Injustices in our “Just” SocietyThe Japanese American

Experience during WWII

I pledge allegiance I pledge allegiance to…to…

the flag of the the flag of the United States of United States of America ....and to America ....and to the republic for the republic for which it stands…..which it stands…..

with liberty and with liberty and justice for all…justice for all…

Students of diverse cultures saluting our flag, reciting the Pledge, stating their loyalty to our country that offers liberty and justice for all.

Allegiance: faithfulness, loyalty to one’s country

Liberty: freedom from captivity, imprisonment, or slavery

Justice: fair dealing, rightness, deserved reward or punishment

Executive Order 9066AUTHORIZING THE SECRETARY OF WAR TO PRESCRIBE MILITARY AREAS Executive Order No. 9066WHEREAS the successful prosecution of the war requires every possibleprotection against espionage and against sabotage to national-defensematerial, national-defense premises, and national-defense utilities as defined in section 4, Act of April 20, 1918, 40 Stat. 533, as amended by the act of November 30, 1940, 54 Stat. 1220, and the Act of August 21, 1941, 55 Stat. 655 (U. S. C., Title 50, Sec. 104): NOW, THEREFORE, by virtue of the authority vested in me as President of the United States, and Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy, I hereby authorize and direct the Secretary of War, and the Military Commanders whom he may from time to time designate, whenever he or any designated Commander deems such actions necessary or desirable, to prescribe military areas in such places and of such extent as he or the appropriate Military Commanders may determine, from which any or all persons may be excluded, and with such respect to which, the right of any person to enter, remain in, or leave shall be subject to whatever restrictions the Sectary of War or the appropriate Military Commander may impose in his discretion. The Secretary of War is hereby authorized to provide for residents of any such area who are excluded there from, such transportation, food, shelter, and other accommodations as may be necessary, in the judgment of the Secretary of War or the said Military Commander, and until other arrangements are made, to accomplish the purpose of this order. The designation of military areas in any region or locality shall supersede designations of prohibited and restricted areas by the Attorney General under the Proclamations of December 7 and 8, 1941, and shall supersede the responsibility and authority of the Attorney General under the said Proclamations in respect of such prohibited and restricted areas. I hereby further authorize and direct the Secretary of War and the said Military Commanders to take such other steps as he or the appropriate Military Commander may deem advisable to enforce compliance with the restrictions applicable to each Military area hereinabove authorized to be designated, including the use of Federal troops and other Federal Agencies, with authority to accept assistance of state and local agencies. I hereby further authorize and direct all Executive Departments, independent establishments and other Federal Agencies, to assist the Secretary of War or the said Military Commanders in carrying out this Executive Order, including the furnishing of medical aid, hospitalization, food, clothing, transportation, use of land, shelter, and other supplies, equipment, utilities, facilities and services. This order shall not be construed as modifying or limiting in any way the authority heretofore granted under Executive Order No. 8972, dated December 12, 1941, nor shall it be construed as limiting or modifying the duty and responsibility of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with respect to the investigation of alleged acts of sabotage or the duty and responsibility of the Attorney General and the Department of Justice under the Proclamations of December 7 and 8, 1941, prescribing regulations for the conduct and control of alien enemies, except as such duty and responsibility is superseded by the designation of military areas hereunder. FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELTFebruary 19, 1942.

EXECUTIVE ORDER 9066

On Feb. 19, 1942, ten weeks after the Pearl Harbor Attack, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed this order which gave to the Sec. of War and military commanders the power to exclude any and all persons, citizens and aliens, from designated areas, in order to provide security against sabotage, espionage. Shortly thereafter, all American citizens of Japanese descent were prohibited from living, working, or traveling on the West Coast of the USA.

Our Constitution did not properly pro-tect Japanese Americans during World War II. Under our Bill of Rights-- Amendments Four, Five, and Six, citizens have the right to be safe from unwanted searches and seizures. They have the right to life, liberty, and property. They cannot be imprisoned for a lengthy period without due process of law. However, all these Constitutional rights were violated when all persons of Japanese ancestry, on the West Coast, were forced from their homes and sent to internment camps.

INSTRUCTIONS

TO ALL PERSONS OF

JAPANESE ANCESTRY

All Japanese persons, both alien and non-

alien, will be evacuated from the

designated area. No Japanese person will

be permitted to enter or leave the area

without obtaining special permission form

the Provost Marshal….

Between the World War II years of 1942 to 1945, 77,000 American Citizensof Japanese ancestry (Nisei), and 43,000 Japanese aliens, U.S. residents on the West Coast, were evacuated from their homes and were first confined in temporary holding camps, and then transferred to inland desert detention camps.

The evacuees had to leave most possessions behind. Most found having to part with their beloved pets to be the hardest. With so little time to prepare, finding new homes for pets was next to impossible. Often the abandoned pets died from starvation.

Many evacuees also had difficulty saying farewell to their friends that were not of Japanese descent. School-age children, particularly, encountered these challenges.

Evacuees, old and young, packed two suitcases and one sea bag of belongings. Mostly essentials, such as bedding, toiletries, medicines, and for each family member a cup, plate, bowl, fork, knife, spoon, and clothing were brought along. All other possessions were left behind. Most of their treasures were boxed for storage.

