Roy Nakano, representing the Gardena Committee for Redress and Reparations, testified before the CWRIC on the deep impact of incarceration and its lingering effects on Japanese American communities—especially Gardena, which held the largest percentage of Japanese Americans in the continental U.S.

• Gardena’s Image vs. Reality: While Gardena was often portrayed as a model of Japanese American success, Roy reminded the commission that this “model minority” image was a facade. Beneath it were serious social problems—drug abuse among youth, isolation among elders, and an unwillingness to admit difficulties for fear of being branded “bad Americans.”

• Silence of the Nisei: Noted that very few Nisei parents had spoken to their children about camp. This silence, born of shame and fear of standing out, shaped postwar generations. Children were taught to “not rock the boat,” to be quiet, and to avoid risk—leading to safe careers, lack of representation in leadership roles, and sacrifices of creativity and cultural heritage.

• Personal Experience: As a counselor at the Asian American Drug Abuse Program, Roy saw firsthand how barbiturate use reflected an inward way of coping with trauma. He tied this to a larger postwar pattern of dealing with problems internally, without voice.

• Restoration of Pride: He pointed out that the Gardena Committee—made up of both Nisei and Sansei—was finally breaking that silence, restoring pride, and refusing to let the “good American equals quiet American” mindset persist.

• Education & Reparations: Urged widespread public and private education about incarceration, noting that even within Gardena, few Sansei, Yonsei, or non-Japanese attended redress programs. He pressed for monetary reparations and full restitution for every dollar lost, carried out swiftly and without bureaucracy, especially for the aging Issei and Nisei.

• Challenge to the Commission: Closed by telling the commissioners not to water down recommendations for political expediency but to “have the audacity to recommend what is just.”