Stanley Hayami, Nisei Son: His Diary, Letters & Story From American Concentration Camp To Battlefield 1941-1945

Stanley Hayami was a 16 year old prisoner in Heart Mountain when he began his diary chronicling his thoughts, aspirations, and optimistic hopes for a “United Nations of Earth.” Weeks after graduation in 1944, Stanley was drafted into the 442nd RCT. Joanne Oppenheim, author of Dear Miss Breed, has brought us Stan’s recently found letters and drawings from basic training to the battlefront, plus interviews of friends, family, and brothers in arms. Published with a grant from the CCLPEP, Stan’s diary, letters and art tell what Roger Daniels calls a “gripping tale” in the all too short story of a brilliant student, aspiring artist-writer, and dedicated Nisei son.

Q&A with author Joanne Oppenheim moderated by Crystal Parikh, assistant professor in the Department of Social and Cultural Analysis and the Department of English at NYU.

Crystal Parikh is an assistant professor in the Department of Social and Cultural Analysis and the Department of English at NYU. Her areas of research and teaching include American studies, Asian American and Latino literatures, and theories of gender, race, and sexuality. Her forthcoming book is titled An Ethics of Betrayal (Fordham UP).

Co-sponsored by: The Japanese American Citizens’ League