David Takayoshi Suzuki Biography

From the late 1800’s to 1996 more than 100,000 aboriginal children attended residential schools in Canada. At a majority of these government operated schools there were reports of emotional, physical, sexual and spiritual abuse along with punishment for cultural activities. Residential schools were implemented to liberate aboriginal people from their savage ways in order for them to survive in the modernizing society.1 To a majority of the current Canadian population, impacts of residential schooling are a part of a distant past, disassociated from today’s events, this misconception. Long lasting impacts as a result of residential schooling include minimal education leading to poverty, stigmatization by the non-aboriginal public, abuses of aboriginal rights in areas such as land and the environment and the growing loss of Indigenous cultures in younger generations. With the continuing misconception of the history and lasting impact of residential schools conflict between Indigenous people and the Canadian Government has not ceased, but increased.

The initial reaction to Pearl Harbor was to take cautious emergency actions to avert civil unrest. Soon, the Canadian government passed the War Measures Act. It gave permission to intern all undesirable Japanese, tie up every Japanese-owned fishing boat in British Columbia, close all Japanese language schools, forbid the publishing of newspapers in Japanese, and seize all Japanese property. All of which were subsequently carried out. In 1941, there were twenty-three thousand five hundred Japanese persons in Canada, residing mainly on the coast of British Columbia. Of that, six thousand seven hundred were Canadian born, seven thousand were naturalized citizens, and the rest were nationals of Japan. However, nothing could make any difference. To the typical, white British Columbian, the Japanese were all lower-class citizens. Five hours after the attack on Pearl Harbour, forty-eight Japanese planes bombed Hong Kong where two Canadian battalions were stationed, and were inflicted with heavy casualties. The “problem” of the resident Japanese in British Columbia was then quickly set into the mainstream focus. Prior to declaring war on Japan, Mackenzie King had stated that the “enemy country” had “wantonly and treacherously” attacked British territory, and that “Japan’s actions [were] a threat to the defence and freedom of Canada.”

Fighting a war against the oppression and persecution of a people, how hypocritical of the American government to harass and punish those based on their heritage. Magnifying the already existing dilemma of discrimination, the bombing of Pearl Harbor introduced Japanese-Americans to the harsh and unjust treatment they were forced to confront for a lifetime to come. Wakatsuki Ko, after thirty-five years of residence in the United States, was still prevented by law from becoming an American citizen.

In 2000, the only school for 400 Attawapiskat children closed after a fuel leak contaminated the property. Students were relocated to moldy portable classrooms, with limited heat and electricity. Despite promises of a new school, the federal government neglected the Attawapiskat community until the ground became so contaminated, children were passing out from the benzene fumes (Angus, 2012). Although federal officials were well aware of the poor conditions in Attawapiskat, no efforts were made to rectify the situation. Frankly put, Attawapiskat is not unique - in reserves across Canada, underfunded classrooms and condemned schools are common. Refusing to accept the government’s inaction, Aboriginal student Shannen Koostachin and

Residential Schools were and still are a significant part of Canada’s history. They have had negative social and psychological effects on survivors and even their families. Grant Severight, Richard Wagamese, and Rita Joe and so many more are incredible authors who share their experiences on Residential Schools from either their or their families’ perspectives.

Economically, those who failed to prove they are Canadian lose their jobs because it is a security risk according to the War Measures Act. Moreover, they did not just lose their jobs, but also their homes and self-ran businesses. All of their homes and businesses are destroyed before they are sent to the internment camps. The government of Canada took all of the belongings of the Japanese and Italians whilst sending them to camps. In 1946, the government of Canada institutes the Japanese Property Claims Commission. This commission allows the Japanese to speak out their thoughts of being treated unfairly. Nor was it until 1988 when the government gave $20k as an apology to each living survivor. As a result, after all the hard effort the Japanese and Italians put into own homes and shops, the privilege of living and working where they want is taken away due to being forced to live in internment

Aboriginal-Canadians have an excessive history of mistreatment and discrimination in Canada. Europeans considered Canada’s First Nations as savages, eventually residential schools were created which in extreme cases were comparable to Prisoner of War camps. According to Evelyn Kallen, “Substandard housing breeding disease and death, closed schools due to lack of teachers, heat, and/or running water are only two examples of continuing, dehumanizing life conditions on many reserves” (198). Although, extensive improvements have been made to reservations and Aboriginal rights, more improvement remains necessary. Allan Blakeney stated, “An important starting point of course, is that Aboriginal people in Canada do not, as a group, occupy high

