Throughout Mink’s early life, she faced racial discrimination as a Japanese-American, particularly following the Pearl Harbor bombing in 1941.
"This experience was an important part of my development. It made me realize that one could not take citizenship and the promise of the U.S. Constitution for granted. I realized that everyone was terrified that they could be arrested for no reason at all, except that they were Japanese, like the enemy." - Patsy Mink (Davidson, page 107)
Photograph by the US Navy, Pearl Harbor being bombed
Mink, born on December 6, 1927, was raised during the 1930's and 1940's when native Hawaiians and Asians were discriminated against by the “Haoles”, white mainlanders, who controlled the territory of Hawaii. After Pearl Harbor was bombed by the Empire of Japan, on December 7, 1941, she experienced even greater discrimination, because she was Japanese-American. Mink recalled, “My father, Suematsu Takemoto, was taken into military custody for questioning because of his Japanese heritage, even though he had been born in Hawaii, and was an American citizen. He was allowed to return home to us. But we were fearful. We were under severe surveillance. Family friends were being arrested daily and hauled off to jail. I heard whispers about people being sent far away to prisons on the mainland. My parents were greatly concerned about our safety.” - Patsy Mink (Davidson, page 107)
"Patsy Takemoto Mink was a third-generation Hawaiian who battled discrimination both as a woman and as an Asian American to succeed in the world of politics. Her accomplishments were all that more impressive because in the 1960's, as a married woman with a child, she was expected to stay home but instead she became a lawyer and a politician. Her experiences of inequality and injustice were a way of life for her from an early age." - Asian American Reference Library
Photograph by the US Navy of the US Navy fighting the Japanese