Japanese Internment Camps during WWII

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

These are cases where the government created laws to be selectively enforced for one race. Then the military came and took innocent Japanese-Americans out of their homes only to put them in camps because of their race (National Japanese American Historical Society).

After the attack on the Pearl Harbor in 1941, a surprise military strike by the Japanese Navy air service, United States was thrilled and it provoked World War II. Two months after the attack on Pearl Harbor, U.S. President FDR ordered all Japanese-Americans regardless of their loyalty or citizenship, to evacuate the West Coast. This resulted over 127,000 people of Japanese descent relocate across the country in the Japanese Internment camps. Many of them were American Citizens but their crime was being of Japanese ancestry. They were forced to evacuate their homes and leave their jobs and in some cases family members were separated and put into different internment camps. There were ten internment camps were placed in “California, Idaho, Utah, Arizona, Wyoming, Colorado, and Arkansas”(History.com). However, until the camps were fully build, the Japanese people were held in temporary centers. In addition, almost two-thirds of the interns were Japanese Americans born in the United States and It made no difference that many of them had never even been to Japan. Also, Japanese-American veterans of World War I were forced to leave their homes and relocate in the internment camps. Japanese families in internment camps dined together, children were expected to attend school, and adults had the option of working for earning $5 per day. The United States government hoped that the internment camps could make it self-sufficient by farming to produce food.

Photograph #1 shows a large group of Japanese Americans lining up behind a table, for what appears to be their registration into a Japanese internment camp. Within the group, you can see looks of confusion and distress on most of the adult faces, as well as looks of confusion and crying from the children. Many of the Japanese Americans are carrying few belongings other than the man to the left with one bag in his hand, and the woman in front of him who has an item in her hands; it is implied that after registering their names with the United States government representatives at the table, they will be sent to the internment camps with what they have. With the confusion on their faces as well, it could be assumed that some people did not even know that they could take belongings with them to the camps. It could also be assumed that many in the line are not sure why they have to register in these camps, as they have been living normal American lives up until this point in 1942.

Two months after Pearl Harbor, President Roosevelt authorized “Executive order 9066”. Which made More than 110,000 Japanese in the U.S to relocate to internment camps for reason of “national security”. The United States feared that they’re could have been Japanese spies inside America so the government relocated most Japanese immigrants to camps. It was one of the saddest moments in America that the government of America took actions on innocent people just because their heritage. America’s internment camps are similar yet different to Hitler’s concentrations camps.

The Second World War was an international event which drastically impacted the world as a whole. With the war came a new found sense of mistrust throughout society. American and Canadian communities were divided due to the fear of espionage and sabotage, forms of spying which could help aid the enemy in war. This division promoted distrust, discrimination and violence toward Japanese immigrants and their children. To offset these fears resulting from war, Japanese Americans and Japanese Canadian citizens were forced into internment camps, resulting in a heightened sense of tension upon arrival home and finally the compensations of both US and Canadian governments

     For over a century, the United States has been one of the most powerful and influential states on the globe. However, every nation has made mistakes in its past. Throughout our country’s history, certain groups have had to endure horrible injustices: the enslavement of African-Americans, the removal of Native Americans, and discrimination against immigrants, women, homosexuals, and every other minority. During World War II, the government crossed the line between defending the nation and violating human rights, when it chose to relocate Japanese residents to internment camps. The actions taken by the U.S. government against Japanese Americans and Japanese living in the

While World War II had been ongoing since 1939, Japan had been fighting for the Axis powers, against the United States. In 1941, when Japan had attacked Pearl Harbor, the United States government had assumed the viewpoint that the Japanese were not to be trusted, and that the Japanese-American citizens of the United States were much the same. As such, they had resorted to establishing internment camps, or preventive labor prisons, so as to keep them in check and ostensibly to prevent further Japanese sabotage. However, the government’s actions were not fully justified, as several factors had interplayed into the circumstances that directly contradicted the intentions and visible results of the internment of the Japanese-Americans, in the social, political, economical, and cultural aspects. On the whole, the internment camps served as drastic measures which were not wholly without reasoning; contrarily, those factors in support of the internment camps did not override those which had gone against it, since the United States’ own legislation, in the form of the Constitution and other laws, had explicitly prevented the depriving of human rights, privileges, and pursuits, which had doubtless applied in light of the Japanese-Americans’ universal citizenship along the Pacific Coast in the early 1940s. As such, while the internment camps were not completely unjustified and without purpose from the viewpoint of the government, they did not align with standards of law and

