SMITHSONIAN TRIBUTE TO THE JAPANESE AMERICAN COMMUNITIES
** Editor's Note: Personal stories are in the next post
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A MORE PERFECT UNION
http://americanhistory.si.edu/perfectunion/experience/index.html
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special words
The aim of the Constitution was not to create a 'perfect union'
none of the framers believed mortal beings were capable of
a 'perfect union.' They wanted instead to form a 'more perfect
union.'
The important thing is, we're still trying to accomplish that.
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Intro
John Chancellor: Introduction
Two centuries ago, the framers of the Constitution wrestled with the
fundamental problem of government: how to balance the rights of
individual citizens and minority groups against the need for order
and defense of the society itself.
This is the story of a group of Americans who suffered a great
wrong. The American Civil Liberties Union called it 'the worst
single wholesale violation of the civil rights of American citizens
in our history.'
The story began shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor, when this
country was mobilizing for a long war, and the future looked bleak,
and when some Americans wondered if the United States might lose.
The country made a big and tragic error in 1942, but we learned from
our mistakes, so we won't make them in the future.
The aim of the Constitution was not to create a 'perfect union'
none of the framers believed mortal beings were capable of
a 'perfect union.' They wanted instead to form a 'more perfect
union.'
The important thing is, we're still trying to accomplish that.
(John Chancellor Video, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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Issei: The First Generation
Mutsu H.: Getting Married
DG: Did your father do part of this ceremony?
MH: No, bishop did. It's Dr. Fox. And it's wedding funny was after
platform and now, "She is your wife. Will you please kiss her?" And
then he said, "Oh, no Japanese doesn't." And then Dr. Fox said, "No,
you have to. This is America. America people kiss wife." "No."
BF: And this was going on during the ceremony?
MH: Yes, in the ceremony-arguing. And finally Doctor. said, "Well,
then never complain later." He said, "Yeah, I know." And then okay.
We didn't kiss. [Laughs]
(Mutsu H. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
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U.S. Mainland
Mary Tsukamoto: Nisei in Florin
And so my husband's father was 75 years old. He had come to Florin
when he was 25, and so he had been in Florin more than 50 years, and
had raised and planted every grape, and all the persimmon trees and
walnut trees in our yard and everything. So we worried about the
elderly Isseis, about what would happen to Grandpa, who was no
longer young.
(Mary Tsukamoto Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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Crisis: Pearl Harbor
Akiko K.: No Longer an Equal American
Well, I'd just come home from church. And then we kept
hearing, "Pearl Harbor was bombed, Pearl Harbor was bombed." I had
no idea where Pearl Harbor was. My geography was not that
sophisticated. I had no idea, and my father said, "Uh-oh, there's
going to be trouble." And I said, "Well, how come?" He said, "Well,
Japan just bombed Pearl Harbor." And, he says, "We're at war with
Japan." But, I thought, "Why should it bother me?" You know, "I'm an
American." And then he said, "You know, we are aliens." My
parents... "We don't have the citizenship, so they're gonna' do
something, we'll probably get taken away." But at that time, my
parents had no feeling that we would be removed because-so they were
saying my brother would have to take on the responsibility to keep
the family together, because they may be removed or put into camp or
whatever. And, then when I went back to school that following
morning, you know, December 8th, one of the teachers said, "You
people bombed Pearl Harbor." And I'm going, "My people?" All of a
sudden my Japaneseness became very aware to me. I no longer felt I'm
an equal American, that I felt kind of threatened and nervous about
it.
(Akiko K. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
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Constitution and Executive Order
Mary Tsukamoto: Learning of E.O.
We were shocked to realize that the President had signed this. We
just kept saying, "But... we live out in the valley, not on the West
Coast, not near, a... a airport or a naval base." Surely, you know,
they wouldn't think that we needed to move too because we were busy
raising strawberries, and harvesting crops that would really help
our nation. We couldn't believe that they would need all of us to
quit our work to produce our fruit, food for victory... and then be
put away.
(Mary Tsukamoto Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Morgan Yamanaka: No Possibility of Resistance
There was no question of refusing or resisting that order. And I
think one has to appreciate what our parents, the immigrant parents
taught us: "Always respect order coming from the people above you.
Respect your teachers, respect the government, respect the law. Be
obedient, be reserved, be a good Japanese according to good Japanese
traditions. We as parents are telling you to do what your teachers
say you do." What do our teachers say? "Be aggressive. Say your
peace. If you disagree, say you disagree." They were often in
conflict here.
(Morgan Yamanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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Process
Sue Embrey: Registering After the Notice
These men in jeeps, they went around posting the notices up, and in
our area everyone was supposed to report to the Union Church. So my
oldest brother went down and he signed in all of us. And my Mother
felt that we should all go together because she didn't know what
would happen if we were separated. So he got a family number for all
of us, I think I still remember it... 2614.
(Sue Embrey Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Rae T.: FBI Search
RT: I didn't realize the enormity until much later, but I soon found
out what it meant for all of us because they came for my dad that
night, early in the morning of December 8th. And...
AI: What happened?
RT: They picked him up. Well, I was sleeping in a bedroom on the
main floor, which was fairly close to my folks' room; in other
words, not quite adjacent. But I was awakened by this commotion. ...
Oh, my, my mother. I told you she's very outspoken. And she is the
one that I heard. I did not hear my father say anything, but my
mother went on a rampage. I mean, she didn't care if they were FBI
men or not, and she was proclaiming to them that she was "an
American citizen," and she "had the rights of an American citizen,
and how dare they come breaking into my house." [Laughs] And oh yes,
I heard her. And I wasn't sure what was going on. I really didn't
know that they were going to take my dad. I just thought that it was
a little it must be a very wild event for my mother, for sure,
because she was really carrying on, but that didn't matter to them.
(Rae T. Interview, Copyright 1998 Densho Project)
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Moving Out:
Mary Tsukamoto: Getting Ready
We just figured they were sending us up in the mountains
somewhere... you know, to be... And so I started to gather rice,
small sacks of rice and... and collected the packages of dehydrated
soup and jello and things that were light, so that they wouldn't be
such a heavy baggage for us to carry because they said you could
only take what you carry. And we knew we had to take blankets and
sheets and bedding and things as well as some of our clothes. And we
had no idea whether we were going to a hot place or a cold place, so
our family was quite concerned about how to get ready.
(Mary Tsukamoto Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Morgan Yamanaka: One Week to Leave
We had one week to get ready. And what we could carry would include:
bedding eating utensils and clothing. Questions arose: Where are we
going? we don't know, we're not gonna tell you. How long are we
going? We don't know , we' won't tell you. There was a rumor that we
were being sent to Manzana, and no, that didn't prove true, we were
sent to Santa Nita racetrack.
(Morgan Yamanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Sue Embrey: We are American Citizens
I had a neighbor who said something to me toward the last few days
before we left Los Angeles. He says, "You know, we're American
Citizens, and we really could fight this thing." And, you know, I
was just 18. It's hard for me to believe that other people who may
have been older than I hadn't thought of it, there were lawyers in
our community. I just had the feeling that this was something the
whole community was going to go through because, even though there
were alternatives, maybe this was the best way to... to tell the
government that, you know, we're loyal, and we'll do whatever we
need to do in order to help in the war effort. And... because there
was so much suspicion cast on the Japanese population regardless of
whether they were citizens or not, that maybe this was the only way
out.
(Sue Embrey Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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First Stop: Assembly Centers
Mary Tsukamoto: Treated Like Animals
And I never will forget, the train stopped and we got off and they
put us on a big truck. It looked like one of those cattle cars.
Anyway, we stood up because there were no chairs for us to sit on
this pickup and crowded into this truck. They drove us to the Fresno
Assembly Center. And then we got off there and they told us to get
in and there was the barbed wire gate, and the MPs around there and
uh... We had to go in through that gate and after we got in there we
knew that the gate was shut. And so, we saw all these people behind
the fence, looking out, hanging onto the wire, and looking out
because they were anxious to know who was coming in. But I will
never forget the shocking feeling that human beings were behind this
fence like animals [crying]. And we were going to also lose our
freedom and walk inside of that gate and find ourselves... cooped up
there. And the police, the MPs with their guns and some of them had
bayonets. I don't know what they were going to do with it, if they
thought we were gong to run away I guess. But anyway, when the gates
were shut, we knew that we had lost something that was very
precious; that we were no longer free.
(Mary Tsukamoto Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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Permanent Camps:
Morgan Yamanaka: Arriving at Camps
We were sent... to Topaz, from uh, Santa Anita; we were again not
told exactly where we were going. All I remember was going through
desert country that was Barstow god-forsaken country, never been
back there. Somehow wound up in this middle of nowhere...
absolutely. And that's all I remember. This stark, naked... I had
never been out of San Francisco, and to be dropped in the middle of
Utah desert was in retrospect, it was a traumatic experience. To
think of it at that point, it was shocking at best. Sand, dust,
nothing except these tar-paper buildings. Middle of nowhere.
(Morgan Yamanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Mutsu H.: A Human Being
Amache camp guarded by very young soldiers. One time soldier stop me
and, "Hey you." "You want to talk to me?" He said, "Yeah. Are you a
human being?" I said, "Yes. Don't you think so?" "Yeah. You look
like a human being, but when I came from South Carolina, they said
that the Jap is not a human being. They are like a gorilla so if you
want to, kill them. That's what I learned when I came. And then I
looked from top every day and you people look like a human being,
and you people all wearing beautiful clothes."
(Mutsu H. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
Masao W.: Rejection is Very Hard
You grow up thinking you're a citizen, and you want to be a part of
this society you're in, and then the, let's say the weight of the
rejection, is something that was pretty unexpected. But when reality
sets in, like the "Camp Harmony" and these little shacks in
Minidoka, then the real negative things start coming to your head,
you know. "What the hell is this?" And I think it bothered a lot of
us tremendously. You try to be a good citizen, you try to do what
you're supposed to be doing, and the rejection is very hard,
difficult.