“It is difficult to understand how a massive ‘injustice’ could have occurred in our Democratic nation.” JACL Resource Guide 2002

After the bombing of Pearl Harbor and our entry into WWII rights were denied to the Japanese because we had difficulty determining, among the Japanese, who was loyal or disloyal. We were at war with their Mother Country.

Here you see the evacuees from Bainbridge Island walking to the buses.

From an excerpt from Monica Sone’s autobiographical account of her life as a Nisei Daughter we gain a vivid description of the day she and her family left home to travel to “Camp Harmony”:

“We sped out of the city southward along beautiful stretches of farmland, with dark, new turned soil. In the beginning we devoured every bit of scenery which flashed past our window and admired the massive-muscled workhorses plodding along the edge of the highway, the vivid green of the pastures, but eventually the sameness of the country landscape palled on us. We tried to sleep to escape from the restless anxiety which kept bobbing up to the surface of our minds.

About noon we crept into a small town. Someone said, ‘Looks like Puyallup, all right.’ “

“Our bus idled a moment at the traffic signal, and we noticed at the left of us an entire block filled with neat rows of low shacks, resembling chicken houses.

Slowly the bus made a left turn, drove through a wire-fence gate, and to our dismay, we were inside the oversized chicken farm. The bus driver opened the door, the guard stepped out…Jim said, ‘OK folks, all off at Yokohama, Puyallup.’We stumbled out, stunned, dragging our bundles after us.”

“We were assignedto apartment 2-I-A. Our home was one room. There was one small window in the wall oppositethe one door. It was bare except for a small, tinny wood-burning stove crouching in the center.”

There was little light with the exception of one dangling light bulb.

“The block leader knocked at our door and announced lunchtime. He instructed us to take our meal at the nearest mess hall. At the mess hall we found a long line of people. Children darted in and out of the line, skiing in the slithery mud. The issei (U.S. residents from Japan) stood quietly, arms folded, saying very little. A light drizzle began to fall, coating bare black heads with tiny sparkling raindrops. The chow line inched forward.”

“Lunch consisted of two canned sausages, one lob of boiled potato, and a slab of bread. Our family had to split up, for the hall was too crowded for us to sit together. I wandered up and down the aisles looking for a few inches to squeeze into. My dinner companion, hooked just inside my right elbow, was a bald-headed, gruff-looking issei man who seemed to resent nestling at mealtime.I choked my food down.”

Residents of Camp Harmony often had to walk two or three blocks to the common bathroom shared by over 100 people. In the pouring rain, in themiddle of the night, one had to find her way when Mother Nature called.

After two to three months the “prisoners” boarded trains to a permanent inland camp where they resided until the conclusion of WWII.

On August 10, 1942 most of the Japanese Americans from Seattle area were sent to the “Minidoka Relocation Center” near Hunt, Idaho. Hunt is about 15 miles from Twin Falls and 150 miles southeast of Boise. The camp was named Minidoka after a massive government irrigation effort known as the Minidoka Reclamation Project.The “passengers” on the 27-hour train ride from Puyallup to Minidoka were ordered to keep the blinds shut. Had they been able to look out the windows they would have seen a remarkable transformation of terrain from the lush forests on the west side of the Cascade Mountains, along the Columbia River, over the flatland and rolling hills, and finally to the 4,000 foot elevation of the southern Idaho prairie. The only color to be seen was the blue of the sky and the mold-green of the sagebrush.

At many of the inland camps, notably Minidoka and Manzanar, there were rattlesnakes, scorpions, black widows, bull snakes, beetles, horned toads and mosquitoes.

Once inside the camps, the newly arrived residents stood in line in the blazing heat for medical examinations. They were then assigned their living quarters.

At first there was no hot water, and often no water at all when construction workers shut off the mains to finish their work. The finishing touches put final barriers to freedom: barbed wire fence –which was electrified at first, and guard towers manned by armed soldiers.

Passing idle time became a major challenge. Many children played board games like Monopoly, as pictured. Residents formed community groups, churches of many denominations, schools, newspapers, and craft classes. Children joined Boy and Girl Scout troops, bands, and sports teams.

Many of the inmates worked for wages from $12 per month for clerical work, to $19 a month for professional work. Japanese American doctors made this top wage working at the camp hospital. At the mess halls Issei women helped in the kitchen, served food, and washed dishes. Children had chores working in the gardens, carrying water, helping their families in any way needed.

A weary Nisei toddler waits beside her family’s belongings.

An artist’s rendering of the experience.

Poster in early WWII

Beginning in January 1945, Japanese wereallowed to return to the West Coast. In all 10 camps, 44,000 inmates remained untilthe “bitter” end. Unfortunately, many returned to their neighborhoods to find signs, and the sides of their houses paintedas pictured above.

“Our democratic systemis resilient …when abusesoccur --- redress is possible.”

On September 11, 2002 Arab Americans were targeted following the terrorist attacks in New York, Pennsylvania, and Washington D.C.History is our story … not just names and dates. Let’s not repeat historical mistakes. It is up to each of us to prevent future recurrence of similar events.

“Until the wrong is acknowledgedand made right we shall havefailed to meet the responsibilityof a democratic society --- theobligation of equal justice.”

Professor Eugene V. Rostow1945 Yale Law Journal

The United States governmenthas acknowledged its failureto protect the Constitutionalrights of the Japanese Americans during WWII and some forty years later President George Bush issued this apology

“All citizens share responsibility for protecting rights of all citizens at all times.”