Densho Digital Archive
Steven Okazaki Collection
Title: Minoru Yasui Interview
Narrator: Minoru Yasui
Location: Hood River, Oregon
Date: October 23, 1983
Densho ID: denshovh-yminoru-01-0004

MY: Well, specifically, of course, the evacuation orders was done on a piecemeal basis. As I recall again, Bainbridge Island sometime early in February and certainly surrounding the Bremerton naval yards did not seem to be a terribly unreasonable requirement. However, when the general evacuation orders began to be issued, and this as I recall began in March, I thought it was a completely unwarranted kind of military action certainly done by executive fiat with the result that it was completely arbitrary with no consideration or relationship as the actual military dangers involved. And I say this because they were taking the young people, the children, the old people, they were taking females, and it had, in my opinion, no basis in law. And this certainly strengthened my resolve to continue to test the validity of military orders.