Essay about Japanese-American Internment During World War II

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the internment of Japanese Americans on the West coast of the United States. On going tension between the United States and Japan rose in the 1930’s due to Japan’s increasing power and because of this tension the bombing at Pearl Harbor occurred. This event then led the United States to join World War II. However it was the Executive Order of 9066 that officially led to the internment of Japanese Americans. Japanese Americans, some legal and illegal residents, were moved into internment camps between 1942-1946. The internment of Japanese Americans affected not only these citizens but the

Fear of another attack sparked government actions. First, Roosevelt issued “military areas” from which anyone could legally be excluded. Following this, he issued order 9066, allowing removal and internment of Japanese Americans. The War Relocation Authority (WRA) was formed to oversee these camps (Gorman). The fear created by Pearl Harbor and the war in general found an outlet in the mass prosecution of Japanese Americans.

Written in the 1940s, Arthur Miller’s play the crucible explores the hysteria, persecution, and lack of due process that characterized the 1692 Salem Trials. Arguably, the themes explored in this play resonate with many modern and historical events. Arthur Miller himself saw strong connection between the events surrounding the Red Scare in the 1950s. When juxtaposed with events of the crucible, themes of hysteria, persecution, and lack of due process also emerge from a study of the Japanese Internment Camps. In December 7 1941, one of the American colonies was attacked by Japan. After the Attack on Pearl Harbor, America was feared of the

Lieutenant General John L. DeWitt was chosen for the job of defending and protecting the West Coast. He became one of the biggest supporters of evacuating the Japanese. The FBI began investigating and arresting people along the coast who were suspected of spying for enemy countries. Not only Japanese Americans were suspected. Italians and Germans were also investigated and imprisoned (Alonso). This is one fact that shows that racism was not the reason the Japanese were evacuated. Japan was the country that attacked Pearl Harbor, not Italy or Germany. DeWitt was hearing false reports of acts of disloyalty to the U.S. and sabotage on the part of Japanese Americans including unusual radio activity caused by contacting Japanese vessels, farmers burning their fields in the shapes of markers to aid Japanese pilots, and fisherman monitoring and relaying to Japan the activity of the U.S. navy (Daniels, 29). Executive Order 9066, signed by President Roosevelt, gave the military permission to label areas "military areas"and to keep out people who were seen as threats (Daniels, Appendix). DeWitt named the west coast a military area in Proclamation 1 in March 1942. This gave him the right to remove all those who threatened the safety of the U.S. from the area. Because even 100 Japanese-Americans who were still loyal to Japan could compromise the safety of the U.S., DeWitt decided that all people of Japanese ancestry had to be

On December 7, 1941 the Japanese empire attacked Pearl Harbor. 2,400 Americans were killed and 1,200 injured. President Franklin D. Roosevelt immediately took action. In February 19, 1942 he signed the executive order 9066. This executive order gave military army’s immense power. They were to take everyone with Japanese ancestry to internment camps were they would be held captive. All of these military areas would exclude all the people of Japanese ancestry, just because they were considered “dangerous”. The Japanese people did not know if they would be imprisoned or deported. They would be imprisoned or deported even if they only had 1/16th of Japanese blood.

Thesis Internment and incarceration is nothing new in US History. Forced relocation and reservation systems of indigenous people, slavery, mass incarceration of people of colour-- all racially motivated ways for white Americans to further oppress people of colour in our society. Japanese Internment was no exception. During the World War II, people were given an excuse to harass and oppress innocent people from the descent of Axis powers. Japanese Internment was a product of paranoia and blatant racism on part of the American government, and the government reparations to each internee survivor were not effective as many Japanese Americans who left their lives behind were brought into worse poverty than before they were taken.

Japanese-Americans citizens in the Pacific Coast were interned during World War II (1939-1945) after the bombing of Pearl Harbor in December 7, 1941. The U.S. government did not do the right thing when they interned Japanese ancestry from the Pacific Coast in this time because Japanese citizens were interned mainly due to racist views towards them, prejudice views toward Japanese citizens, and the United States was at war with Japan.

February 21, 1942, Executive Order 9066 was put in order. It clearly states that the military “as deemed necessary or desirable” to remove or relocate any or all persons in the entire West Coast. The majority of the Japanese-Americans live on the West Coast. The United States need all the protection she can have, to prevent “espionage and sabotage”. Instead of not

As a result of the order, nearly 120,000 Japanese Americans were dispatched to makeshift “relocation” camps.Despite the internment of their family members, young Japanese-American men fought bravely in Italy, France and Germany between 1943 and 1945 as members of the U.S. Army’s 100th Battalion, 442nd Infantry. Just over two months after Pearl Harbor, U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt (1882-1945) signed into law Executive Order 9066, which resulted in the removal from their communities and the subsequent imprisonment of all Americans of Japanese descent who resided on the West Coast.

Despite the papers supposedly claiming Japanese American sabotage, the internment of US citizens of Japanese descent following the bombing of Pearl Harbor was not justified, resulting into violation of the Constitution’s Fifth and Fourteenth amendments.

As stated in our book, The Essential America, Idaho’s governor declared: “A good solution would be to send them all back to Japan the sink the island. They live like rats, breed like rats, and act like rats.” This attitude was widespread, and the government finally succumbed. President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order #9066 two months after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. This order stated that all Japanese Americans were to evacuate the West Coast.

After the Pearl Harbor bombing in Hawaii, over 127,000 people were taken from their homes and put into internment camps. (Japanese-American Internment) A portion of these people were US citizens with Japanese heritage. Japanese Internment camps were unnecessary, because the camps were created out of fear and suspicion, they took american citizens who had Japanese heritage and forced them into terrible camps, and the internment camps violated american citizens rights. Most people have heard of the German Nazi concentration camps.

After the Japanese government bombed Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, many people in the US became frightened and began to persecute Japanese

The Internment of Japanese- Americans during World War II is the relocation of Japanese-American into camps after the attack on Pearl Harbor also known as War Relocation Camps. About 120,000 Japanese- Americans citizens were relocated by the U.S. in 1942. This internment took place for about four years and later it was cancelled by the President and by the government. In January 1946, the relocation camps were closed which was after the five months of World War II. Japanese -American internment violates constitutional rights of the people.

Two and a half months after the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed an executive order 9066, in the spring of 1942. The order was to round-up Japanese Americans into one of the 10 internment camps. Roosevelt signed this order