May 23, 2026
We are heartbroken by the passing of Kyoko Nancy Oda, a giant in the Nikkei community and one of our oral history narrators. Born at Tule Lake in 1945 to Tatsuo and Yuriko Inouye, Kyoko dedicated her life to recording her family’s incarceration history, particularly transcribing her father’s diary and sharing his story of being detained in the Tule Lake stockade.
In this dedication to Kyoko, we thought it would be best to read her words transcribed from a 2019 Densho oral history interview by Densho Oral History Program Manager Virginia Yamada.
Upon seeing the gravesite for babies that died while incarcerated in Tule Lake, Kyoko reflected, “I’m very cognizant of the purpose of why I’m here… ‘I have to speak for them, I have to do for them. They didn’t get the chance I got.’… you see these graves marked with young babies, and you think, ‘You are saved for a reason.’”
Kyoko continues, “So whether it’s to bring harmony to the world, to speak up on behalf of those who can’t speak, I didn’t have the trauma, and I used to think reading books was enough. But every interview that I experience, you see how important this moment in time…somebody cared for us, and so we need to care for others. So I’m very honored to be part of Densho because I know you tell the truth, and sometimes the truth hurts, but we have to do that because otherwise we will leave this earth and not have done our job.”
Kyoko is remembered for her dedication to the children in the Los Angeles public school system as she had a longtime career as both an educator and a principal. She is also remembered for her dedication to preserving Japanese American history through her own family project and through her service with many community organizations, including being the president of the San Fernando Valley Japanese American Community Center and president of the Tuna Canyon Detention Station Coalition.
Densho Oral History Program Manager Virginia Yamada, who had the privilege of hearing Kyoko’s story firsthand remembers her this way:
“Kyoko inspired me to pay attention and do better. The way she effortlessly combined kindness, patience, and respect with determined focus and a gentle persistence set an unforgettable example of how to live an effective and action-oriented life. As we prepared for her interview, she taught me so much about the long-term effects that the incarceration experience had on her family. The lessons I learned from what she shared, and from the way she actively engaged in our time together, continue to inform how I approach each oral history. Thank you, Kyoko.”
Kyoko’s memory lives on in this oral history interview, everything that she built, and through everyone she touched over the years.
Watch Kyoko Nancy Oda’s Oral History
Densho was grateful to conduct an oral history interview with Kyoko Nancy Oda in 2019. You can watch Kyoko’s oral history interview in the Densho Digital Repository.
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By Densho Digital Content Coordinator Miya Schilz, featuring a tribute from Densho Oral History Program and Grants Manager Virginia Yamada.
[Header photo: Portrait of Kyoko Nancy Oda. Photo taken during Densho oral history interview, February 7, 2019.]