Mary Kamidoi and Shinji Takahashi are both second-generation Japanese Americans, known as “Nisei,” but their childhood experiences differ vastly.  

At 11 years old, Kamidoi and her family were forced by the government to relocate from their home in Stockton, California to a Japanese incarceration camp in Arkansas during World War II.  

Takahashi, whose parents came from Japan and settled in Ann Arbor a couple of decades after the war ended, was not steeped in that history growing up, but he is learning more about it now. 

Following the signing of Executive Order 9066 by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, approximately 120,000 people of Japanese descent were incarcerated in 10 concentration camps across western states and Arkansas. Many of them were second- and third-generation Japanese Americans and U.S. citizens. They could only bring what they could carry, many giving up their homes and property in a hurry at a large financial loss.  

After the camps closed in 1945, Kamidoi and her family moved to Michigan, eventually settling in Detroit. 

As part of One Detroit’s AAPI Story Series, Takahashi talked with Kamidoi about her experience in the incarceration camp and the lasting impact it had. Kamidoi discusses the fear many first-generation Japanese, “Issei,” like her parents, felt during the incarceration and the discomfort some Nisei have talking about their experiences today. 

Part Two: Shinji Takahashi on learning about the history of Japanese incarceration

 Shinji Takahashi is currently based in Carmel, Indiana but has strong Michigan ties. His family moved to Ann Arbor in 1978. He graduated from Pioneer High School in 1983. He then completed his undergraduate degree at the University of Michigan in 1987. Though he lives in Indiana, he visits Michigan frequently and is deeply involved with the University of Michigan’s alumni association.  

Takahashi sat down with Mary Kamidoi—both are “Nisei,” second generation Japanese Americans. Takahashi explains he was not familiar with the incarceration while growing up in Ann Arbor. He recounts his first exposure to the history of Japanese incarceration in 1980 while a student. He also shares that his personal definition of what it means to be Japanese American is something that he’s exploring more in his adulthood. 

Part Three: Impact of Vincent Chin’s killing 

In 1982, Shinji Takahashi was in high school when news spread of Vincent Chin’s killing and the light repercussions—probation and a $3,000 fine—for his two attackers. The news galvanized the local Asian American community to band together in protest. At the time, Takahashi remembers feeling more connected to Asian Americans in Detroit and Ann Arbor, who were becoming more vocal and visible to demand justice. He also shares how the movement inspired him to learn Japanese in college in an effort to connect more with his Japanese identity.  

Mary Kamidoi recollects that many groups came together during that time because of Vincent Chin. Kamidoi attended the trial every day and supported Chin’s mother, Lily Chin, in her grief. She also talks about the lasting impact Vincent Chin’s killing had on her and those who became activists as a result. 

Part Four: Mary Kamidoi shares about life as a Japanese American in Detroit 

In a conversation for the AAPI Stories series, Westland resident Mary Kamidoi sat down with Shinji Takahashi to talk about what life was like for her as a Japanese American in Detroit. Both Kamidoi and Takahashi are “Nisei,” second generation Japanese Americans.  

Kamidoi shares about the discrimination she and her sister faced from her sister’s supervisor and coworkers. She also talks about an incident that happened one day at work. Kamidoi also recollects how she talked with her boss to demand better treatment from her coworkers and the outcome that followed.