(Masao W. Interview, Copyright 1998 Densho Project)
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Conditions
Nancy K. Araki: A Child's Perspective
We were in Amache for about six to eight months, I.. I'm not quite
sure, but then we left camp and went to Provo, Utah and spent
probably about another six to eight months. I started kindergarten
there and that was very traumatic. It was really difficult, both
because I just felt really alone and just having the experience of
not knowing where I am, and who I was in relationship to everything
else, and there was just some hostility, um within the township. For
example, you know, I couldn't get an ice cream cone... and that was,
you know, for an adult, that seems, probably doesn't mean too much,
but for a little kid, it meant a lot.
(Nancy Araki Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Frank Y.: Sand and Food
It was very, very dusty. The dust was powdery fine and if I recall,
it was about 3 or 4 inches deep. So every time you take a step there
was just a puff of smoke, I mean of dust, and if you had even the
slightest breeze... wow, you're in like a fog. And when you go to
the mess hall to eat, of course when you chew the food, you can feel
the grit of the sand. And it's amazing, even that, you get used to
it. I gradually got used to the mixture of sand and food. [Laughs]
It was terrible.
(Frank Y. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
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Work:
Sue Embrey: Working for the War Effort
Then the end of May, they set up a camouflage net factory, which the
U.S. Army wanted to put in Manzanar and have people who really
wanted to help in the war effort uh, make camouflage nets. So, they
said we would get paid for that. So, a lot of us went down, and I
helped make camouflage nets for the Army for maybe a month or so.
And then it created a lot of friction in the camp itself because
only American citizens could, could work there. And a lot of the
resident-aliens, you know, our parents group, who wanted to help,
couldn't do it. And then there was also a lot of agitation
about 'why were you doing this when you were put in a camp...'
and 'you shouldn't be helping in the war effort' and so, I think
they closed it down later.
(Sue Embrey Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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Loyalty
Morgan Yamanaka: A No-No Response
Number one, If I had been in San Francisco, chances of me saying 'No-
No'... inconceivable, being an athlete, and a fairly good student,
dean's list, and academic standing Aloha high School, university
bound... I would have been the first one to volunteer. You put me...
and I become dissatisfied, because of the treatment... OK, you
isolate a certain group, as I said earlier, it becomes a question
of 'we' against 'they.'
(Morgan Yamanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Mary Tsukamoto: Respect for Government and Elders
You know, we were so naive, and I guess, you know, we should have
known what Americanism really meant. But we were young, and
inexperienced, and uh, I hadn't trained to be a lawyer or anything
like that, like Minoru Yasui. So we had no thought about defying the
government. And of course the Japanese people respect the elderly,
and those who are important, the President of the United States, we
wouldn't, you know, even if he's wrong, we wouldn't say anything.
And we would respect those people, and so, that's the way we felt
about our government. We wouldn't do anything do defy the
government... Different from our day, you know, where the society
has changed. But in those days, no one not just the Japanese
people, but the rest of America didn't protest or defy. There
weren't any marches and things like that in those days. Very few
protested, you know, and we were at war, and we should have been
united and cooperating and helping our government. We were wrapping
bandages and taking Red Cross first-aid classes and all, even after
the war, because we felt this was the thing an American should do.
And so, never did it occur to me, that we would defy the government
and refuse to go. That thought never came, though we wished we
could, you know, we never did say it, even.
(Mary Tsukamoto Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Mutsu H.: Nisei Means American Citizen
I asked that, "What your father think about the war?", and then he
said, "He's a Japanese. I'm a Nisei. And when I was small and
then, "I owe allegiance to the flag of United States of America." I
was memorizing. When he came and said, he listened, "Can you
understand what that mean?" And I said, "I'm memorizing," and he
said, "Think. Really think. And then if you are a Nisei, that means
American citizen. If you memorize this one, you have to obey. Learn
what it mean. So don't forget, America is your country." That's what
he said. So he, after the camp father was in camp, mother was in
camp and he was a volunteer to the war.
(Mutsu H. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
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Expatriation and Repatriation
Frank K.: What Would You Do in Japan?
And my mother told me the story of how she pleaded with him to
sign "yes". She said, "You know, what would you do in Japan?" She
knew, at that time, if you didn't sign yes and you couldn't prove
you were a citizen that they were going to send you off (to)
someplace else and maybe exchange you for Caucasian people that were
trapped in Japan. She said, she was saying to him, "What would you
do in Japan? You can't write Japanese, you can't read Japanese," you
know, "What would you do there?" And she, she ended up saying, "I'd
rather hang myself than go to Japan." And my dad was so angry with
all this frustration that he said, "Go ahead!"
(Frank K. Interview, Copyright 1998 Densho Project)
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The Draft
Frank K.: Irony of the Draft
...we were unjustly put into this concentration camp I didn't say
concentration to this camp, and if you will restore our lifestyle
like before this evacuation. Yes, I would be more than willing to
serve in the armed services. If not, I will not.
(Frank Y. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
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Soldier's Life
Chet Tanaka: Your Helmet is Your Security
In training, it's heavy, and you didn't want to wear it too much,
but once you got into action, gee, you would put helmet all over
your body if you had enough helmet... [laughs] It's a security
blanket, really gave you a sense of security.
(Chet Tanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Chet Tanaka: How Can You Love a Gun?
So in spite of the relative slowness, we grew to love this gun how
can you love a gun but for that type of work, this was
indispensable... it became part of you. At 9.3 pounds when you're
training, it's too heavy. In combat, it's light as a feather. A
great weapon. You wore it like you wear your shoes, or your helmet,
or your backpack. You just... without it, you just felt, uh,
undressed.
(Chet Tanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Chet Tanaka: 'B' is for Breakfast
you'd start eating the axle grease, or whatever's in here... this is
a supper menu... 'S' [points to box] they had a 'B' for breakfast,
and I guess an 'L' for lunch. But during combat or whatever, you
didn't notice what letters are on here, you didn't much care, you
just grabbed a bunch of boxes and stuffed them in your shirt, and
you start taking off... But they were the staple for front line
fighting.
(Chet Tanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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Military Intelligence
Francis F.: Importance of Kibeis
I don't know how much you know about the MIS, but in most of their
practical applications, the real linguists in MIS were guys educated
in Japan. They were Kibei. And it was kind of ironic, because jeez,
you know DeWitt went on for a half a page justifying the evacuation
of Japanese... One of the things that he pointed out was that,
really these, that these Nisei were, couldn't be trusted because
they had all this knowledge of Japanese and Japanese culture. And
Kibeis were the worst of all because they were educated in Japan.
And it's kind of ironic to me, that they took us and threw us into
camp for that very reason, and the recruiters came in, really, and
were recruiting us for that very same expertise... And really,
especially the Kibei. If it weren't for the Kibei, I don't think
they would have had a successful MIS. And cripes, I mean... boy,
DeWitt had nothing but bad to say about them guys.
(Francis F. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
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Ironies of Service
Masao W.: Be a Part of Society
Well, initially, I was wondering, "What the hell is this?" I think
those of us who did react to it positively, I think we did the right
thing. And to this day-well, regardless of what people think I
think we did the right thing in volunteering after being kicked in
the butt... Because, gee, if you were going to live here, you've got
to be a part of society, you've got to do what is expected of you.
And I had no problem volunteering. I don't know which was worse:
being locked up in camp or going off to war.
(Masao W. Interview, Copyright 1998 Densho Project)
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Post-War
Nancy K. Araki: Remembering the Camps
You know in the Japanese community, what happened is that
afterwards, even among my age as we were going through grade school
or junior high or high school even, whenever you meet someone, you
say, "Oh, what camp were you in?" People five years younger than
myself, you know, that's not a question. Or maybe it is, in the
sense, "Where were you born?" and it could have well been in a camp.
But for us, growing up, in grade school even "What camp were you
in?" or "He was in Tule Lake. That's why he got put back..." or
comments like that. And so, in some ways, it was very active, you
know in our minds and in the discussions though never took place to
pursue it, other that to maybe clarify: "Mom, you know, when I got
this scar, my brother did this, this, this, was that in Topaz, or
was that in Amache?" Or some kind of reference like that.
(Nancy Araki Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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Court Cases
Sue Embrey: To Correct Democracy
For myself, I think I was really disillusioned about democracy, and
what the Constitution stood for. Because all my life, and all
through school, I was in it for 12 years, that's all I was learning,
and all of a sudden, it really didn't mean anything when it came to
my own personal freedom, and my civil liberties. I guess when I
left, and went to the mid-west, and began to meet a lot of people,
who couldn't believe that I had been treated that way, and that all
of us, you know, had been treated that way, that it occurred to me
that the government really wasn't doing something that the entire
population supported them. It was just a governmental order, which
many people didn't know about. And that if they knew about it they
might have objected to it. And I think gradually, I began to realize
that there are lots of things that we needed to do to correct
democracy, to correct, you know our own personal lives, and that I
needed to do something, you know, about it if I felt strongly enough
about different things.
(Sue Embrey Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Gordon Hirabayashi: Violation of Exclusion Order
I was charged with uh, violation of uh, exclusion order. And then,
subsequently I was given a count two, uh, curfew violation by my own
admission. They said: 'If you feel this way, what'd you do about the
curfew?' I said: 'Well, uh what were you doing the last coupla'
nights, were you out after eight?' And he says 'Yeah.' And I
said: 'Well, so was I.' And he said: 'Oh, then you violated the
curfew.' And he put me down. So those were the charges against me.
The uh, instruction (I'm condensing this) but the instruction of the
judge to the jury uh, as they were to leave was: 'You can forget all
that Constitutional discussion by the defense. The Western Defense
Command order is: That all persons of Japanese ancestry both alien
and non-alien must abide by these orders. You are to determine first
of all whether he is of Japanese ancestry. If he is, did he abide by
these orders?' And, all of those questions were admitted by me.
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Apologies and Redress
Frank Y.: Is $20,000 a Remedy?
That money that was sent to us, does that remedy everything that was
done? Can you imagine the Jews in Germany, saying, "Oh, they're
going to give us $20,000 so now that's all right," What the Germans
did to them. No. It's wrong. It should never be done again. And it's
the same with the evacuation of Japanese; it should never be done
again. ... It could be any other people.
