Bunro Sakaino Concentration Camp Diary

Transcript

May 9th (Saturday)

I had such a relief from my digestive systems problems this morning and felt great.

I had a small amount of rice with two pieces of funyu [1] and tea poured over for lunch. I hadn’t had my favorite food for a while and was quietly worried about what would happen, but it was delicious. Naturally, I did not feel well after I ate it, but that was a crime I was willing to commit. Dr. Tanaka made an arrangement for me to sit at the table for the people with diabetes, but there is no special diet good for digestive system problems.

[1] フーニュー

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Milk is served instead of meat at every meal, and that is it.

Lectures about religious and other topics are held at the assembly room almost every day these days. I have never attended any of them as alway. This assembly room is gloomy and does not even have a ceiling, with small benches set up to seat a limited number of people. Many people have to keep standing while attending a lecture. It is a storage room turned into a make-shift assembly room.

I just sleep to deal with daily boredom without anything to do. I just breathed through two volumes of “Young People” by Yojiro Nishizaka [2]. Reflecting on my current age and situation, this novel for me just portraits a wimpy and sentimental young man talking on and on about his cowardly thoughts about sex. Descriptions are not bad, but I encountered a number of annoying parts just to show off writing skills. It is well written enough to read the entire novel at once though, and I think it is also due to this aimless feeling while living in a tent. At the same time, it is probably my age as well that keeps me from getting emotional.

Unlike when we lived in barracks, it is nice that I do not have to hear screams or complaints as we live in each tent, but it feels somewhat lonely as well.

Statement under the name of the Japanese American Citizen League regarding forced removal of citizens in Po [3] city was in The Journal. It was the evening edition on May 5th, and the statement goes,

[2] Meant to be Yojiro Ishizaka?

[3] Portland?

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“We Nikkei citizens are also pioneers and have been enjoying peaceful and comfortable lives with other people at our home Po [4] city with other citizens until this day. Upon the relocation order, it is our duty as loyal citizens to our homeland the United States to obey the order. We believe in victory in this war and should fulfill our duty as citizens. We are leaving this place temporarily but hope to reunite,” and so on. It is a fairly large advertisement.

Forced removal of Japanese living in the U.S. and nisei was completed last Tuesday, and the total number of the removed is 1,725. Families and single people of course were separated, and it is reported that they are scheduled to be resettled in the Black Canyon Irrigation Project (about 20 miles from Twin Falls) in Eden, Idaho in July.

[4] Portland?