The schools affected not only the individuals who attended them but also the families that they were torn from and future generations as the effects of these schools are quite complex. Traditions, culture and language are just a few of the things that were stripped away from the people who were forced to attend them. The assault on the Aboriginal identity started as soon as the children arrived at the school. According to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada in their book, “They Came for the Children”, “Once stripped of their clothes, students were roughly bathed. Braided hair which often had spiritual significance was cut” (22). The aim of the Residential schools, which were run by the Roman Catholic missionaries, was to “civilize and Christianize” (10) Aboriginal children and the only way to truly complete this task was to separate the children from their parents, as well as their culture and enforce that only English was spoke, which ultimately resulted in the loss of language for many. In order for children to fully receive a new identity, children were given new names and often assigned a number to help the school keep track of them. On student retells the experience in the book, “They Came for the Children” by explaining, “I was number one hundred and sixteen. I was trying to find myself; I was lost. I felt like I had been placed in a black garbage bag that was sealed. Everything was black, completely black to my eyes and I wondered if I was the only one to feel that way” (23). Children were terrified after being taken away from the parents and brought to these large schools were everything that they have known and grew up learning was slowly taken away one by one. Rosanna Deerchild’s mother attended one of these Residential Schools and it is through conversations with her that Deerchild retells her stories in calling down the

Among this group of “Nisei” was the Uchida family from Berkeley, California. Yoshiko Uchida, the youngest daughter in the Uchida family was a senior at the University of California at Berkeley at the time of the attacks. Years later, Yoshiko became a prolific writer of children’s books (Sato 66). In her book, “Desert Exile”, published in 1982, Uchida gave a personal account of the evacuation and incarceration of her family during World War II (Sato 66). Uchida’s book raises awareness to the specter of racial prejudice and the hope that no other group of Americans would have to endure this type of injustice and violation of their human rights (Sato 66).

By 1942, the tensions of war had drastically impacted both American and Canadian communities. The spread of xenophobia, the fear of espionage and sabotage, had gripped both nations, bringing with it Anti-Japanese propaganda. The threat of internal security after Pearl Harbor in 1941, and a growing fear of future attacks from Japan led president Franklin D. Roosevelt to introduce a policy known as ‘Executive Order 9066’. Executive Order 9066 was very similar to Prime Minister Mackenzie King’s in the early 1940s. These two policies allowed broth governments to relocate first generation Japanese immigrants called Issei and children of first generation Japanese immigrants called Nisei; to desolate areas of the country. In total 100,000 Japanese Americans and 22,000 Japanese Canadians were relocated.

David Suzuki is historically significant person that has done countless things that have help our planet today. David Suzuki is an environmentalist and a scientist who has a passion protect our environment. David Suzuki is a historically significant person because he creates awareness for everyone to help solve problems, he has won countless number of honorable awards and achievements, and he still continues to make a difference in our society today.

When the Japanese Americans migrated to the United States they were not welcomed with open arms. The Japanese Americans faced many hardships. The biggest hardships they faced were their treatment by the American people as well as by the American government after the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. Japanese Americans were taken from their homes and placed in internment camps for years with little to no explanation as to why. According to the United States government the Japanese Americans placement in internment camps “were justified on national security grounds” (Brooks), but the truth is Japanese Americans were placed in internment camps because of fear and racial prejudice. This event in history is important because it

George Takei, a Japanese-American actor and activist, discusses why he loves the country that was once unfaithful to him in his TEDTalk at Kyoto, Japan on June 2014. February 1942, Japanese-Americans were forced to stay in concentration camps by American soldiers ordering them out of their homes (Takei, 2014). George Takei and his family were once of many Japanese-American families that were sent off to the camps. After the war, everything was taken away from them, they had to build themselves up again from the beginning. Many young Japanese-Americans wanted to volunteer to fight for their country, when Pearl Harbour was bombed, but they were denied of service and categorized as the “enemy” (Takei, 2014). But when the government realized they

On December 7,1941 Japan raided the airbases across the islands of Pearl Harbour. The “sneak attack” targeted the United States Navy. It left 2400 army personnel dead and over a thousand Americans wounded. U.S. Navy termed it as “one of the great defining moments in history”1 President Roosevelt called it as “A Day of Infamy”. 2 As this attack shook the nation and the Japanese Americans became the immediate ‘focal point’. At that moment approximately 112,000 Persons of Japanese descent resided in coastal areas of Oregon, Washington and also in California and Arizona.3

The Psychological impacts put upon the Japanese-Canadians, weren’t just the horrible experiences, or the separation of family and friends. Rather the impact due to the discrimination of the Japanese-Canadians by the government and the rest of society had a deeper impact. The hatred of the Japanese-Canadians by the Government and the people had an Enormous impact on the people’s well being, and the way they viewed themselves. The government after the relocation sold most of the properties and confiscated possessions of the Japanese-Canadians. They also took out all of the Japanese Newspapers, restricted Telephone and mail Services, thus Preventing Communication. Furthermore, the media was full of “Anti-Japanese-Canadian Rhetoric.” Finally the Greatest hatred against came from not the media, nor the government, but the people around them. Sent to remote and deserted areas, or work/concentration camps,