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Indented text represents the follow-up
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Introduction of Interviewers
Hi,
I'm Liza, I'm Robin, I'm Jake, I'm Karina and I'm Megan and today's
date is Tuesday, May 4th 2004. This interview is being conducted with
Dr. John Kerner in San Francisco, California.
Can you please state and spell your name?
My
name is John Kerner.
Can you state and spell your name at your time
of birth?
At time of birth my name was John Kapstein.
What is your birth date and how old are you now?
My birth date was February 9th, 1919. I'm now 85.
What was the city and country of your birth?
I was born in Portland Oregon, USA.
What is your earliest memory as a child?
My
earliest memories were when I was very small, just remembering, I think
I had some rabbits when I was very small, like 3 or so. That was my
earliest memory.
Can you remember any details from it?
No,
at that age I couldn't. The next earliest is I remember moving to San
Francisco when I was around 3 and I remember riding in an elevator
to where we were staying temporarily, with a kiddie car. That was a
gift.
Can you share with us the story behind why you changed
your name?
Yes.
I'm Jewish, and during World War Two and around that time, I noticed
that there was very often prejudice because of a name, not because
of the individual or his accomplishments. And it seemed to me that
my children would have a much better shot at life if they had no pre-conceived
opinions about them and their choice of religion. So I thought it would
be better for my children. I had experienced unpleasantness in my lifetime
because of my religion and I thought it would be easier for my children
if they weren't pre-judged.
Can you talk about any experiences before the war
when you felt prejudice because of your religion?
In
San Francisco where I lived most of my life, I never was aware of any
prejudice. But when my family temporarily moved to Boston for a year
and a half, the school that I went to was the first time I was ever
called in an unpleasant way being called a Jew by my classmates. That
was my first experience. I had never had anything like that in San
Francisco.
You said that you moved around a lot because of your
father's work. How did living in many different places help or affect
your perspective on life growing up?
It
made it more difficult to form permanent friendships, but on the other
hand it made it easier for me to adjust as I went through life because
I could meet strangers like you and relate to them easier than most
of my contemporaries. So it was not a total loss.
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