(Frank Y. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
Rae T.: Hopes for Redress
I was a little cynical. I thought, "Oh, this will never happen,
$20,000, ha, ha, ha." Well, my mother, oh, she was so sure; "When I
get my $20,000..." I mean, she was sure that it was gonna happen;
and the rest of us, "Well, if it happens, it happens. If it doesn't,
it doesn't." But she was the one who looked forward to it most, and
then she died the year that redress was finally passed. And it's
just a really sad thing for me that she never, she never got to see
that because she would have really enjoyed it, the fact that there
was some justice after all. Because here is this woman who was
yelling about constitutional rights in 1941, and she waited all
these years, but she knew it was coming. ... But, anyway, she passed
away before it could finally be given to her.
(Rae T. Interview, Copyright 1998 Densho Project)
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Repairing the Constitution
Gordon Hirabayashi: Constant Vigilance
I would also say that if you believe in something, if you think the
Constitution is a good one, and if you think the Constitution
protects you, you better make sure that the Constitution is actively
operating... and uh, in other words "constant vigilance". Otherwise,
it's a scrap of paper. We had the Constitution to protect us in
1942. It didn't because the will of the people weren't behind it.
(Gordon Hirabayashi Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian
Institution)
Mary Tsukamoto: Will of the People
America is a land with wonderful possibilities and a beautiful
ideal, and the United States Constitution makes great promises for
us and Liberty is a very meaningful thing. As we celebrated Ms
Liberty's 100th birthday, we realized, what it could mean to our
people. But we have to be sincere, and make it ring true. And so, in
order to do that, we need to protect this fragile democracy. It
depends on human feelings, and the quality of leadership and courage
of the leaders are the ones that will determine which way it will
go. But the people need to insist that; insist on having courageous
leaders, people with integrity, people who are honest and will
uphold the Constitution to the letter.
(Mary Tsukamoto Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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Japanese Americans Today
Sparky Matsunaga: We Were Born on American Soil
We were born on American soil, consequently, under the Constitution,
we were Americans by birth. Of course we couldn't vote for the
President, uh, because we were not a state. We had no representation
in the Congress of the United States, so after the war, uh we
thought we should be recognized, fully, uh and... full recognition
would mean... making Hawaii a state of the Union.
(Sparky Matsunaga Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Daniel Inyoue: The Price Was Very Heavy
It was a time when some of us had to take extraordinary steps when
our Constitution did not require it, to prove to our neighbors that
we were worthy of being called Americans. The price was very heavy.
There was much blood that had to be shed. But looking back, I can
say with pride that I was part of it.
(Daniel Inouye Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Morgan Yamanaka: Could it Happen Again?
Today, I don't think this would ever happen to ethnic Japanese... at
this point on. In the 1940s we had no power in Washington. Today, we
have Senators, we have Congress people, we have mayors of cities of
the United States, we have governors of ethnic Japanese. This would
never happen with the ethnic Japanese community in the United
States... but it might happen with another group, with no power. And
therefore, I feel the ethnic Japanese community has a responsibility
to keep on pushing this knowledge. It won't happen to ethnic
Japanese, I'm pretty sure of that, but I don't want it to happen to
any other group of people.
(Morgan Yamanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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IMMIGRATION
http://americanhistory.si.edu/perfectunion/non-
flash/immigration_main.html
The first large groups of Asian immigrants reaching Hawaii a U.S.
territory and the United States in the late 19th century faced
racial prejudice. Restrictive laws in Hawaii and the U.S.
specifically limited the rights of Asian immigrants to own property
and to become citizens. Before 1907, most Japanese immigrants to the
U.S. settled on the West Coast and excelled in the cultivation of
marginal lands. As successful farmers, fruit growers, fishermen, and
small businessmen, their ability to do well with little and to
overcome great odds made them objects of envy by some members of the
white community. Set apart by their physical appearance, they became
further isolated from the white mainstream as envy fed racial
hostility.
===============
special story of getting married and picture brides
Mutsu H.: Getting Married
DG: Did your father do part of this ceremony?
MH: No, bishop did. It's Dr. Fox. And it's wedding funny was after
platform and now, "She is your wife. Will you please kiss her?" And
then he said, "Oh, no Japanese doesn't." And then Dr. Fox said, "No,
you have to. This is America. America people kiss wife." "No."
BF: And this was going on during the ceremony?
MH: Yes, in the ceremony-arguing. And finally Doctor. said, "Well,
then never complain later." He said, "Yeah, I know." And then okay.
We didn't kiss. [Laughs]
(Mutsu H. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
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U.S. Mainland
Mary Tsukamoto: Nisei in Florin
And so my husband's father was 75 years old. He had come to Florin
when he was 25, and so he had been in Florin more than 50 years, and
had raised and planted every grape, and all the persimmon trees and
walnut trees in our yard and everything. So we worried about the
elderly Isseis, about what would happen to Grandpa, who was no
longer young.
(Mary Tsukamoto Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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Crisis: Pearl Harbor
Akiko K.: No Longer an Equal American
Well, I'd just come home from church. And then we kept
hearing, "Pearl Harbor was bombed, Pearl Harbor was bombed." I had
no idea where Pearl Harbor was. My geography was not that
sophisticated. I had no idea, and my father said, "Uh-oh, there's
going to be trouble." And I said, "Well, how come?" He said, "Well,
Japan just bombed Pearl Harbor." And, he says, "We're at war with
Japan." But, I thought, "Why should it bother me?" You know, "I'm an
American." And then he said, "You know, we are aliens." My
parents... "We don't have the citizenship, so they're gonna' do
something, we'll probably get taken away." But at that time, my
parents had no feeling that we would be removed because-so they were
saying my brother would have to take on the responsibility to keep
the family together, because they may be removed or put into camp or
whatever. And, then when I went back to school that following
morning, you know, December 8th, one of the teachers said, "You
people bombed Pearl Harbor." And I'm going, "My people?" All of a
sudden my Japaneseness became very aware to me. I no longer felt I'm
an equal American, that I felt kind of threatened and nervous about
it.
(Akiko K. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
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Constitution and Executive Order
Mary Tsukamoto: Learning of E.O.
We were shocked to realize that the President had signed this. We
just kept saying, "But... we live out in the valley, not on the West
Coast, not near, a... a airport or a naval base." Surely, you know,
they wouldn't think that we needed to move too because we were busy
raising strawberries, and harvesting crops that would really help
our nation. We couldn't believe that they would need all of us to
quit our work to produce our fruit, food for victory... and then be
put away.
(Mary Tsukamoto Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Morgan Yamanaka: No Possibility of Resistance
There was no question of refusing or resisting that order. And I
think one has to appreciate what our parents, the immigrant parents
taught us: "Always respect order coming from the people above you.
Respect your teachers, respect the government, respect the law. Be
obedient, be reserved, be a good Japanese according to good Japanese
traditions. We as parents are telling you to do what your teachers
say you do." What do our teachers say? "Be aggressive. Say your
peace. If you disagree, say you disagree." They were often in
conflict here.
(Morgan Yamanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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Process
Sue Embrey: Registering After the Notice
These men in jeeps, they went around posting the notices up, and in
our area everyone was supposed to report to the Union Church. So my
oldest brother went down and he signed in all of us. And my Mother
felt that we should all go together because she didn't know what
would happen if we were separated. So he got a family number for all
of us, I think I still remember it... 2614.
(Sue Embrey Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Rae T.: FBI Search
RT: I didn't realize the enormity until much later, but I soon found
out what it meant for all of us because they came for my dad that
night, early in the morning of December 8th. And...
AI: What happened?
RT: They picked him up. Well, I was sleeping in a bedroom on the
main floor, which was fairly close to my folks' room; in other
words, not quite adjacent. But I was awakened by this commotion. ...
Oh, my, my mother. I told you she's very outspoken. And she is the
one that I heard. I did not hear my father say anything, but my
mother went on a rampage. I mean, she didn't care if they were FBI
men or not, and she was proclaiming to them that she was "an
American citizen," and she "had the rights of an American citizen,
and how dare they come breaking into my house." [Laughs] And oh yes,
I heard her. And I wasn't sure what was going on. I really didn't
know that they were going to take my dad. I just thought that it was
a little it must be a very wild event for my mother, for sure,
because she was really carrying on, but that didn't matter to them.
(Rae T. Interview, Copyright 1998 Densho Project)
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Moving Out:
Mary Tsukamoto: Getting Ready
We just figured they were sending us up in the mountains
somewhere... you know, to be... And so I started to gather rice,
small sacks of rice and... and collected the packages of dehydrated
soup and jello and things that were light, so that they wouldn't be
such a heavy baggage for us to carry because they said you could
only take what you carry. And we knew we had to take blankets and
sheets and bedding and things as well as some of our clothes. And we
had no idea whether we were going to a hot place or a cold place, so
our family was quite concerned about how to get ready.
(Mary Tsukamoto Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Morgan Yamanaka: One Week to Leave
We had one week to get ready. And what we could carry would include:
bedding eating utensils and clothing. Questions arose: Where are we
going? we don't know, we're not gonna tell you. How long are we
going? We don't know , we' won't tell you. There was a rumor that we
were being sent to Manzana, and no, that didn't prove true, we were
sent to Santa Nita racetrack.
(Morgan Yamanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Sue Embrey: We are American Citizens
I had a neighbor who said something to me toward the last few days
before we left Los Angeles. He says, "You know, we're American
Citizens, and we really could fight this thing." And, you know, I
was just 18. It's hard for me to believe that other people who may
have been older than I hadn't thought of it, there were lawyers in
our community. I just had the feeling that this was something the
whole community was going to go through because, even though there
were alternatives, maybe this was the best way to... to tell the
government that, you know, we're loyal, and we'll do whatever we
need to do in order to help in the war effort. And... because there
was so much suspicion cast on the Japanese population regardless of
whether they were citizens or not, that maybe this was the only way
out.
(Sue Embrey Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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First Stop: Assembly Centers
Mary Tsukamoto: Treated Like Animals
And I never will forget, the train stopped and we got off and they
put us on a big truck. It looked like one of those cattle cars.