Our president during World War II was Franklin D. Roosevelt. On February 19, 1942, he “authorized the internment of ten of thousands of American citizens of Japanese ancestry and resident aliens from Japan.”1 The attack on Pearl Harbor incited the fear against Japanese Americans, because the United States believed that Japanese Americans would turn their backs on the U.S. and be a threat to the security. This authorization was called the Presidential Executive Order 9066. Even though there was no evidence that they imposed threat, the military’s command was to take over and invade Japanese homes. The Japanese were ordered to live in internment camps in the West Coast. These camps were in horrible conditions and fenced with barbed wire. In the camps, the Japanese-American civilians created their own small city with their own doctors, food, and teachers.

Despite the abrupt news of internment, the Japanese Americans managed to quickly adapt to the newly provided environment. One of the ways that the Japanese Americans adapted to their new environment was by forming communities at the camps. This is one of the first things that the evacuees did at the camps, and they, with WRA, did so by establishing

Japanese-American’s before World War II were treated not good but not bad in the United States, even at the start of the war they were still treated the same. It wasn’t until the Japanese’s attack on December 7, 1941 at Pearl Harbor that everything changed for them. They were looked down on and that they were un-American to most Americans at the time and were treated very poorly. They were forced to live in a interment camp throughout the duration of the war and work there. No one really cared that they were being brought to camps to live except for some people that would eventually help them while their time in the camp and donate to them. The American government actions after this event changed every Japanese-Americans life forever.

On December 7th, 1941, Pearl Harbor was destroyed. The Japanese attacked the United States Naval Base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii during World War II. 2,300 Americans were killed in this bombing. After two months of the bombing, U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt signed the Executive order 9066. The Executive order 9066 demanded all Japanese Americans to leave the West coast. Many believed that the Japanese Americans were suspicious of a crime that they did not commit. This was a nightmare to not only Japanese Americans, but also to many Americans. In the Executive Order 9066, Franklin D. Roosevelt said, “Whereas the successful prosecution of the war requires every possible protection against espionage and against sabotage to national-defense material national-defense premises, and national-defense utilities.”

The Japanese-Americans were kicked out of their homes and were forced to live in internment camps.

Also according to the same video, in almost every camp their plumbing was constantly plugged up and since bringing in a plumber would cost more than they could handle, they didn’t bring one in. This is significant to notice because humans lived there but the camps were more dirty than a uncleaned toilet. In addition, evidence from PBS.com shows that deadly diseases like e. Coli were transmitted throughout the camps (e Coli is a disease you get from the feces of an animal or human being). Would you want to have those diseases? I do know that the camps helped america feel a lot safer. But this is also misleading because it didn’t help Japanese Americans feel safe. Additionally they didn’t want to pay for pest control due to expenses, there were many rats at the camps, resulting in a couple of cases of Rat-Bite Fever. Lastly evidence from archives.gov shows that they had to shower out in barrels outside which doesn’t sound THAT bad, but due to it being in the mountainous range of both Arizona and California. It was about 104℉ in the summer and sometimes was -2℉ in the winter. Which caused things like, dehydration, heat strokes, minor and major sun burn, frostbite and even 3 cases of death. All in all this suggest just how dirty, unsanitary and deadly the camps actually were. They were also enslaved too!

In the beginning, before doing research for my role, I believed it was wrong for a government to target a certain group of citizens for protection purposes. In 1942 during World War 2, that is what the United States government did to the Japanese American citizens. However, I began to think that maybe it was for the best at that time and place. While participating in this mock trial my thoughts went back and forth, trying to decide if it was the right thing to do or not.