Oi was interned at the Granada internment camp since he was a Nisei, an American of second generation Japanese descent. Oi had been gradually losing his sight for the majority of his life and unable to read text since entering college. By 1956, he was totally blind. He continued to teach, collaborate and work until he died, aged 84, in Rochester, New York. Bibliography Notes References External links Profile of Walter Y. Oi from the Department of Defense Economics Department Faculty Profile Webpage at the University of Rochester 1929 births 2013 deaths American economists Japanese-American internees University of Rochester faculty American academics of Japanese descent American blind people Labor economists Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Fellows of the Econometric Society Blind academics Distinguished Fellows of the American Economic Association