Anyway, we stood up because there were no chairs for us to sit on
this pickup and crowded into this truck. They drove us to the Fresno
Assembly Center. And then we got off there and they told us to get
in and there was the barbed wire gate, and the MPs around there and
uh... We had to go in through that gate and after we got in there we
knew that the gate was shut. And so, we saw all these people behind
the fence, looking out, hanging onto the wire, and looking out
because they were anxious to know who was coming in. But I will
never forget the shocking feeling that human beings were behind this
fence like animals [crying]. And we were going to also lose our
freedom and walk inside of that gate and find ourselves... cooped up
there. And the police, the MPs with their guns and some of them had
bayonets. I don't know what they were going to do with it, if they
thought we were gong to run away I guess. But anyway, when the gates
were shut, we knew that we had lost something that was very
precious; that we were no longer free.
(Mary Tsukamoto Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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Permanent Camps:
Morgan Yamanaka: Arriving at Camps
We were sent... to Topaz, from uh, Santa Anita; we were again not
told exactly where we were going. All I remember was going through
desert country that was Barstow god-forsaken country, never been
back there. Somehow wound up in this middle of nowhere...
absolutely. And that's all I remember. This stark, naked... I had
never been out of San Francisco, and to be dropped in the middle of
Utah desert was in retrospect, it was a traumatic experience. To
think of it at that point, it was shocking at best. Sand, dust,
nothing except these tar-paper buildings. Middle of nowhere.
(Morgan Yamanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Mutsu H.: A Human Being
Amache camp guarded by very young soldiers. One time soldier stop me
and, "Hey you." "You want to talk to me?" He said, "Yeah. Are you a
human being?" I said, "Yes. Don't you think so?" "Yeah. You look
like a human being, but when I came from South Carolina, they said
that the Jap is not a human being. They are like a gorilla so if you
want to, kill them. That's what I learned when I came. And then I
looked from top every day and you people look like a human being,
and you people all wearing beautiful clothes."
(Mutsu H. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
Masao W.: Rejection is Very Hard
You grow up thinking you're a citizen, and you want to be a part of
this society you're in, and then the, let's say the weight of the
rejection, is something that was pretty unexpected. But when reality
sets in, like the "Camp Harmony" and these little shacks in
Minidoka, then the real negative things start coming to your head,
you know. "What the hell is this?" And I think it bothered a lot of
us tremendously. You try to be a good citizen, you try to do what
you're supposed to be doing, and the rejection is very hard,
difficult.
(Masao W. Interview, Copyright 1998 Densho Project)
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Conditions
Nancy K. Araki: A Child's Perspective
We were in Amache for about six to eight months, I.. I'm not quite
sure, but then we left camp and went to Provo, Utah and spent
probably about another six to eight months. I started kindergarten
there and that was very traumatic. It was really difficult, both
because I just felt really alone and just having the experience of
not knowing where I am, and who I was in relationship to everything
else, and there was just some hostility, um within the township. For
example, you know, I couldn't get an ice cream cone... and that was,
you know, for an adult, that seems, probably doesn't mean too much,
but for a little kid, it meant a lot.
(Nancy Araki Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Frank Y.: Sand and Food
It was very, very dusty. The dust was powdery fine and if I recall,
it was about 3 or 4 inches deep. So every time you take a step there
was just a puff of smoke, I mean of dust, and if you had even the
slightest breeze... wow, you're in like a fog. And when you go to
the mess hall to eat, of course when you chew the food, you can feel
the grit of the sand. And it's amazing, even that, you get used to
it. I gradually got used to the mixture of sand and food. [Laughs]
It was terrible.
(Frank Y. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
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Work:
Sue Embrey: Working for the War Effort
Then the end of May, they set up a camouflage net factory, which the
U.S. Army wanted to put in Manzanar and have people who really
wanted to help in the war effort uh, make camouflage nets. So, they
said we would get paid for that. So, a lot of us went down, and I
helped make camouflage nets for the Army for maybe a month or so.
And then it created a lot of friction in the camp itself because
only American citizens could, could work there. And a lot of the
resident-aliens, you know, our parents group, who wanted to help,
couldn't do it. And then there was also a lot of agitation
about 'why were you doing this when you were put in a camp...'
and 'you shouldn't be helping in the war effort' and so, I think
they closed it down later.
(Sue Embrey Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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Loyalty
Morgan Yamanaka: A No-No Response
Number one, If I had been in San Francisco, chances of me saying 'No-
No'... inconceivable, being an athlete, and a fairly good student,
dean's list, and academic standing Aloha high School, university
bound... I would have been the first one to volunteer. You put me...
and I become dissatisfied, because of the treatment... OK, you
isolate a certain group, as I said earlier, it becomes a question
of 'we' against 'they.'
(Morgan Yamanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Mary Tsukamoto: Respect for Government and Elders
You know, we were so naive, and I guess, you know, we should have
known what Americanism really meant. But we were young, and
inexperienced, and uh, I hadn't trained to be a lawyer or anything
like that, like Minoru Yasui. So we had no thought about defying the
government. And of course the Japanese people respect the elderly,
and those who are important, the President of the United States, we
wouldn't, you know, even if he's wrong, we wouldn't say anything.
And we would respect those people, and so, that's the way we felt
about our government. We wouldn't do anything do defy the
government... Different from our day, you know, where the society
has changed. But in those days, no one not just the Japanese
people, but the rest of America didn't protest or defy. There
weren't any marches and things like that in those days. Very few
protested, you know, and we were at war, and we should have been
united and cooperating and helping our government. We were wrapping
bandages and taking Red Cross first-aid classes and all, even after
the war, because we felt this was the thing an American should do.
And so, never did it occur to me, that we would defy the government
and refuse to go. That thought never came, though we wished we
could, you know, we never did say it, even.
(Mary Tsukamoto Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Mutsu H.: Nisei Means American Citizen
I asked that, "What your father think about the war?", and then he
said, "He's a Japanese. I'm a Nisei. And when I was small and
then, "I owe allegiance to the flag of United States of America." I
was memorizing. When he came and said, he listened, "Can you
understand what that mean?" And I said, "I'm memorizing," and he
said, "Think. Really think. And then if you are a Nisei, that means
American citizen. If you memorize this one, you have to obey. Learn
what it mean. So don't forget, America is your country." That's what
he said. So he, after the camp father was in camp, mother was in
camp and he was a volunteer to the war.
(Mutsu H. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
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Expatriation and Repatriation
Frank K.: What Would You Do in Japan?
And my mother told me the story of how she pleaded with him to
sign "yes". She said, "You know, what would you do in Japan?" She
knew, at that time, if you didn't sign yes and you couldn't prove
you were a citizen that they were going to send you off (to)
someplace else and maybe exchange you for Caucasian people that were
trapped in Japan. She said, she was saying to him, "What would you
do in Japan? You can't write Japanese, you can't read Japanese," you
know, "What would you do there?" And she, she ended up saying, "I'd
rather hang myself than go to Japan." And my dad was so angry with
all this frustration that he said, "Go ahead!"
(Frank K. Interview, Copyright 1998 Densho Project)
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The Draft
Frank K.: Irony of the Draft
...we were unjustly put into this concentration camp I didn't say
concentration to this camp, and if you will restore our lifestyle
like before this evacuation. Yes, I would be more than willing to
serve in the armed services. If not, I will not.
(Frank Y. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
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Soldier's Life
Chet Tanaka: Your Helmet is Your Security
In training, it's heavy, and you didn't want to wear it too much,
but once you got into action, gee, you would put helmet all over
your body if you had enough helmet... [laughs] It's a security
blanket, really gave you a sense of security.
(Chet Tanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Chet Tanaka: How Can You Love a Gun?
So in spite of the relative slowness, we grew to love this gun how
can you love a gun but for that type of work, this was
indispensable... it became part of you. At 9.3 pounds when you're
training, it's too heavy. In combat, it's light as a feather. A
great weapon. You wore it like you wear your shoes, or your helmet,
or your backpack. You just... without it, you just felt, uh,
undressed.
(Chet Tanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Chet Tanaka: 'B' is for Breakfast
you'd start eating the axle grease, or whatever's in here... this is
a supper menu... 'S' [points to box] they had a 'B' for breakfast,
and I guess an 'L' for lunch. But during combat or whatever, you
didn't notice what letters are on here, you didn't much care, you
just grabbed a bunch of boxes and stuffed them in your shirt, and
you start taking off... But they were the staple for front line
fighting.
(Chet Tanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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Military Intelligence
Francis F.: Importance of Kibeis
I don't know how much you know about the MIS, but in most of their
practical applications, the real linguists in MIS were guys educated
in Japan. They were Kibei. And it was kind of ironic, because jeez,
you know DeWitt went on for a half a page justifying the evacuation
of Japanese... One of the things that he pointed out was that,
really these, that these Nisei were, couldn't be trusted because
they had all this knowledge of Japanese and Japanese culture. And
Kibeis were the worst of all because they were educated in Japan.
And it's kind of ironic to me, that they took us and threw us into
camp for that very reason, and the recruiters came in, really, and
were recruiting us for that very same expertise... And really,
especially the Kibei. If it weren't for the Kibei, I don't think
they would have had a successful MIS. And cripes, I mean... boy,
DeWitt had nothing but bad to say about them guys.
(Francis F. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
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Ironies of Service
Masao W.: Be a Part of Society
Well, initially, I was wondering, "What the hell is this?" I think
those of us who did react to it positively, I think we did the right
thing. And to this day-well, regardless of what people think I
think we did the right thing in volunteering after being kicked in
the butt... Because, gee, if you were going to live here, you've got
to be a part of society, you've got to do what is expected of you.
And I had no problem volunteering. I don't know which was worse:
being locked up in camp or going off to war.
(Masao W. Interview, Copyright 1998 Densho Project)
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Post-War
Nancy K. Araki: Remembering the Camps
You know in the Japanese community, what happened is that
afterwards, even among my age as we were going through grade school
or junior high or high school even, whenever you meet someone, you
say, "Oh, what camp were you in?" People five years younger than
myself, you know, that's not a question. Or maybe it is, in the
sense, "Where were you born?" and it could have well been in a camp.
