From the May 13th Daily Herald (Chicago's Northwest Suburbs)
Frank Kajikawa was just a teenager when he spent over a year in a prison camp in the United States and his only crime was that he was of Japanese ancestry. His family along with 120,000 other Japanese Americans were forced from their homes along the Pacific coast and removed to internment camps in the inhospitable interior.
He spoke before a crowd at the Huntley, Illinois, Public Library.
His family was shocked when Japan attacked Pearl Harbor December 7, 1941. They were Americans after all, but several months later President Roosevelt signed an executive order forcing his family to move to the Minidoka Camp near Twin Falls, Idaho. They were given two weeks to sell everything. Many families lost everything.
Frank Fujikawa then spent 13 to 14 months at Minidoka, attending school and washing dishes, until he was able to obtain a sponsor and relocate to Salt Lake City.
Then, believe it or not, he got drafted!! He was angry about Minidoka, but proudly served in the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, a Japanese American unit that served in Africa and Europe, compiling a very distinguished record and winning 21 Medals of Honor in the process.
A Sad Time in American History. --DaCoot
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