We're All Inu (Dogs)

A chapter from my historical fiction novel Paper Ghost

When Pearl Harbor was bombed, 2,400 people were killed, and Americans were furious. Japanese immigrants were the first to be blamed. Foreign-born leaders of the Japanese community on the West Coast were immediately arrested and taken away by the FBI. Bowing to political pressure, President Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9066 forcing the rest of the Japanese immigrants and their American-born children into ten concentration camps located in remote parts of the West. This story is based on my relative Grace Ishikawa who came to the US in 1919 when she was just one year old. Grace grew up in Stockton CA and was married to American-born Henry Uyeda. To their horror and surprise, she and Henry were arrested as enemy aliens and taken from their home in San Francisco. In this story, I changed their names to Vera and Adams and made Seattle her hometown.

* * *

1942 summer. Manzanar, the concentration camp they were sent to, felt like an oven. Hotter than anything Vera had ever felt back home in the Pacific Northwest. It must be close to a hundred degrees. And dust everywhere. Even inside her shoes and underwear. Vera’s eyes itched as she swept out their section of the tar-paper barrack. She and her husband Adams shared their space with a couple of newlywed teenagers. High school sweethearts, Brandon and Sue, decided to suddenly get married when the government ordered their families to leave Bainbridge Island. Sue must be as scared as I was when I married Adams, thought Vera. It seemed like an eternity ago when Adams married her. But back then, while she was a terrified eighteen-year-old, Adams was ten years older and much more worldly. But in her case, Adams married her to save her. She wouldn’t have been allowed back in the States except as the wife of an American citizen. But Poor Brandon was the same age as Sue and just as overwhelmed by the sudden move from Bainbridge Island to Manzanar.

The flimsy curtain Vera put up across the middle of the space did nothing to give each couple any sense of privacy. Vera felt sorry for the newlyweds as they tried to make love at night without making any noise. Every rustle of the straw mattress. Every moan, every cry of pain and pleasure pierced Vera’s soul. She wondered, If Sue got pregnant, how would I be able to stand the sight of her swelling belly? Her body full of the promise which is denied to me?

During the day, Vera tried to make their barracks feel homey but it was hard when they couldn’t eat in their own kitchen, take showers in their own bathroom or even relieve themselves in private.

Adams was right to volunteer to accompany the frightened Islanders. He and the other Japanese American Citizens League members tried to fill in the gap left when the FBI took away men like Sue’s father, a prosperous farmer on Bainbridge Island. No one knew how long they would be imprisoned. There were rumors people might even get deported. These poor kids have never been outside the island, much less to Japan, Vera thought as she comforted the homesick girl. Sue’s young husband tried to be brave but with every day, Brandon relied more and more on Adams. After all, at thirty-one years old Adams could have been a father. But he sacrificed that privilege when he married Vera, a girl who would never be able to bear children.

When they left Seattle, Vera thought Adams was crazy for taking up their precious luggage space with a baseball bat, gloves and a ball. But shortly after they arrived at Manzanar, he put up a notice in the mess hall, “Baseball at 7pm in front of Main Hall.”

The temperature had cooled to a reasonable 75F by then, but the dozen or so men and boys who showed up were still perspiring and sunburnt. Vera helped fill army supply canteens with barley tea. Adams ordered a few of the boys to bring pieces of thin plywood from the many scrap heaps left by the workers when they built over five hundred of the tar paper barracks. By the time they placed bases into the hard desert ground and made the pitcher’s mound, it was getting dark. But Adams shouted, “All right. Let’s play ball!”

Bringing the baseball bat and ball turned out to be the best idea Adams had. For the first time since they arrived in this god-forsaken place, people smiled and laughed. There were still so many problems - toilets and showers weren’t working properly, children were sick from the typhoid immunizations, and the government rations were inedible and spoiled by inexperienced cooks and poor refrigeration. Almost everyone was suffering from the “Manzanar runs”. Meanwhile, dozens of buses kept bringing in more internees from Los Angeles. Bainbridge Island and Seattle seemed like a faraway, lovely dream.

Nights were the only time it was cool enough to sleep and escape from reality. But one night Adam’s little brother, Tatsuo, who was a freshman at UCLA until the government forced him to abandon his studies, was at their barrack door. “Adams! Adams! I’ve got to talk with you.”

For a split second, Vera thought she was back in Seattle but the dust on her pillowcase reminded her where she was.