But for us, growing up, in grade school even "What camp were you
in?" or "He was in Tule Lake. That's why he got put back..." or
comments like that. And so, in some ways, it was very active, you
know in our minds and in the discussions though never took place to
pursue it, other that to maybe clarify: "Mom, you know, when I got
this scar, my brother did this, this, this, was that in Topaz, or
was that in Amache?" Or some kind of reference like that.
(Nancy Araki Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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Court Cases
Sue Embrey: To Correct Democracy
For myself, I think I was really disillusioned about democracy, and
what the Constitution stood for. Because all my life, and all
through school, I was in it for 12 years, that's all I was learning,
and all of a sudden, it really didn't mean anything when it came to
my own personal freedom, and my civil liberties. I guess when I
left, and went to the mid-west, and began to meet a lot of people,
who couldn't believe that I had been treated that way, and that all
of us, you know, had been treated that way, that it occurred to me
that the government really wasn't doing something that the entire
population supported them. It was just a governmental order, which
many people didn't know about. And that if they knew about it they
might have objected to it. And I think gradually, I began to realize
that there are lots of things that we needed to do to correct
democracy, to correct, you know our own personal lives, and that I
needed to do something, you know, about it if I felt strongly enough
about different things.
(Sue Embrey Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Gordon Hirabayashi: Violation of Exclusion Order
I was charged with uh, violation of uh, exclusion order. And then,
subsequently I was given a count two, uh, curfew violation by my own
admission. They said: 'If you feel this way, what'd you do about the
curfew?' I said: 'Well, uh what were you doing the last coupla'
nights, were you out after eight?' And he says 'Yeah.' And I
said: 'Well, so was I.' And he said: 'Oh, then you violated the
curfew.' And he put me down. So those were the charges against me.
The uh, instruction (I'm condensing this) but the instruction of the
judge to the jury uh, as they were to leave was: 'You can forget all
that Constitutional discussion by the defense. The Western Defense
Command order is: That all persons of Japanese ancestry both alien
and non-alien must abide by these orders. You are to determine first
of all whether he is of Japanese ancestry. If he is, did he abide by
these orders?' And, all of those questions were admitted by me.
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Apologies and Redress
Frank Y.: Is $20,000 a Remedy?
That money that was sent to us, does that remedy everything that was
done? Can you imagine the Jews in Germany, saying, "Oh, they're
going to give us $20,000 so now that's all right," What the Germans
did to them. No. It's wrong. It should never be done again. And it's
the same with the evacuation of Japanese; it should never be done
again. ... It could be any other people.
(Frank Y. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
Rae T.: Hopes for Redress
I was a little cynical. I thought, "Oh, this will never happen,
$20,000, ha, ha, ha." Well, my mother, oh, she was so sure; "When I
get my $20,000..." I mean, she was sure that it was gonna happen;
and the rest of us, "Well, if it happens, it happens. If it doesn't,
it doesn't." But she was the one who looked forward to it most, and
then she died the year that redress was finally passed. And it's
just a really sad thing for me that she never, she never got to see
that because she would have really enjoyed it, the fact that there
was some justice after all. Because here is this woman who was
yelling about constitutional rights in 1941, and she waited all
these years, but she knew it was coming. ... But, anyway, she passed
away before it could finally be given to her.
(Rae T. Interview, Copyright 1998 Densho Project)
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Repairing the Constitution
Gordon Hirabayashi: Constant Vigilance
I would also say that if you believe in something, if you think the
Constitution is a good one, and if you think the Constitution
protects you, you better make sure that the Constitution is actively
operating... and uh, in other words "constant vigilance". Otherwise,
it's a scrap of paper. We had the Constitution to protect us in
1942. It didn't because the will of the people weren't behind it.
(Gordon Hirabayashi Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian
Institution)
Mary Tsukamoto: Will of the People
America is a land with wonderful possibilities and a beautiful
ideal, and the United States Constitution makes great promises for
us and Liberty is a very meaningful thing. As we celebrated Ms
Liberty's 100th birthday, we realized, what it could mean to our
people. But we have to be sincere, and make it ring true. And so, in
order to do that, we need to protect this fragile democracy. It
depends on human feelings, and the quality of leadership and courage
of the leaders are the ones that will determine which way it will
go. But the people need to insist that; insist on having courageous
leaders, people with integrity, people who are honest and will
uphold the Constitution to the letter.
(Mary Tsukamoto Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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Japanese Americans Today
Sparky Matsunaga: We Were Born on American Soil
We were born on American soil, consequently, under the Constitution,
we were Americans by birth. Of course we couldn't vote for the
President, uh, because we were not a state. We had no representation
in the Congress of the United States, so after the war, uh we
thought we should be recognized, fully, uh and... full recognition
would mean... making Hawaii a state of the Union.
(Sparky Matsunaga Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Daniel Inyoue: The Price Was Very Heavy
It was a time when some of us had to take extraordinary steps when
our Constitution did not require it, to prove to our neighbors that
we were worthy of being called Americans. The price was very heavy.
There was much blood that had to be shed. But looking back, I can
say with pride that I was part of it.
(Daniel Inouye Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Morgan Yamanaka: Could it Happen Again?
Today, I don't think this would ever happen to ethnic Japanese... at
this point on. In the 1940s we had no power in Washington. Today, we
have Senators, we have Congress people, we have mayors of cities of
the United States, we have governors of ethnic Japanese. This would
never happen with the ethnic Japanese community in the United
States... but it might happen with another group, with no power. And
therefore, I feel the ethnic Japanese community has a responsibility
to keep on pushing this knowledge. It won't happen to ethnic
Japanese, I'm pretty sure of that, but I don't want it to happen to
any other group of people.
(Morgan Yamanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
===========
REMOVAL
http://americanhistory.si.edu/perfectunion/non-
flash/removal_main.html
The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 stunned the
United States, and became a catalyst for challenging the loyalty of
all Japanese people living in the U.S. On February 19, 1942,
President Franklin Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066 authorizing
military authorities to exclude "any and all persons" from
designated areas of the country as necessary for national defense.
E.O. 9066 was the first step in a program that uprooted Americans of
Japanese ancestry from their West Coast communities and placed them
under armed guard for up to four years.
=============
PEARL HARBOR
http://americanhistory.si.edu/perfectunion/non-
flash/removal_crisis.html
Japan's alliance with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy in 1940 focused
world attention on the Asian nation's military power and imperial
ambition. The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941
plunged the United States into war and planted the notion of
Japanese treachery in the minds of Americans. The hysteria that
enveloped the West Coast during the early months of the war,
combined with long standing anti-Asian prejudices, set the stage for
what was to come.
For both Japan and America, World War II had all of the ugly
overtones of racial conflict. Although America was also at war with
Germany and Italy, government officials did not recommend that
German and Italian resident aliens (or American citizens of German
or Italian ancestry) be rounded up as a group and confined for the
duration of the war. While German or Italian enemies were often
viewed as misguided victims of despotic leaders, Japanese people
were referred to as "yellow vermin," "mad dogs," and "monkey men."
Racist wartime propaganda further exacerbated fears of invasion and
prejudice against people of Japanese decent.
Members of the War Department argued for removal of the Issei and
their Nisei children from areas regarded as vital to national
security. National officials were influenced by politicians from
West Coast districts, where opposition to Japanese Americans ran
high.
"Their racial characteristics are such that we cannot understand or
trust even the citizen Japanese." Henry L. Stimson, Secretary of
War, 1942
"I'm for catching every Japanese in America, Alaska, and Hawaii now
and putting them in concentration camps....Damn them! Let's get rid
of them now!" Congressman John Rankin, Congressional Record,
December 15, 1941
On the evening of December 7, 1941, FBI agents, and local and
military police took 736 Japanese aliens into custody. By December
11, the number had grown to 1,370. This group included persons
believed most likely to be spies or saboteurs: Shinto and Buddhist
priests, newspapermen, community leaders, Japanese language
teachers, and subscribers to suspect publications. Enemy Alien
Hearing Boards were established to judge the loyalty of these
individuals. All remained in detention during the slow course of the
hearing process.
=============
special story (no longer an american)
Akiko K.: No Longer an Equal American
Well, I'd just come home from church. And then we kept
hearing, "Pearl Harbor was bombed, Pearl Harbor was bombed." I had
no idea where Pearl Harbor was. My geography was not that
sophisticated. I had no idea, and my father said, "Uh-oh, there's
going to be trouble." And I said, "Well, how come?" He said, "Well,
Japan just bombed Pearl Harbor." And, he says, "We're at war with
Japan." But, I thought, "Why should it bother me?" You know, "I'm an
American." And then he said, "You know, we are aliens." My
parents... "We don't have the citizenship, so they're gonna' do
something, we'll probably get taken away." But at that time, my
parents had no feeling that we would be removed because-so they were
saying my brother would have to take on the responsibility to keep
the family together, because they may be removed or put into camp or
whatever. And, then when I went back to school that following
morning, you know, December 8th, one of the teachers said, "You
people bombed Pearl Harbor." And I'm going, "My people?" All of a
sudden my Japaneseness became very aware to me. I no longer felt I'm
an equal American, that I felt kind of threatened and nervous about
it.
(Akiko K. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
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Constitution and Executive Order
Mary Tsukamoto: Learning of E.O.
We were shocked to realize that the President had signed this. We
just kept saying, "But... we live out in the valley, not on the West
Coast, not near, a... a airport or a naval base." Surely, you know,
they wouldn't think that we needed to move too because we were busy
raising strawberries, and harvesting crops that would really help
our nation. We couldn't believe that they would need all of us to
quit our work to produce our fruit, food for victory... and then be
put away.
(Mary Tsukamoto Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Morgan Yamanaka: No Possibility of Resistance
There was no question of refusing or resisting that order. And I
think one has to appreciate what our parents, the immigrant parents
taught us: "Always respect order coming from the people above you.
Respect your teachers, respect the government, respect the law. Be
obedient, be reserved, be a good Japanese according to good Japanese
traditions. We as parents are telling you to do what your teachers
say you do." What do our teachers say? "Be aggressive. Say your
peace. If you disagree, say you disagree." They were often in
conflict here.
