Sam Mihara (born (1933-02-01)February 1, 1933) is an American writer and history educator who is a survivor of the
incarceration of Japanese Americans.[1]
Following the start of
World War II, Mihara was imprisoned at the age of 9 along with over 120,000 Japanese Americans to move to concentration camps by President
Franklin D. Roosevelt's
Executive Order 9066. His family was moved to
Heart Mountain, a prison camp located in a remote area of
Wyoming, where they were imprisoned for three years. At the camp, his family was forced to live in a 20 square foot room.[6]
While at UCLA, Mihara was hired by the
Douglas Aircraft Company in
Santa Monica which was the start of a 42-year career at the company.[8] While at Douglas, he served in various roles including as staff director for the
Delta II rocket program.[9] He continued to work for the company after its acquisition by
Boeing eventually becoming a key executive for the company.[5]
History educator and writing career
Since he started speaking about the incarceration, over 95,000 people have heard his presentations in person.[10] His work has been self-funded and by various grants.[11]
He is the author of Blindsided: The Life and Times of Sam Mihara, an autobiography which describes his family's experience with Japanese American incarceration.[12][13][14]