of the Japanese customs when you were small?
DR. HATAYAMA: Yes. We did the usual things for the New Year's feast. Also she observed most of the Buddhist observations days, also the food that comes with it, as for
funerals and such. However, she became more lenient as we went along the years. We no longer observed 2 complete vegetarian diet when a member of the family would die, so these things have changed. I don't observe a good many of these myself.
MRS. HASEGAWA: Is there any other information about Japanese-American history that you would like to discuss?
DR. HATAYAMA: No, I can't think of anything, Helen.
MRS. HASEGAWA: If you were going to give any advice to the coming generation, what would you like to say, using your past experience as a guideline?
DR. HATAYAMA: Well, not really, except that I really would take advantage of the wide-open job opportunities. I think this is the greatest thing. I think if you have a certain interest and want to pursue it, there is nothing to hold anyone back, if you are of Japanese descent. And I certainly would take advantage of it completely.
MRS. HASEGAWA: That's good advice I would say. Oh, by the way, this is backtracking again. I began wondering how you financed yourself back east, because war had been declared and your parents probably were in a relocation camp.
DR. HATAYAMA: Again, we had very good friends. Our ranch was left in the care of our previous packinghouse. They took over. This was the Grower's Service Company, which was based in Redbanks, California. They managed the farm and sent the proceeds to my family, and then from there, they financed my schooling. The house was rented to a family, so the house was occupied, and we didn't experience any vandalism.
MRS. HASEGAWA: How fortunate!
DR. HATAYAMA: Yes, we were.
MRS. HASEGAWA: Unlike so many families who had to lose their belongings.
DR. HATAYAMA: As I said before, we were very fortunate with the kind of friends we had. Our neighbors, the Colemans, always kept an eye on things, then the Chandlers across the road were conscious of the fact my parents were gone from the place, and they always looked to see if all was well. So, again, being in a rural area our neighbors, regardless of race, were very kind to each other. We were fortunate to be in that situation.
MRS. HASEGAWA: While you were in school, your parents and the rest of the family had to go to a Relocation Center, didn't they? Where did they go?
DR. HATAYAMA: They went to Poston, Arizona. And the other part of the family went to Gila River. So they were sort of spread out.
MRS. HASEGAWA: How were they split up?
DR. HATAYAMA: My sister was living in Bakersfield, and the rest of the family was in the Fresno area.
MRS. HASEGAWA: There were three camps in Poston. Do you recall which one?
DR. HATAYAMA: No. I never visited it, so I had no idea what it looked like. They went in '42 and in '43 they left camp, one of the first groups to leave, and my parents and Howard and his family went to Lima, Ohio. They were there until 1944, I think it was.
MRS. HASEGAWA: How did they happen to go to Ohio? DR. HATAYAMA: They went on a farm, and apparently there were sponsoring families. And, again, it was rather interesting. This community is in a corn and wheat belt, and the people are of German background. They were very, very sympathetic. They said they went through this same thing during World War I, at which time they met with marked hostility. And so, my family met the Post family who sponsored them. And then through the Friends Service Committee, they went into Media, Pennsylvania, where our family remained with the Herman Cope family until 1945. They were very good people from the Quaker community.
MRS. HASEGAWA: Did you get to see them in Pennsylvania?
DR. HATAYAMA: Yes. Also I visited once in Lima, Ohio.
MRS. HASEGAWA: What a happy reunion that must have been!
DR. HATAYAMA: It was quite an experience. I didn't know Ohio. It was quite different, all farmland. And interestingly enough, we take electricity for granted in California, but the Rural Electrification Act had barely gotten electricity through that community just prior to my family's arrival. So, it was an interesting area, very rich soil.
Pennsylvania was again a very nice area to be in. It was the center of the Quaker community who were very kind and considerate. Although there were certain hardships of not making enough money, the atmosphere was friendly. The Quakers saw to it that not too much hostility was directed toward the Japanese, and, actually, my family didn't meet with any in that community.
MRS. HASEGAWA: The Quakers are a remarkable group. They really went all out to welcome the Japanese and to help them find new places to live. They gave many of us new hope!
DR. HATAYAMA: Yes.
MRS. HASEGAWA: Is there anything else you would like to tell us?
DR. HATAYAMA: The atmosphere was much different in the academic society. I think this is a protected community. I think if I had gone into a working, union kind of area, I don't know what hostilities I would have met. But, then, I was in a very protected community at the university level; it's a tolerant atmosphere. I would be invited to the professors' homes and my fellow students would take me home with them, where the atmosphere was free and relaxed. And this was in spite of the war going on. That same atmosphere, I think, now is prevailing here on the West Coast.
MRS. HASEGAWA: So, it's as if you went from a friendly atmosphere of your earlier years and bridged over to another friendly atmosphere. What a peaceful life you've lived.
DR. HATAYAMA: Well, I didn't end up in the Relocation Camps which I imagine must have been a different kind of feeling. To be cooped up, for no fault of one's own, is just hard to believe.
MRS. HASEGAWA: I thank you very much, Dr. Emma, for sharing your thoughts and experiences.
DR. HATAYAMA: Thank you for your patience. I think you are really working hard to do all this.
MRS. HASEGAWA: I do believe that it's valuable to record our Japanese-American history!