(Morgan Yamanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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Process
Sue Embrey: Registering After the Notice
These men in jeeps, they went around posting the notices up, and in
our area everyone was supposed to report to the Union Church. So my
oldest brother went down and he signed in all of us. And my Mother
felt that we should all go together because she didn't know what
would happen if we were separated. So he got a family number for all
of us, I think I still remember it... 2614.
(Sue Embrey Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Rae T.: FBI Search
RT: I didn't realize the enormity until much later, but I soon found
out what it meant for all of us because they came for my dad that
night, early in the morning of December 8th. And...
AI: What happened?
RT: They picked him up. Well, I was sleeping in a bedroom on the
main floor, which was fairly close to my folks' room; in other
words, not quite adjacent. But I was awakened by this commotion. ...
Oh, my, my mother. I told you she's very outspoken. And she is the
one that I heard. I did not hear my father say anything, but my
mother went on a rampage. I mean, she didn't care if they were FBI
men or not, and she was proclaiming to them that she was "an
American citizen," and she "had the rights of an American citizen,
and how dare they come breaking into my house." [Laughs] And oh yes,
I heard her. And I wasn't sure what was going on. I really didn't
know that they were going to take my dad. I just thought that it was
a little it must be a very wild event for my mother, for sure,
because she was really carrying on, but that didn't matter to them.
(Rae T. Interview, Copyright 1998 Densho Project)
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Moving Out:
Mary Tsukamoto: Getting Ready
We just figured they were sending us up in the mountains
somewhere... you know, to be... And so I started to gather rice,
small sacks of rice and... and collected the packages of dehydrated
soup and jello and things that were light, so that they wouldn't be
such a heavy baggage for us to carry because they said you could
only take what you carry. And we knew we had to take blankets and
sheets and bedding and things as well as some of our clothes. And we
had no idea whether we were going to a hot place or a cold place, so
our family was quite concerned about how to get ready.
(Mary Tsukamoto Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Morgan Yamanaka: One Week to Leave
We had one week to get ready. And what we could carry would include:
bedding eating utensils and clothing. Questions arose: Where are we
going? we don't know, we're not gonna tell you. How long are we
going? We don't know , we' won't tell you. There was a rumor that we
were being sent to Manzana, and no, that didn't prove true, we were
sent to Santa Nita racetrack.
(Morgan Yamanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Sue Embrey: We are American Citizens
I had a neighbor who said something to me toward the last few days
before we left Los Angeles. He says, "You know, we're American
Citizens, and we really could fight this thing." And, you know, I
was just 18. It's hard for me to believe that other people who may
have been older than I hadn't thought of it, there were lawyers in
our community. I just had the feeling that this was something the
whole community was going to go through because, even though there
were alternatives, maybe this was the best way to... to tell the
government that, you know, we're loyal, and we'll do whatever we
need to do in order to help in the war effort. And... because there
was so much suspicion cast on the Japanese population regardless of
whether they were citizens or not, that maybe this was the only way
out.
(Sue Embrey Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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First Stop: Assembly Centers
Mary Tsukamoto: Treated Like Animals
And I never will forget, the train stopped and we got off and they
put us on a big truck. It looked like one of those cattle cars.
Anyway, we stood up because there were no chairs for us to sit on
this pickup and crowded into this truck. They drove us to the Fresno
Assembly Center. And then we got off there and they told us to get
in and there was the barbed wire gate, and the MPs around there and
uh... We had to go in through that gate and after we got in there we
knew that the gate was shut. And so, we saw all these people behind
the fence, looking out, hanging onto the wire, and looking out
because they were anxious to know who was coming in. But I will
never forget the shocking feeling that human beings were behind this
fence like animals [crying]. And we were going to also lose our
freedom and walk inside of that gate and find ourselves... cooped up
there. And the police, the MPs with their guns and some of them had
bayonets. I don't know what they were going to do with it, if they
thought we were gong to run away I guess. But anyway, when the gates
were shut, we knew that we had lost something that was very
precious; that we were no longer free.
(Mary Tsukamoto Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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Permanent Camps:
Morgan Yamanaka: Arriving at Camps
We were sent... to Topaz, from uh, Santa Anita; we were again not
told exactly where we were going. All I remember was going through
desert country that was Barstow god-forsaken country, never been
back there. Somehow wound up in this middle of nowhere...
absolutely. And that's all I remember. This stark, naked... I had
never been out of San Francisco, and to be dropped in the middle of
Utah desert was in retrospect, it was a traumatic experience. To
think of it at that point, it was shocking at best. Sand, dust,
nothing except these tar-paper buildings. Middle of nowhere.
(Morgan Yamanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Mutsu H.: A Human Being
Amache camp guarded by very young soldiers. One time soldier stop me
and, "Hey you." "You want to talk to me?" He said, "Yeah. Are you a
human being?" I said, "Yes. Don't you think so?" "Yeah. You look
like a human being, but when I came from South Carolina, they said
that the Jap is not a human being. They are like a gorilla so if you
want to, kill them. That's what I learned when I came. And then I
looked from top every day and you people look like a human being,
and you people all wearing beautiful clothes."
(Mutsu H. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
Masao W.: Rejection is Very Hard
You grow up thinking you're a citizen, and you want to be a part of
this society you're in, and then the, let's say the weight of the
rejection, is something that was pretty unexpected. But when reality
sets in, like the "Camp Harmony" and these little shacks in
Minidoka, then the real negative things start coming to your head,
you know. "What the hell is this?" And I think it bothered a lot of
us tremendously. You try to be a good citizen, you try to do what
you're supposed to be doing, and the rejection is very hard,
difficult.
(Masao W. Interview, Copyright 1998 Densho Project)
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Conditions
Nancy K. Araki: A Child's Perspective
We were in Amache for about six to eight months, I.. I'm not quite
sure, but then we left camp and went to Provo, Utah and spent
probably about another six to eight months. I started kindergarten
there and that was very traumatic. It was really difficult, both
because I just felt really alone and just having the experience of
not knowing where I am, and who I was in relationship to everything
else, and there was just some hostility, um within the township. For
example, you know, I couldn't get an ice cream cone... and that was,
you know, for an adult, that seems, probably doesn't mean too much,
but for a little kid, it meant a lot.
(Nancy Araki Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Frank Y.: Sand and Food
It was very, very dusty. The dust was powdery fine and if I recall,
it was about 3 or 4 inches deep. So every time you take a step there
was just a puff of smoke, I mean of dust, and if you had even the
slightest breeze... wow, you're in like a fog. And when you go to
the mess hall to eat, of course when you chew the food, you can feel
the grit of the sand. And it's amazing, even that, you get used to
it. I gradually got used to the mixture of sand and food. [Laughs]
It was terrible.
(Frank Y. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
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Work:
Sue Embrey: Working for the War Effort
Then the end of May, they set up a camouflage net factory, which the
U.S. Army wanted to put in Manzanar and have people who really
wanted to help in the war effort uh, make camouflage nets. So, they
said we would get paid for that. So, a lot of us went down, and I
helped make camouflage nets for the Army for maybe a month or so.
And then it created a lot of friction in the camp itself because
only American citizens could, could work there. And a lot of the
resident-aliens, you know, our parents group, who wanted to help,
couldn't do it. And then there was also a lot of agitation
about 'why were you doing this when you were put in a camp...'
and 'you shouldn't be helping in the war effort' and so, I think
they closed it down later.
(Sue Embrey Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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Loyalty
Morgan Yamanaka: A No-No Response
Number one, If I had been in San Francisco, chances of me saying 'No-
No'... inconceivable, being an athlete, and a fairly good student,
dean's list, and academic standing Aloha high School, university
bound... I would have been the first one to volunteer. You put me...
and I become dissatisfied, because of the treatment... OK, you
isolate a certain group, as I said earlier, it becomes a question
of 'we' against 'they.'
(Morgan Yamanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Mary Tsukamoto: Respect for Government and Elders
You know, we were so naive, and I guess, you know, we should have
known what Americanism really meant. But we were young, and
inexperienced, and uh, I hadn't trained to be a lawyer or anything
like that, like Minoru Yasui. So we had no thought about defying the
government. And of course the Japanese people respect the elderly,
and those who are important, the President of the United States, we
wouldn't, you know, even if he's wrong, we wouldn't say anything.
And we would respect those people, and so, that's the way we felt
about our government. We wouldn't do anything do defy the
government... Different from our day, you know, where the society
has changed. But in those days, no one not just the Japanese
people, but the rest of America didn't protest or defy. There
weren't any marches and things like that in those days. Very few
protested, you know, and we were at war, and we should have been
united and cooperating and helping our government. We were wrapping
bandages and taking Red Cross first-aid classes and all, even after
the war, because we felt this was the thing an American should do.
And so, never did it occur to me, that we would defy the government
and refuse to go. That thought never came, though we wished we
could, you know, we never did say it, even.
(Mary Tsukamoto Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Mutsu H.: Nisei Means American Citizen
I asked that, "What your father think about the war?", and then he
said, "He's a Japanese. I'm a Nisei. And when I was small and
then, "I owe allegiance to the flag of United States of America." I
was memorizing. When he came and said, he listened, "Can you
understand what that mean?" And I said, "I'm memorizing," and he
said, "Think. Really think. And then if you are a Nisei, that means
American citizen. If you memorize this one, you have to obey. Learn
what it mean. So don't forget, America is your country." That's what
he said. So he, after the camp father was in camp, mother was in
camp and he was a volunteer to the war.
(Mutsu H. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
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Expatriation and Repatriation
Frank K.: What Would You Do in Japan?
And my mother told me the story of how she pleaded with him to
sign "yes". She said, "You know, what would you do in Japan?" She
knew, at that time, if you didn't sign yes and you couldn't prove
you were a citizen that they were going to send you off (to)
someplace else and maybe exchange you for Caucasian people that were
trapped in Japan. She said, she was saying to him, "What would you
do in Japan? You can't write Japanese, you can't read Japanese," you
know, "What would you do there?" And she, she ended up saying, "I'd
rather hang myself than go to Japan." And my dad was so angry with
all this frustration that he said, "Go ahead!"
(Frank K. Interview, Copyright 1998 Densho Project)
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The Draft
Frank K.: Irony of the Draft
...we were unjustly put into this concentration camp I didn't say
concentration to this camp, and if you will restore our lifestyle
like before this evacuation. Yes, I would be more than willing to
serve in the armed services. If not, I will not.