Adams got up from his single bed and walked gingerly barefoot across the plywood floor. He took care not to make noise but Vera got up and followed him. The ground still felt warm from the summer sun but the air was cool. Her body beneath her slip felt sticky with dried sweat. At least the wind’s gone. She noticed the spectacular full moon. Never seen anything like that in Seattle. Tatsuo’s eyes shone with fear.

The young man whispered. “Adams, I just overheard - White Terror’s going to ambush Frank.”

The White Terror gang was made up of teenage boys from Los Angeles. Executive Order 9066 was directed at “All Persons of Japanese Ancestry” but since it was impossible for General DeWitt’s underlings to distinguish between the “good” Japanese and the “bad” Japanese - every man, woman and child on the West Coast with a Japanese name, regardless of whether they were American citizens or not, were rounded up. When a conscientious bureaucrat asked about those who didn’t have Japanese names but looked suspiciously Japanese, they followed past rules about deciding who was black. Anyone with at least one Japanese great-grandparent was determined to be Japanese. That included felons like Debu and Nick who were part of the White Terror Gang. Not surprisingly, when these young men found themselves imprisoned in Manzanar, they started attacking the vulnerable older inmates.

As a JACL officer, Adams had tried complaining to the white camp director about the White Terror gang, “If these punks aren’t stopped soon, they’ll kill someone.”

But the hapless Director said, “Best to let you folks work it out yourselves. You all did a great job cooperating with the ah … evacuation.”

The Bainbridge Islanders were afraid of the White Terror gang. But they didn’t trust Adams and the JACL either. Vera felt torn. Adams encouraged the Islanders to cooperate with the authorities and now they lost everything. Vera couldn’t help but agree with them - we can’t trust the Japanese, we can’t trust the American government, we can’t trust other Japanese-Americans, so why should we trust you Nisei?

Vera couldn’t understand Adams’ unwavering patriotism in the face of this mess. But he had been a member of the JACL since the group was started by Jimmy Sakamoto way back when Vera was still a kid. Jimmy was a star athlete at Franklin High which Adams attended a few years later. Jimmy encouraged Adams to get a law degree. Vera remembered Adams telling her, “Jimmy and the other JACL founders believe the best way to right the wrongs against the Japanese community was by changing the laws.” Even when their constitutional rights were torn apart, Adams blamed the fear mongers and racists, not President Roosevelt and the US government.

The desert air seemed to amplify their voices as they stood outside in the dark. Vera hissed, “Please Adams. Don’t. Don’t get involved.”

Adams said, “I’m already involved. You know they’re going to come for me next.”

“Please, Adams. We can avoid them.” Vera begged.

“Avoid them how, Vera? We’re in a concentration camp in the desert.”

She thought for a moment. “Well, we could offer to work in the camp director’s house.” The house slaves were better off than those out in the fields.

Tatsuo and Adams stared at Vera. She raised her eyebrows in an expression of - is that so crazy?

Adams said, “Very funny, Vera. No. Frank’s got a heart condition and there’s no way he can deal with Debu.”

Frank was so patriotic he forbade his children from studying Japanese. His statement supporting the US government was published in the camp newspaper so no one would doubt his loyalty. But the growing number of Manzanar internees was dividing into two extreme factions. Those who were loyal to the US government, who imprisoned them, And those who wanted to go back to Japan, a place many of them had never seen. Vera heard the women whisper in the bathroom that Frank was a spy for the US government.

Vera grabbed Adams’s arm. “No. Don’t go. You’re going to get hurt.”

Adams shook off her hand. “It’s just going to get worse if I run.”

Tatsuo said, “I know where they are. I’ll go with you.”

Adams had Tatsuo wait while he went back inside to grab the baseball bat and put on his shoes. He didn’t bother to put a shirt on over his shorts.

“No, Adams,” Vera tried to grab the baseball bat but he pushed her to the ground.

“Vera, you stay here. If I don’t get back in thirty minutes, wake up the camp director. But don’t, do not get one of the sentry guards. They’re liable to shoot and kill someone before asking questions.” Adams and Tatsuo ran into the night.

Vera followed close behind barefoot and just in her slip. Identical tarpaper barracks lined the way to the canteen. When she arrived, a mob of agitated young men blocked her way. The twitching glow of their cigarettes betrayed their excitement. No one paid attention to Vera as she pushed her way to the front of the crowd near the canteen door.

