Joanne Kumamoto said her father, Jiro Oishi, was a fourth-year USC student in business who only needed to take his finals to earn his degree when Japan bombed Pearl Harbor in December 1941.
Thread ⬇️ latimes.com/california/sto…
Thread ⬇️ latimes.com/california/sto…
Oishi was picked up by law enforcement in what turned out to be a case of mistaken identity and sent to a federal penitentiary in Montana, missing his exams. latimes.com/california/sto…
He was not allowed to take his finals or complete his degree, returned to Los Angeles after the war, and started over as a gardener, Kumamoto said. latimes.com/california/sto…
Yet he never expressed bitterness toward USC and, until his death nearly two decades ago, was a lifelong Trojan fan and football and basketball season-ticket holder. latimes.com/california/sto…
Kumamoto said he didn’t disclose his past until she was in high school.
“I’m happy for my dad; he would have appreciated this,” Kumamoto said. “But I also feel sort of bittersweet. He might have had an easier life if he had a degree.” latimes.com/california/sto…
“I’m happy for my dad; he would have appreciated this,” Kumamoto said. “But I also feel sort of bittersweet. He might have had an easier life if he had a degree.” latimes.com/california/sto…
USC President Carol Folt will publicly apologize to the former Japanese American students on behalf of the university and award them honorary degrees posthumously. latimes.com/california/sto…
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