(Frank Y. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
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Soldier's Life
Chet Tanaka: Your Helmet is Your Security
In training, it's heavy, and you didn't want to wear it too much,
but once you got into action, gee, you would put helmet all over
your body if you had enough helmet... [laughs] It's a security
blanket, really gave you a sense of security.
(Chet Tanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Chet Tanaka: How Can You Love a Gun?
So in spite of the relative slowness, we grew to love this gun how
can you love a gun but for that type of work, this was
indispensable... it became part of you. At 9.3 pounds when you're
training, it's too heavy. In combat, it's light as a feather. A
great weapon. You wore it like you wear your shoes, or your helmet,
or your backpack. You just... without it, you just felt, uh,
undressed.
(Chet Tanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Chet Tanaka: 'B' is for Breakfast
you'd start eating the axle grease, or whatever's in here... this is
a supper menu... 'S' [points to box] they had a 'B' for breakfast,
and I guess an 'L' for lunch. But during combat or whatever, you
didn't notice what letters are on here, you didn't much care, you
just grabbed a bunch of boxes and stuffed them in your shirt, and
you start taking off... But they were the staple for front line
fighting.
(Chet Tanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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Military Intelligence
Francis F.: Importance of Kibeis
I don't know how much you know about the MIS, but in most of their
practical applications, the real linguists in MIS were guys educated
in Japan. They were Kibei. And it was kind of ironic, because jeez,
you know DeWitt went on for a half a page justifying the evacuation
of Japanese... One of the things that he pointed out was that,
really these, that these Nisei were, couldn't be trusted because
they had all this knowledge of Japanese and Japanese culture. And
Kibeis were the worst of all because they were educated in Japan.
And it's kind of ironic to me, that they took us and threw us into
camp for that very reason, and the recruiters came in, really, and
were recruiting us for that very same expertise... And really,
especially the Kibei. If it weren't for the Kibei, I don't think
they would have had a successful MIS. And cripes, I mean... boy,
DeWitt had nothing but bad to say about them guys.
(Francis F. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
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Ironies of Service
Masao W.: Be a Part of Society
Well, initially, I was wondering, "What the hell is this?" I think
those of us who did react to it positively, I think we did the right
thing. And to this day-well, regardless of what people think I
think we did the right thing in volunteering after being kicked in
the butt... Because, gee, if you were going to live here, you've got
to be a part of society, you've got to do what is expected of you.
And I had no problem volunteering. I don't know which was worse:
being locked up in camp or going off to war.
(Masao W. Interview, Copyright 1998 Densho Project)
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Post-War
Nancy K. Araki: Remembering the Camps
You know in the Japanese community, what happened is that
afterwards, even among my age as we were going through grade school
or junior high or high school even, whenever you meet someone, you
say, "Oh, what camp were you in?" People five years younger than
myself, you know, that's not a question. Or maybe it is, in the
sense, "Where were you born?" and it could have well been in a camp.
But for us, growing up, in grade school even "What camp were you
in?" or "He was in Tule Lake. That's why he got put back..." or
comments like that. And so, in some ways, it was very active, you
know in our minds and in the discussions though never took place to
pursue it, other that to maybe clarify: "Mom, you know, when I got
this scar, my brother did this, this, this, was that in Topaz, or
was that in Amache?" Or some kind of reference like that.
(Nancy Araki Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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Court Cases
Sue Embrey: To Correct Democracy
For myself, I think I was really disillusioned about democracy, and
what the Constitution stood for. Because all my life, and all
through school, I was in it for 12 years, that's all I was learning,
and all of a sudden, it really didn't mean anything when it came to
my own personal freedom, and my civil liberties. I guess when I
left, and went to the mid-west, and began to meet a lot of people,
who couldn't believe that I had been treated that way, and that all
of us, you know, had been treated that way, that it occurred to me
that the government really wasn't doing something that the entire
population supported them. It was just a governmental order, which
many people didn't know about. And that if they knew about it they
might have objected to it. And I think gradually, I began to realize
that there are lots of things that we needed to do to correct
democracy, to correct, you know our own personal lives, and that I
needed to do something, you know, about it if I felt strongly enough
about different things.
(Sue Embrey Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Gordon Hirabayashi: Violation of Exclusion Order
I was charged with uh, violation of uh, exclusion order. And then,
subsequently I was given a count two, uh, curfew violation by my own
admission. They said: 'If you feel this way, what'd you do about the
curfew?' I said: 'Well, uh what were you doing the last coupla'
nights, were you out after eight?' And he says 'Yeah.' And I
said: 'Well, so was I.' And he said: 'Oh, then you violated the
curfew.' And he put me down. So those were the charges against me.
The uh, instruction (I'm condensing this) but the instruction of the
judge to the jury uh, as they were to leave was: 'You can forget all
that Constitutional discussion by the defense. The Western Defense
Command order is: That all persons of Japanese ancestry both alien
and non-alien must abide by these orders. You are to determine first
of all whether he is of Japanese ancestry. If he is, did he abide by
these orders?' And, all of those questions were admitted by me.
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Apologies and Redress
Frank Y.: Is $20,000 a Remedy?
That money that was sent to us, does that remedy everything that was
done? Can you imagine the Jews in Germany, saying, "Oh, they're
going to give us $20,000 so now that's all right," What the Germans
did to them. No. It's wrong. It should never be done again. And it's
the same with the evacuation of Japanese; it should never be done
again. ... It could be any other people.
(Frank Y. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
Rae T.: Hopes for Redress
I was a little cynical. I thought, "Oh, this will never happen,
$20,000, ha, ha, ha." Well, my mother, oh, she was so sure; "When I
get my $20,000..." I mean, she was sure that it was gonna happen;
and the rest of us, "Well, if it happens, it happens. If it doesn't,
it doesn't." But she was the one who looked forward to it most, and
then she died the year that redress was finally passed. And it's
just a really sad thing for me that she never, she never got to see
that because she would have really enjoyed it, the fact that there
was some justice after all. Because here is this woman who was
yelling about constitutional rights in 1941, and she waited all
these years, but she knew it was coming. ... But, anyway, she passed
away before it could finally be given to her.
(Rae T. Interview, Copyright 1998 Densho Project)
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Repairing the Constitution
Gordon Hirabayashi: Constant Vigilance
I would also say that if you believe in something, if you think the
Constitution is a good one, and if you think the Constitution
protects you, you better make sure that the Constitution is actively
operating... and uh, in other words "constant vigilance". Otherwise,
it's a scrap of paper. We had the Constitution to protect us in
1942. It didn't because the will of the people weren't behind it.
(Gordon Hirabayashi Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian
Institution)
Mary Tsukamoto: Will of the People
America is a land with wonderful possibilities and a beautiful
ideal, and the United States Constitution makes great promises for
us and Liberty is a very meaningful thing. As we celebrated Ms
Liberty's 100th birthday, we realized, what it could mean to our
people. But we have to be sincere, and make it ring true. And so, in
order to do that, we need to protect this fragile democracy. It
depends on human feelings, and the quality of leadership and courage
of the leaders are the ones that will determine which way it will
go. But the people need to insist that; insist on having courageous
leaders, people with integrity, people who are honest and will
uphold the Constitution to the letter.
(Mary Tsukamoto Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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Japanese Americans Today
Sparky Matsunaga: We Were Born on American Soil
We were born on American soil, consequently, under the Constitution,
we were Americans by birth. Of course we couldn't vote for the
President, uh, because we were not a state. We had no representation
in the Congress of the United States, so after the war, uh we
thought we should be recognized, fully, uh and... full recognition
would mean... making Hawaii a state of the Union.
(Sparky Matsunaga Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Daniel Inyoue: The Price Was Very Heavy
It was a time when some of us had to take extraordinary steps when
our Constitution did not require it, to prove to our neighbors that
we were worthy of being called Americans. The price was very heavy.
There was much blood that had to be shed. But looking back, I can
say with pride that I was part of it.
(Daniel Inouye Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Morgan Yamanaka: Could it Happen Again?
Today, I don't think this would ever happen to ethnic Japanese... at
this point on. In the 1940s we had no power in Washington. Today, we
have Senators, we have Congress people, we have mayors of cities of
the United States, we have governors of ethnic Japanese. This would
never happen with the ethnic Japanese community in the United
States... but it might happen with another group, with no power. And
therefore, I feel the ethnic Japanese community has a responsibility
to keep on pushing this knowledge. It won't happen to ethnic
Japanese, I'm pretty sure of that, but I don't want it to happen to
any other group of people.
(Morgan Yamanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
------------------------
INTERNMENT CAMPS
http://americanhistory.si.edu/perfectunion/non-
flash/internment_main.html
By the end of 1942, more than 120,000 men, women, and children of
Japanese ancestry had been uprooted from their homes. Their final
destinations would be one of 10 camps "instant cities"
constructed by the War Relocation Authority in seven states. Deeply
isolated from the rest of America, these "evacuees" 65 percent of
whom were American citizens would spend up to four years
imprisoned, working to rebuild their lives.
PERMAMENT CAMPS
http://americanhistory.si.edu/perfectunion/non-
flash/internment_permanent.html
Conditions varied from the heat and dust of Manzanar, Poston and
Gila River, to the rains of Jerome and Rowher, and the bitter winter
cold of Heart Mountain and Minidoka. The one thing that all 10 camps
had in common was geographic isolation.
"As a member of President Roosevelt's administration, I saw the
United States Army give way to mass hysteria over the
Japanese...Crowded into cars like cattle, these hapless people were
hurried away to hastily constructed and thoroughly inadequate
concentration camps, with soldiers with nervous muskets on guard, in
the great American desert. We gave the fancy name of 'relocation
centers' to these dust bowls, but they were concentration camps
nonetheless."
Harold Ickes, Secretary of the Interior, Washington Evening Star,
September 23, 1946
Individuals arriving at a camp were shocked to find that they would
live behind barbed-wire fences, watched over by armed military
police in guard towers.
