Japanese Internment in WWII

Japanese Interment in WWII There is no doubt that the internment and segregation of Japanese Americans during World War II (WWII) was a mistake made by the American government. Justifying the relocation of Japanese Americans as a “military necessity” is an incomplete and unjust argument. Though society now recognizes the hardship imposed on the many men, women and children who were forced to uproot their lives in middle of the war, little can be done to remedy the situation in the present. FDR’s decision to enact Executive Order 9066 was made when war was a reality and the fear of the "Fifth Column" prompted ill decisions. This fear was a driving force in the decision to intern the Japanese, rationalized by the possibilities of treason (traitor is more for personal relations). Roger Daniels’ Prisoners Without Trial details the political motives behind the decision to relocate thousands of families during the wartime panic induced by the attack on Pearl Harbor. Daniels discusses the ordeal from the whispers of concentration camps to the discharge of the last internee. The Japanese American Relocation Digital Archives (JARDA) contains many unique first-person accounts of the interment process, offering the insight and emotions from a Japanese American who weathered the ordeal. These archives tells that internment not only disrupted life for the children of Japanese Americans during the length of their relocation, causing them to lose their land and possessions, but also caused social difficulties and economic hardships that would remain prevalent in the lives of internees and their children decades after the war. The act of relocation posed a major life change for many of the Japanese American children living in California. Relocation occurred in four stages: posting of Exclusion Orders, registration of all Japanese in the selected area, preparation for evacuation, and the evacuation of

Japanese from their home in increments of 500, all of which took within a week.1 Particularly for children, the sudden change to their life was unexplainable and frightening. While an adult may understand the political reasons for the government to uproot entire communities, a young child cannot fathom why he must say goodbye to the home he has known for his entire life. The internees were allowed to take very few personal possessions with them, and were barred from bringing pets and other “superfluous” personal items.2 For the child, the loss of a pet was a startling and shocking event as the animal was not only a playmate, but also a family member and a friend. The pets that could not accompany the children were “given away or . . . Destroyed”.3 Additionally, many toys and playthings were forced to be sold or discarded, leaving the children to wonder in fear While the loss of their physical possessions no doubt left a sizable impression on the young Japanese Americans, the physical displacement perhaps was even more influential. The second and third stages of the evacuation normally took place at assembly centers scattered along the west coast. These centers were usually former fairgrounds or racetracks and animal stalls were often used as impromptu housing, offering little sanitation or comfort.4 The transition from the physically comforting home to a filthy stall surrounded by unfamiliar faces was certainly a terrifying experience as the accommodations were reminiscent of a prison. Their residence at these assembly centers could last anywhere from weeks to months, giving just enough time for the children to adjust to the new environment before once again being shipped to a new location. The final camp, or relocation center, would be home to the Japanese American families for two

1

Roger Daniels, Prisoners Without Trial: Japanese Americans in World War II, Revised Edition, (New York: Hill and Wang, 2004), 54-55. 2 Daniels, Prisoners, 55. 3 Daniels, Prisoners, 55. 4 HIST 127AC Lecture, “Second Gold Rush, Internment, Zoot,” Monday, April 7, 2014.

to three years. These camps became isolated communities, self-contained with their own schools, libraries, and other social centers.5 where these Japanese American children grew up. Life proceeded with some sense of normalcy for these children. The letters of Afton Dill Nance, a teacher in California shortly before the outbreak of WWII, outline the day-to-day activities the Japanese Americans participated in during and after their stay at the internment camps. One such letter, from Kazue Murakishi, gives thanks to Mrs. Nance for a basket of goodies the student received.6 This gift shows genuine care and affection from Nance, and can be seen that there were white Americans who sympathized with the Japanese and understood that there was a blatant violation of their civil rights. By continuing her correspondence with her former students, Nance shows that not every white American believed them to be a threat. In his letter, Kazue mentions his recovery from an earlier appendix operation, a personal anecdote that would not be shared with other pen pal. There were other letters that shows Ms. Nance was a well-liked and trusted person in the lives of many school-aged Japanese American children. Mrs. Nance continued to support her students long after they left her classroom, as demonstrated in her 1943 letter recommending Mrs. Sumi as a strong candidate for an employment opportunity.7 Though Nance speaks highly of Mrs. Sumi, her tone indicates she is a strong American patriot, stating that the Sumi family is “heartily in accord with the principles of American democracy”.8 Despite her avocation on the part of Japanese Americans who were sent to the interment camps, Afton Dill Nance still carried the view that the American way was the superior culture, a view that was likely present in her teachings to the young Japanese American students. By growing up