Clutching his baseball bat, Adams faced Debu, the sumo-sized giant, who had Frank by his shirt collar, holding the older man up so that his bare feet dangled. Frank’s glasses had half fallen off as he helplessly batted at Debu’s massive hands. Vera recognized Nick, the gang leader, standing on the other side of the stove in the canteen. Vera thought Nick was an extraordinarily good-looking teenage boy. He would have been considered handsome except his black hair and swarthy skin betrayed his Japanese ancestry. The young man spat as he combed back his oiled black hair. “Well, well. Look who’s here. Another inu. Another dog working for the authorities.”

Adams spoke as calmly as he could, “Debu. Let go of Frank.”

Vera prayed Debu would do as her husband asked.

Nick stepped close to Adams, so that he looked at him eye to eye. “Are you going to make him?” Nick nodded towards Debu, “Looks like this inu is asking for it.”

Debu dropped Frank onto the newly tiled floor and Tatsuo rushed in to help the older man back on his feet. Debu’s massive body turned like a tank to point at Adams. Debu was the biggest man Vera had ever seen. Was it Samoan or black blood that made him so big? Debu lumbered towards Adams. But before Adams had a chance to swing the bat, Debu grabbed her husband’s arm with one massive hand and punched his face with the other. Blood spurted out of Adam’s nose, painting his chest red.

Adams dropped the baseball bat as everyone jumped out of the way. The giant had Adams’s arm in a vise-like grip above his head so that he couldn’t free himself. Adams swiped at the massive body with his other arm but that only made Debu snort like a pig. Out of the corner of her eye, Vera saw Tatsuo’ face, eyes wide with terror. Adams kicked the monster in the ribs which lay somewhere under that mountain of fat. Debu released Adams.

Nick whooped, “Oh Boy, now you’ve got Debu mad. Watch out!”

Adams tried to knock Debu down, but bounced off the giant. Debu grabbed him around the body and Adams squirmed his arms free. But Debu’s hold was too strong, and his massive arms started squeezing Adams’s bare chest.

My God. This guy’s going to crush my husband. Adams arched his back and desperately clawed at Debu’s face, buried in a thick collar of fat. Scratches appeared along the monster’s face and neck but he kept up the pressure. As Vera watched in horror, Adams reached up and tried to dig his nails into the giant’s eyes. He missed. But the blood started seeping from a scratch above Debu’s nose, dripping into one eye. The giant started furiously blinking and raised one log of an arm to brush away the blood. That gave Adams the chance to slip his sweaty torso out of Debu’s grip.

Vera tried to grab Adams but a man held her from behind. “Adams! Adams!” she screamed but she was drowned out by the shouts of all the men.

Debu, the giant glared down at her middle-aged husband with his one good eye. But standing next to the young giant, her husband looked so small. Like he was the child. By this time, the men outside crowded the canteen door, and they were yelling, “Fight. Fight. Fight.” Vera was helpless as the mob whipped itself into a frenzy.

Then the monster heard the crowd chanting and began walking slowly toward the door where the mob began cheering. Vera was pulled back by whoever was holding her from behind as Debu walked by with legs splayed like a bear.

“Thank God,'' said Tatsuo and Frank as they ran up to Adams. But Vera heard the crowd go wild at the sight of Debu’s bloody face.

Then the men began chanting in a primal rhythm, “Kill him! Kill him! Kill him!”

All the indignities. The humiliation of being labeled “enemy aliens.” White neighbors, friends and strangers watching them being taken away like criminals. The hatred from all sides. The unbearable heat and dust of the last weeks burned away any semblence of civilization, and reduced the men into wild animals ready to attack.

Vera heard someone shout, “Debu, you’re going to prison anyway so you might as well finish him off.”

The red-eyed monster turned, nodded to the crowd, and started waddling slowly back inside. He pushed Vera aside as if she were a pesky insect. The men cheered and whooped while Vera collapsed, weeping and wailing, “Yamete. Yamete. Please stop. Please stop.”

Suddenly, Adams pulled away from Tatsuo and Frank and grabbed the sides of Debu’s massive waist by the rope belt. Adams looked like he was grabbing a large pot by the handles.

The scene before her unfolded before her like a bad slide show. Adams began slowly turning his arms as if he were turning a huge steering wheel. Just as Debu leaned forward, Adams stepped back. But before the giant could put his full weight on his front foot, Adams swept his foot along the ground, as if to scoop a soccer ball. The ashi barai. Vera knew Adams was trying a judo move to topple the giant.

