Ralph Lazo, born in Los Angeles on November 3, 1924,[1] was of Mexican-American and Irish American descent.

His mother died when he and his sister were young, leaving them in the care of their father, who found work painting houses and murals.

"[7] Lazo attended school at the camp, and also spent time entertaining orphaned children who had been forcibly relocated to Manzanar.

[2] Lazo spent his career teaching, mentoring disabled students and encouraging Latinos to attend college and vote.

Lazo also helped raise funds for a class-action lawsuit to win reparations for Japanese Americans interned during the war, which resulted in the Civil Liberties Act of 1988.