Interview with Lillie Reiko Yano

Title
Interview with Lillie Reiko Yano
Accession number
2010.061
Interviewer
Lisa Uyeda
Videographer
Lisa Uyeda
Date of Interview
Language
English
Description

Lillie Reiko Yano's "My Story" reading by granddaughter Lisa Kimiko Hanna, daughter Michiko Blakey, granddaughter Jennifer Tamiko, and grandson Christopher Kiyoshi Harris. "My Story" is a biography by Lillie Reiko Yano. It talks about her family's emigration history to Canada. She was born on May 26, 1922 and grew up in Ruskin, BC. She talks about her childhood there and celebrations such as Christmas. Prior to WWII, Lillie worked in a sewing factory making dresses. During WWII, her family was removed to Alberta to work on a sugar beet farm. She talks about the poor living and working conditions there and also working along side German prisoners of war. After the war, some of her family emigrated to Japan including her father who passed away in Japan. Lillie talks about saving enough money to move her family to Toronto, ON. She talks about the Japanese Canadian Redress and the Government of Canada apologizing for the treatment of the Japanese Canadians.

Read Lillie Reiko Yano's "My Story" here:  https://www.landscapesofinjustice.com/touched-by-dispossession/lillie-reiko-hamaguchis-story-as-told-to-her-granddaughter-lillian-michiko-blakey/

Format
Videotape
Video File
Length of Interview
26 min
Period
Post War
World War II
Event
Redress
World War II
Attack on Pearl Harbour
Internment
Location
Ruskin, BC
Vancouver, BC
Japan
USA
Alberta, Canada
Lethbridge, AB
Whonnock, BC
Burnaby, BC
Topic
family
fishing
language
immigration
picture bride
farming
logging
transportation
discrimination
immigration
employment
British Columbia Security Commission
travel
curfew
police
Prisoner of War (POW)
marriage
internment camps
road camps
photography
Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP)
agriculture
education
teaching
living conditions
festivals
dance
boat works
children
marriage
employment
discrimination
Number of Physical Tapes
1
Permission
For uses other than research or private study, researchers must submit a Request for Permission to Publish, Exhibit or Broadcast form.
Citation
Lilie Reiko Yano, interview by Lisa Uyeda, September 12, 2010, 2010.061, Sedai: The Japanese Canadian Legacy Project Collection, Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre.