Midnight in Broad Daylight: A Japanese American Family Caught Between Two Worlds

by Pamela Rotner Sakamoto

One day, Harry was on a streetcar with a few Sanyō pals, in uniform, speaking English so that the other riders would not eavesdrop. They had been told at school not to speak English in public, but it hadn’t posed a problem thus far. Out of the blue, a kempeitai (military police) officer in uniform, who was also a passenger, yelled to the conductor to stop. The kempeitai, regarded as thought police, generally terrified the public. The streetcar screeched to a halt and the officer ordered Harry and his friends off at once. “Are you Japanese?” he screamed after they had lined up, standing at attention. “Hai, yes, we are Japanese,” the boys answered. “What language were you speaking?” he bellowed. “English.” “Were you practicing in English?” “Yes.” “Bakayarō.” “You fools,” he shouted, slapping each one in turn. “That’s not so, you are Nisei.” After berating them further, the officer reported their infraction to their school.