But Debu didn’t go down. Then with strength that came out of nowhere, Adams pushed Debu towards the corner of the room. When his massive back hit one wall Adams grabbed Debu’s belt and pulled him back forward. Adams stepped back against the adjoining wall, and using the wall as leverage pushed the giant back into the other wall. Adams repeated this motion back and forth two three times. At first Debu moved slowly, but soon he lost his balance. The giant wobbled back and forth like a gigantic egg. Finally, Adams pushed Debu towards the stove in the other corner. It worked.

The huge body fell with a crash onto the stove and the shelves beside it. The kettle on the stove, the dishes and cups on the shelf, all shattered across the floor. Debu tried to raise himself up, but the linoleum was now slippery with blood and water. Adams kicked Debu’s face. But the giant was still moving.

Adams jumped on Debu’s back, grabbed the monster’s hair with his hand and twisted his ear with the other hand. But his fingers were too slippery. So finally he jabbed his thumb deep into Debu’s bloody eye.

Suddenly Adams fell off of the giant in exhaustion. Nick helped Debu back up on his feet while Tatsuo and Frank rushed to help Adams. The one-eyed giant glowered but Adams looked worse. With his face and chest covered with blood and his eyes and teeth glinting white, he looked like an Oni demon.

Someone from outside yelled, “We want to see! We want to see! Bring ‘em outside!”

The mob began chanting again. “Fight! Fight! Fight!”

Debu turned and lumbered back out the door to the cheers of the mob. The full moon appeared from behind the clouds and cast a ghostly spotlight in front of the canteen. Nick and some other men pushed Frank and Tatsuo out of the way and grabbed Adams. Dripping blood all the way out the door, they threw Adams face-first into the gravel. The crowd stood back as Adams caught his breath and staggered back to his feet.

Even in the colorless light, the mob could see the blood glisten all over Adams’s face, bare arms and chest. He no longer looked human as he swayed unsteadily. Suddenly, the giant smashed his coconut-sized fist into Adams’s head and her husban crumpled to the ground. Oh my God. Adams going to get killed. Vera clawed at the men who blocked her.

Adams moaned as he rolled over onto his back. Moonlight shone off of his bloody cheek as he closed his eyes and turned his face to his shoulder as if he were crying.

The excitement in the mob rose to a manic pitch at the sight of Adams’ helpless form and they shouted, “Kill him! Kill him! Kill him!”

Debu stepped forward and put one massive foot on the side of her husband’s head, hair plastered with blood.

The men all jostled to have a good look. Someone shouted, “Let’s hear what a cracking skull sounds like.”

Vera crawled her way through the men’s legs and threw herself between Debu and her husband. Debu seemed surprised at the sight of a barefoot woman with only a slip on. She begged, “Please. Please. Stop.”

Debu took his foot off of Adams’s head. The crowd quieted. Vera raised her head but remained kneeling. Her voice was hoarse. “Debu, I know your Japanese mother abandoned you. And now you’re stuck with your mother’s people. You have every right to hate us.”

The mob murmured. Clouds drifted across the moon’s face and briefly darkened the stage. “But killing my husband will do nothing. Outside, the world’s gone mad. They’re killing each other everywhere. No one gives a damn about us. No one cares,” said Vera.

Then Nick stepped in and shouted, “Kill the inu!”

But his spell over the crowd was broken. His voice drifted into the still night. Vera stood, turned and put her hands around Nick’s face. He was about the same height as Adams but so much younger. Nick made no move to push her away. She searched the handsome hafu’s eyes. He seemed to deflate.

She said, “We’re all inu, Nick. We’re all traitors. That’s what they’re telling us. But do you believe them? Do you?”

Nick’s shoulders slumped. The clouds drifted revealing the full moon again. Everyone seemed to be bathed in a light that removed all trace of color, gender, and even life. There was no longer any distinction between them and the vast barren wilderness spilling all around them. The mountains, desiccated valleys, and dust-filled wasteland swallowed them up.

Vera looked up at the full moon and suddenly recalled one night when the family went out to the Olympic Peninsula, far from Seattle. This must have been years before Mama and Papa died. When we were hit by that drunk driver. She remembered how amazed she was at how big the moon appeared in the dark sky. When she asked, “Papa, where did the moon come from, he laughed and said,"Anta to onaji da yoo. She’s just like you. The moon came from her mother - the earth. Long ago before any life was on this planet, the moon was born.”

Vera thought, Papa, I want to go home. I don’t want to be like the moon. Forever circling her mother. I want to go back home before there was war. Before there were any humans. Before there was life here.