A Philosophy for Success

Hideo Itabashi’s formative years were marked by internment and the draft, but he refused to live a life of bitterness

By Francie King

Hideo Itabashi (CAS’49, MED’54) was a quiet, philosophical man with a “keen and critical mind,” according to his friend Charles Griswold, the Borden Parker Bowne Professor of Philosophy at CAS. Itabashi, who died in 2014, was also generous: through donations and a bequest, he honored his years at BU with gifts that will provide financial support in perpetuity to students in the College of Arts & Sciences and the School of Medicine.

The American-born Itabashi was the son of immigrants from Tokyo. His high school years were interrupted by his family’s internment during World War II. Despite this disruption, he briefly attended Boston University before being drafted at 19 into the Army, where his job as a translator was to interrogate Japanese officers who were US prisoners of war.

Returning to BU after the war, Itabashi earned a bachelor’s degree in biology in 1949, and began studying philosophy, combining it with his work in science. Following a year at Yale, he returned to BU to pursue medicine, and received his MD in 1954. Along the way, he met and married his beloved life partner, Yoko Osawa.

LIVING WITHOUT BITTERNESS

Itabashi was philosophical about his wartime internment, telling Griswold he had not wanted to live a life of bitterness. (Griswold recalls that Itabashi smiled wryly as he once described the irony of being interned in America and then being drafted into its army.) Still, says Itabashi’s granddaughter Christina (CAS’13), his family had come back from internment to “essentially nothing.”

“It was an experience he never truly let go of, to the day he died,” she says. “He didn’t open up about it with other people, but he was willing to share it with me.”

Christina Itabashi says her grandfather was always “very driven—if there was something he wanted to achieve, nothing was going to stop him.” He was proud that she was headed for medical school and studies in neuroscience. “And he loved the fact that I was going to Boston University.” He encouraged her to remain curious, to ask questions.

Hideo Itabashi with, from left, his granddaughters Michelle and Christina and his wife, Yoko. Photo courtesy of Christina Itabashi

During his own time at CAS, Itabashi studied philosophy with Peter Anthony Bertocci (CAS’31, GRS’35), an experience he revered. He took to heart the charismatic Bertocci’s teachings about the moral equality and inherent dignity of all human beings, teachings that Itabashi felt were important for coming generations of thinkers. (Bertocci, who died in 1989, was the Borden Parker Bowne Professor of Philosophy at CAS and later professor emeritus.)

In 1958, at the start of a long and distinguished career in medicine, Itabashi went to work at the University of California, spending the next 20 years in increasingly senior posts. He became a professor of pathology and neurology at what is today the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. While there, Itabashi secured grant funding for work that involved conducting brain autopsies on victims of motorcycle accidents in Los Angeles County. His work helped bring about laws requiring motorcyclists to wear helmets, leading to a major decrease in fatalities. After his retirement from UCLA (he continued to hold emeritus status), Itabashi served as deputy medical examiner and consultant in neuropathology for the Los Angeles County coroner, where he performed some 9,000 brain autopsies over the next 20 years, often testifying as a medical expert in court proceedings.

Giving to BU

To honor Bertocci and to mark their affection for the University, Itabashi and Yoko, who died in 2007, made generous gifts over the years to the Peter A. Bertocci Scholarship Fund for students studying philosophy at CAS. Itabashi’s bequest created the Yoko and Hideo H. Itabashi, M.D. Scholarship Fund, also designated for philosophy student support. (The Itabashis were similarly generous to the School of Medicine.)

The scholarship support provided by the Itabashis has been deeply valued by its recipients. “I’m immensely grateful to Dr. Itabashi,” says James Kinkaid (GRS’18), a graduate student in the philosophy department. “His generous gift has allowed me to devote my time to studying the German phenomenological tradition in BU’s PhD program in philosophy over the past five years. Without this assistance, I would have been unable to develop the research and teaching skills essential to a career in academic philosophy.”

“Hideo’s generosity sprang from his belief that the philosopher’s skills in analysis, argument, and questioning are critical to developing an ethical and flourishing society,” says Griswold. “We are deeply grateful for his extraordinary support, and future generations of students will surely benefit from it.”

Consider making a gift to support these funds—or your own favorite professor. Contact Steve Kean, chief advancement officer, at 617-358-1214 or skean@bu.edu.