Norman Mineta’s parents were not American citizens. They weren’t allowed to be; the Immigration Act of 1924 did not permit Japanese immigrants to acquire citizenship. Norman, born here, was a citizen. The 14th Amendment says if you are born in the U.S., you are a citizen.
After the attack on Pearl Harbor, when Norman was ten, he and his family were forced to live in a race track stable and then in the Heart Mountain internment camp in Wyoming. The Japanese internment was one of the most shameful acts ever perpetrated by the American government. Incidentally, the Japanese roundup and imprisonment was approved by the Supreme Court.
In the internment camp he met a young Wyoming Boy Scout named Alan Simpson. They remained friends even when Mr. Simpson, a Republican, served in the Senate when Mr. Mineta, a Democrat, served in the House.
When I moved to San Jose in 1973 Mr. Mineta was the Mayor, the first Asian American mayor of a large city. In 1975 he was elected to Congress from Santa Clara County and served 21 years in the House of Representatives. George W. Bush later appointed him as Secretary of Transportation.
It is difficult for us to imagine that at one time Republicans and Democrats were able to see past party lines and work together.
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