Frank S. Emi
Frank S. Emi | |
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Born | Frank Seishi Emi September 23, 1916 draft Japanese American detainees during World War II |
Frank Seishi Emi (September 23, 1916 – December 1, 2010) was a
Early life
Frank Seishi Emi was born in Los Angeles on September 23, 1916. When he was four years old, his family moved to the San Fernando Valley, where they farmed and eventually opened a produce market. He attended San Fernando High School for two years, until his family moved again to open a grocery store in Long Beach. He graduated from Long Beach Polytechnic High School and entered the Los Angeles City College's pharmacy program.[1] After his father was seriously injured in a car accident, Emi left school to run the family's produce market in downtown Los Angeles.[3]
By 1941, Emi was running a successful business. He had just invested $25,000 to expand the market when
Draft resistance
In early 1943, the
Emi and five other Heart Mountain inmates joined Kiyoshi Okamoto, a vocal protestor against the loyalty questionnaire and the incarceration who called himself a "Fair Play Committee of One," to form the Heart Mountain Fair Play Committee.[1][2] The Committee encouraged other inmates to refuse military service until their full citizenship rights were restored, and held public meetings to discuss the unconstitutionality of their confinement. As more young men joined the committee and refused to comply with draft orders, the federal government took action.
On March 25, 1944, twelve Heart Mountain inmates who had not reported for their draft physicals were arrested by
Post-war legacy
Outside prison, Emi and his fellow draft resisters found that most of their peers viewed them with disdain and considered their wartime resistance a sign of disloyalty and cowardice, a stain on the Japanese American community in general and the legacy of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team in particular.
After the war, Frank Emi worked as a gardener and a grocery clerk before beginning a career with the postal service. After retiring from the post office, he worked at a state unemployment office until 1982.[12] Promoted to 8th-degree black belt in 2008, he was also the head instructor of the Hollywood Judo Dojo and was credited for producing several national judo athletes.[1]
Emi died on December 1, 2010, in West Covina, California, the last surviving member of the Heart Mountain Fair Play Committee.[1][6]
In Culture
The Little-Known Heroes: Frank Emi, a children's picture book by Kaushay and Spencer Ford, was published in 2021.[13]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Elaine Woo. "Frank S. Emi dies at 94; Japanese American fought effort to draft WWII internees" Los Angeles Times, Dec 09, 2010.
- ^ a b c Eric L. Muller. "Heart Mountain Fair Play Committee" Densho Encyclopedia (accessed Feb 19, 2014)
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Esther Newman. "Frank Emi" Densho Encyclopedia (accessed Feb 19, 2014)
- ^ Frank Emi interview, Japanese American World War II Evacuation Oral History Project, Calisphere, University of California.
- ^ Martha Nakagawa. "Frank Emi, Leader of Heart Mountain Draft Resisters, Dies at 94" Archived 2014-02-25 at the Wayback Machine NikkeiWest, Dec 19, 2010 (accessed Feb 19, 2014)
- ^ a b c Dennis Hevesi. "Frank Emi, Defiant World War II Internee, Dies at 94," The New York Times, 18 Dec 2010.
- ^ Franklin Odo. "442nd Regimental Combat Team," Densho Encyclopedia (accessed 18 Mar 2014).
- ^ Tule Lake Committee: "History" (accessed 18 Mar 2014).
- ^ a b Conscience and the Constitution: "Resistance." PBS. (accessed 18 Mar 2014)
- ^ a b Cherstin M. Lyon. "Japanese American Citizens League," Densho Encyclopedia (accessed Feb 19, 2014).
- ^ a b c Eric L. Muller. "Draft resistance," Densho Encyclopedia (accessed 18 Mar 2014).
- ^ Conscience and the Constitution: "Frank Emi," PBS (accessed 18 Mar 2014).
- ^ "Frank Emi (Hard Cover)". 26 February 2021.
External links
- "Densho interview links: Frank S. Emi". Retrieved 2021-06-13.