Martha Akimoto

Nisei

Martha Akimoto was born in Idaho Falls and raised in Los Angeles. A few months before the Pearl Harbor attack, she met Peter Hamlett, and the two quickly fell in love. When Executive Order 9066 was issued and Martha’s family was sent to Santa Anita Assembly Center, Peter—a Caucasian man—followed them to the horse tracks. He worked as a shoe salesman nearby to stay close to Martha and her family. The couple kept in touch through letters.

Martha’s family was later transferred to Amache, and Peter followed them to the plains of Colorado. After a few months, Martha’s family was sent to work on a sugar beet farm as part of the seasonal leave program. Peter followed them there as well. Eventually, Martha received temporary leave to work as a housekeeper in Salt Lake City. Peter relocated to Utah to reunite with her.

Since Utah’s anti-miscegenation laws prevented them from marrying, Martha secured a special travel permit to leave Salt Lake City. The couple drove to Grand Junction, Colorado—where anti-miscegenation laws did not extend to Asians—and were married at city hall in December of 1942. Under the War Relocation Authority’s jurisdiction, Martha was required to return to Salt Lake City within five days.

Martha’s marriage to Peter posed not only legal challenges but also family tensions. In the days leading up to the marriage, Martha’s brother expressed his concerns in a letter to their father: “We all know how slim the chances for a happy marriage are when two such widely separated races marry on account of the invisible barriers of society […] as we have all found out through experience.” Her sister questioned why she would bring mixed-race children into a divided world. Her mother—upon hearing about the marriage—disowned her.

Nevertheless, Martha remained devoted to her life with Peter. In December of 1943, she obtained a Citizen’s Indefinite Leave Card, and the couple led a nomadic life moving around to Illinois, Hawai’i, Massachusetts, the United Kingdom and parts of the West Coast. Martha and Peter enjoyed a happy marriage until Peter died suddenly in Crescent City, CA in 1972. Martha passed away a year before the Civil Liberties Act of 1988 was enacted.

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Elizabeth Begley

Sansei

Elizabeth Begley is the daughter of Martha Akimoto. She was born in Los Angeles, and she spent much of her childhood moving between cities along the West Coast.

Elizabeth describes feeling a strong connection to her Japanese heritage despite her mixed heritage background. “I think of myself as Japanese,” she says. “But because I am Hapa, people will say racist things to me, assuming that I’m white. I will call them out, especially if it’s not pleasant things about Asian Americans.”

In 2019, Elizabeth discovered a letter her mother had received from her sister, cautioning against having mixed-race children with Peter. “I read the date, and Mom was already pregnant with my brother,” she says. “She saved that letter for all of these years.” Elizabeth recalls her mother’s warm, easygoing nature that masked a deep inner strength. “My mom was always laughing. She was very light and easy to laugh,” she says. “But it doesn’t mean that there’s not this well of strength and sorrow.”

While Martha remained close with her siblings, tensions with her mother persisted. “My grandmother never forgave my mom,” Elizabeth says. “Nothing was as shameful as marrying a white person.” Despite their differences, Martha invited her mother to live with her in Laguna Beach, CA, after Peter’s death to care for her in her final years. Elizabeth reflects, “My mom taught me a lot about strength and not letting other people define you—even your own family.”