World War II Draft Resisters

In response to “Draft Rift Lingers 50 Years Later,” March 12:

Pearl Harbor--the war--feelings were at a fever pitch. A people were herded up and imprisoned without due process. Yet when the call went out to serve their country young men responded in the thousands from these same prisons. What was behind their decision to do this? We were treated humanely along with the shame and demoralization. There still was no denying that we were citizens of our beloved country.

As one who lived through all this, the bitterness, the utter devastation, I was itching to get in the Army. It was a bitter disappointment to fail the physical.

The answer, I believe, is what we call our American system. When it came down to choosing sides there was no doubt. Being American was the only way to go.

I thought our family was unique in thinking this way. It was a wonderful experience to see the sheer number of volunteers who showed up and eventually opened up the camps to the draft.

Can we expect any less from all the new families we are assimilating today?

JOHN AGAWA

Los Angeles