5

Daniels, Prisoners, 66. Kazue Murakishi, Letter to Mrs. Nance from Crystal City, TX. Afton Dill Nance Papers, Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles, CA. 7 Afton Dill Nance, Letter to D.S. Myer from Hermosa Beach, CA March 27, 1943. Afton Dill Nance Papers, Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles, CA. 8 Nance, Letter to Myer, 1943. Afton Dill Nance Papers, Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles, CA. 6

in the United States, the second generation of Japanese Americans was placed in a difficult position – somewhere between the values imposed by their parents and the American ideals preached at schools and by the general public. Even while in the internment camp, these values could still be found in the teaching staff, many of whom were white Americans. A letter from Edward Sanada addressed to Rasmen Bird in 1942 details his desire to help teach Japanese American children in the internment camps.9 Though the letter does not specify Sanda's ethnicity, it is likely that he is not of Japanese descent; he mentions his degree from UCLA in a time when “many American institutions of higher learning . . . refused to admit Japanese American students”.10 Why he is drawn to teaching in the camps is unknown, but it is likely his teachings incorporated the key values of the American culture. Additionally, the cafeteria structure of the internment camps allowed children to move from mess hall to mess hall, no longer enjoying their meals in the company of their parents.11 What used to provide a valuable face-to-face opportunity for parents to exchange moral wisdom and cultural values was replaced with more time for Japanese children to develop their own culture, a blend of the traditional Japanese morals from their parents and the American values from their teachers. There was much hardship that came with the forced relocation. The internees had been held in the camps for years and had subsequently lost their properties and previous homes. Many chose to stay in the camps longer than necessary, deliberately answering the loyalty questionnaires in a way to be kept in the internment system. It was preferable to stay where food and housing was guaranteed, even if their civil liberties were revoked. Eventually, with the last 9

Edward Kazuya Sandra, Letter to Resmen Bird from Los Angeles, CA April 29, 1942. Special Collections Japanese American Relocation (SCJAR), Occidental College Library, Los Angeles, CA. 10 Daniels, Prisoners, 73. 11 Daniels, Prisoners, 67.

internment camp closing in 1946, all of the displaced Japanese Americans were returned to their original place of residence. After their removal from society for years, even simple tasks proved difficult for the newly released interns, particularly those released before the official end of WWII. Housing proved challenging for many families returning to a civilian life, as their homes were no longer available. Instead, they sought temporary housing while searching for jobs in cities across America. The photograph by Charles E. Mace dated August 15, 1943 depicts a husband and wife questioning a landlady about possible vacancies.12 This scenario was pervasive in many parts of America as former internees searched for a new place to live. Housing opportunities were limited, and the Japanese Americans faced additional discrimination by Americans who did not want "Japs" living in their towns. The children also faced the added challenge of adjusting to life outside of the internment camp. A photograph taken in early 1944 by the War Relocation Authority Photographs shows eight children clustered around a foosball table deeply engrossed in the game.13 The photograph was taken at the Young Kansas Citians’ Club, where the entire facilities of the club accommodated to the re-settlers every Thursday evening. The idea that the Japanese Americans were only allowed to use the club facilities at given times, separate from the white citizens of the same town, shows a distinct division in the population. Even if they were able to make acquaintances with the white children, it is unlikely that the other children would be able to relate to the hardships the internees experienced. Though they were no longer confined to the distinct area of an internment camp, the Japanese Americans still felt much discrimination and distrust from the white citizens around them. Much of the rational stemmed from the idea that these people, who had been considered 12

Charles E. Mace, Photograph from Chicago, IL, August 15, 1943. War Relocation Authority Photographs of Japanese-American Evacuation and Resettlement Series 12, UC Berkeley, Bancroft Library, Berkeley, CA. 13 War Relocation Authority Photographs, Photograph from Kansas City, MO, January 20, 1944. War Relocation Authority Photographs of Japanese-American Evacuation and Resettlement Series 12, UC Berkeley, Bancroft Library, Berkeley, CA.

dangerous at one point to be relocated, were a threat to American values. Mrs. Nance's recommendation letter for Mrs. Sumi shows that the newly released internees were still dependent on the word of the white person to make a living in society, as Nance’s claim that the Sumi family was “American” would ease the fear of employers.14 Without the recommendation, it is unlikely that Mrs. Sumi would be considered comparable against a white person. Even though WWII was over and American society soon returned to its pre-war state, Japanese Americans were haunted by their lengthy ordeal. The children, especially, would carry the effects of internments throughout the rest of their lives, forever marked by the process of moving from one place to another, losing their possessions, and later facing the discrimination by the white Americans. Their cultural identity had also been affected, now an emulsion of traditional Japanese morals and American patriotism. As stated by Daniels, “It must not be forgotten, however, that thousands of Japanese Americans had their lives destroyed”.15 Extreme care must be exercised in the future to prevent another mass violation of civil rights and to ensure that all citizens, no matter where their original home may be, feel welcomed and part of the American Melting? Pot.

14 15

Nance, Letter to Myer, 1943. Afton Dill Nance Papers, Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles, CA. Daniels, Prisoners, 87.