Wednesday, March 3, 2010

Japanese-Americans Confined during World War II

http://www.bookmice.net/darkchilde/japan/japan/sign.jpg


Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor shook the entire nation and caused panic in many citizens that Japan would strike again in the United States. Rumors began to spread around that Japanese Americans were sabotaging the U.S. in support of Japan. Because of this, Japanese Americans faced prejudice even if they were American citizens. In early 1942, the War Department ordered Japanese Americans to evacuate from Hawaii. However, General Emmons, the governor of Hawaii, refused the order because removing the Japanese Americans would destroy the economy and US military operations.


In February 1942, President Roosevelt signed an order requiring people of Japanese descent living on the West Coast to be removed and placed in “relocation centers”, which were essentially prison camps. Approximately 110,000 Japanese Americans were relocated, two-thirds of which were Nisei (of Japanese descent but born in the United States). The US military justified this step as necessary for national security.


http://farrit.lili.org/files/farrit/images/Heart_mtn.jpg


http://www.bookmice.net/darkchilde/japan/japan/pbs/613.jpg

Families were forced to sell their homes, businesses, and possessions for low value. The confinement camps were barren and isolated, and children were separated from their parents for most of the day with the exception of breakfast. Life within the barbed-wire fences was both tragic and terrifying. In the end, no specific charges were filed against any Japanese Americans, and no evidence of sabotage was ever found.


Because of the injustice they faced, Japanese Americans fought for a very long time for compensation. In Korematsu v. United States in 1944, the Supreme Court justified the evacuation of Japanese Americans as a “military necessity.”

The Japanese American Citizens League (JACL) pushed the government for restitution to everyone who faced internment. Finally, in 1990, a $20,000 check was sent to every Japanese American who was confined in a relocation camp.

“We can never fully right the wrongs of the past. But we can take a clear stand for justice and recognize that serious injustices were done to Japanese Americans during World War II.” –President George Bush


National Memorial in Washington, DC

http://www.kestan.com/travel/dc/featurepage/njam/images/IMG_7794%20sculpture%20at%20Japanese%20American%20Memorial.jpg


http://www.nevansworld.com/images/japanese-american-memorial.jpg


-Mingming C.

10 comments:

yeahitsjim! said...

very interesting photos. they help describe the material your writing about. this seemed to be a perfect blog. good job!

zack said...

good job, i like the use of immages to get your point across, its a nice touch

Unknown said...

a very good insight on the topic. the pictures and the quote at the end gives the whole post a good ending and wrap up of what happened

Jesus G said...

Very thorough, overall a good summary of what happened. Nice usage of pictures. Possibly keep the font setting the same the next time?

Sheng-Han said...

Nice usage of photos, although you might want to resize and make them smaller next time. The content was great.

cradlo said...

I know many people have said this before me, but the photos are great. They really fit nicely with the rest of your posting. There are some grammar errors, but overall I thought it was a good posting.

Kiki G said...

I like the pictures a lot because it helps the reading have a visual.

Jonas said...

Great layout, use of quotes, and tying it into modern times. Very well done.

Yotam said...

the pictures in the article are amazing! they piece everything together and make it a very interesting article

Shany said...

the pictures helped explain the artilcle well. it was interesting