"The sound of the camp gates closing behind us sent a searing pain
into my heart. I knew it would leave a scar that would stay with me
forever. At that very moment my precious freedom was taken from
me." Mary Tsukamoto, We the People
" ...We had another violent dust storm... Soon barracks only a few
feet away were completely obscured by walls of dust and I was
terrified the wind would knock me off my feet. Every few yards, I
stopped to lean against a barrack to catch my breath, then lowering
my head against the wind, I plodded on." Yoshiko Uchida, Desert
Exile: The Uprooting of a Japanese American Family
==============
special story - rejection is very hard
Masao W.: Rejection is Very Hard
You grow up thinking you're a citizen, and you want to be a part of
this society you're in, and then the, let's say the weight of the
rejection, is something that was pretty unexpected. But when reality
sets in, like the "Camp Harmony" and these little shacks in
Minidoka, then the real negative things start coming to your head,
you know. "What the hell is this?" And I think it bothered a lot of
us tremendously. You try to be a good citizen, you try to do what
you're supposed to be doing, and the rejection is very hard,
difficult.
(Masao W. Interview, Copyright 1998 Densho Project)
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Conditions
Nancy K. Araki: A Child's Perspective
We were in Amache for about six to eight months, I.. I'm not quite
sure, but then we left camp and went to Provo, Utah and spent
probably about another six to eight months. I started kindergarten
there and that was very traumatic. It was really difficult, both
because I just felt really alone and just having the experience of
not knowing where I am, and who I was in relationship to everything
else, and there was just some hostility, um within the township. For
example, you know, I couldn't get an ice cream cone... and that was,
you know, for an adult, that seems, probably doesn't mean too much,
but for a little kid, it meant a lot.
(Nancy Araki Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Frank Y.: Sand and Food
It was very, very dusty. The dust was powdery fine and if I recall,
it was about 3 or 4 inches deep. So every time you take a step there
was just a puff of smoke, I mean of dust, and if you had even the
slightest breeze... wow, you're in like a fog. And when you go to
the mess hall to eat, of course when you chew the food, you can feel
the grit of the sand. And it's amazing, even that, you get used to
it. I gradually got used to the mixture of sand and food. [Laughs]
It was terrible.
(Frank Y. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
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Work:
Sue Embrey: Working for the War Effort
Then the end of May, they set up a camouflage net factory, which the
U.S. Army wanted to put in Manzanar and have people who really
wanted to help in the war effort uh, make camouflage nets. So, they
said we would get paid for that. So, a lot of us went down, and I
helped make camouflage nets for the Army for maybe a month or so.
And then it created a lot of friction in the camp itself because
only American citizens could, could work there. And a lot of the
resident-aliens, you know, our parents group, who wanted to help,
couldn't do it. And then there was also a lot of agitation
about 'why were you doing this when you were put in a camp...'
and 'you shouldn't be helping in the war effort' and so, I think
they closed it down later.
(Sue Embrey Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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Loyalty
Morgan Yamanaka: A No-No Response
Number one, If I had been in San Francisco, chances of me saying 'No-
No'... inconceivable, being an athlete, and a fairly good student,
dean's list, and academic standing Aloha high School, university
bound... I would have been the first one to volunteer. You put me...
and I become dissatisfied, because of the treatment... OK, you
isolate a certain group, as I said earlier, it becomes a question
of 'we' against 'they.'
(Morgan Yamanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Mary Tsukamoto: Respect for Government and Elders
You know, we were so naive, and I guess, you know, we should have
known what Americanism really meant. But we were young, and
inexperienced, and uh, I hadn't trained to be a lawyer or anything
like that, like Minoru Yasui. So we had no thought about defying the
government. And of course the Japanese people respect the elderly,
and those who are important, the President of the United States, we
wouldn't, you know, even if he's wrong, we wouldn't say anything.
And we would respect those people, and so, that's the way we felt
about our government. We wouldn't do anything do defy the
government... Different from our day, you know, where the society
has changed. But in those days, no one not just the Japanese
people, but the rest of America didn't protest or defy. There
weren't any marches and things like that in those days. Very few
protested, you know, and we were at war, and we should have been
united and cooperating and helping our government. We were wrapping
bandages and taking Red Cross first-aid classes and all, even after
the war, because we felt this was the thing an American should do.
And so, never did it occur to me, that we would defy the government
and refuse to go. That thought never came, though we wished we
could, you know, we never did say it, even.
(Mary Tsukamoto Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Mutsu H.: Nisei Means American Citizen
I asked that, "What your father think about the war?", and then he
said, "He's a Japanese. I'm a Nisei. And when I was small and
then, "I owe allegiance to the flag of United States of America." I
was memorizing. When he came and said, he listened, "Can you
understand what that mean?" And I said, "I'm memorizing," and he
said, "Think. Really think. And then if you are a Nisei, that means
American citizen. If you memorize this one, you have to obey. Learn
what it mean. So don't forget, America is your country." That's what
he said. So he, after the camp father was in camp, mother was in
camp and he was a volunteer to the war.
(Mutsu H. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
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Expatriation and Repatriation
Frank K.: What Would You Do in Japan?
And my mother told me the story of how she pleaded with him to
sign "yes". She said, "You know, what would you do in Japan?" She
knew, at that time, if you didn't sign yes and you couldn't prove
you were a citizen that they were going to send you off (to)
someplace else and maybe exchange you for Caucasian people that were
trapped in Japan. She said, she was saying to him, "What would you
do in Japan? You can't write Japanese, you can't read Japanese," you
know, "What would you do there?" And she, she ended up saying, "I'd
rather hang myself than go to Japan." And my dad was so angry with
all this frustration that he said, "Go ahead!"
(Frank K. Interview, Copyright 1998 Densho Project)
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The Draft
Frank K.: Irony of the Draft
...we were unjustly put into this concentration camp I didn't say
concentration to this camp, and if you will restore our lifestyle
like before this evacuation. Yes, I would be more than willing to
serve in the armed services. If not, I will not.
(Frank Y. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
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Soldier's Life
Chet Tanaka: Your Helmet is Your Security
In training, it's heavy, and you didn't want to wear it too much,
but once you got into action, gee, you would put helmet all over
your body if you had enough helmet... [laughs] It's a security
blanket, really gave you a sense of security.
(Chet Tanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Chet Tanaka: How Can You Love a Gun?
So in spite of the relative slowness, we grew to love this gun how
can you love a gun but for that type of work, this was
indispensable... it became part of you. At 9.3 pounds when you're
training, it's too heavy. In combat, it's light as a feather. A
great weapon. You wore it like you wear your shoes, or your helmet,
or your backpack. You just... without it, you just felt, uh,
undressed.
(Chet Tanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Chet Tanaka: 'B' is for Breakfast
you'd start eating the axle grease, or whatever's in here... this is
a supper menu... 'S' [points to box] they had a 'B' for breakfast,
and I guess an 'L' for lunch. But during combat or whatever, you
didn't notice what letters are on here, you didn't much care, you
just grabbed a bunch of boxes and stuffed them in your shirt, and
you start taking off... But they were the staple for front line
fighting.
(Chet Tanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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Military Intelligence
Francis F.: Importance of Kibeis
I don't know how much you know about the MIS, but in most of their
practical applications, the real linguists in MIS were guys educated
in Japan. They were Kibei. And it was kind of ironic, because jeez,
you know DeWitt went on for a half a page justifying the evacuation
of Japanese... One of the things that he pointed out was that,
really these, that these Nisei were, couldn't be trusted because
they had all this knowledge of Japanese and Japanese culture. And
Kibeis were the worst of all because they were educated in Japan.
And it's kind of ironic to me, that they took us and threw us into
camp for that very reason, and the recruiters came in, really, and
were recruiting us for that very same expertise... And really,
especially the Kibei. If it weren't for the Kibei, I don't think
they would have had a successful MIS. And cripes, I mean... boy,
DeWitt had nothing but bad to say about them guys.
(Francis F. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
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Ironies of Service
Masao W.: Be a Part of Society
Well, initially, I was wondering, "What the hell is this?" I think
those of us who did react to it positively, I think we did the right
thing. And to this day-well, regardless of what people think I
think we did the right thing in volunteering after being kicked in
the butt... Because, gee, if you were going to live here, you've got
to be a part of society, you've got to do what is expected of you.
And I had no problem volunteering. I don't know which was worse:
being locked up in camp or going off to war.
(Masao W. Interview, Copyright 1998 Densho Project)
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Post-War
Nancy K. Araki: Remembering the Camps
You know in the Japanese community, what happened is that
afterwards, even among my age as we were going through grade school
or junior high or high school even, whenever you meet someone, you
say, "Oh, what camp were you in?" People five years younger than
myself, you know, that's not a question. Or maybe it is, in the
sense, "Where were you born?" and it could have well been in a camp.
But for us, growing up, in grade school even "What camp were you
in?" or "He was in Tule Lake. That's why he got put back..." or
comments like that. And so, in some ways, it was very active, you
know in our minds and in the discussions though never took place to
pursue it, other that to maybe clarify: "Mom, you know, when I got
this scar, my brother did this, this, this, was that in Topaz, or
was that in Amache?" Or some kind of reference like that.
(Nancy Araki Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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Court Cases
Sue Embrey: To Correct Democracy
For myself, I think I was really disillusioned about democracy, and
what the Constitution stood for. Because all my life, and all
through school, I was in it for 12 years, that's all I was learning,
and all of a sudden, it really didn't mean anything when it came to
my own personal freedom, and my civil liberties. I guess when I
left, and went to the mid-west, and began to meet a lot of people,
who couldn't believe that I had been treated that way, and that all
of us, you know, had been treated that way, that it occurred to me
that the government really wasn't doing something that the entire
population supported them. It was just a governmental order, which
many people didn't know about. And that if they knew about it they
might have objected to it. And I think gradually, I began to realize
that there are lots of things that we needed to do to correct
democracy, to correct, you know our own personal lives, and that I
needed to do something, you know, about it if I felt strongly enough
about different things.
(Sue Embrey Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Gordon Hirabayashi: Violation of Exclusion Order
I was charged with uh, violation of uh, exclusion order. And then,
subsequently I was given a count two, uh, curfew violation by my own
admission. They said: 'If you feel this way, what'd you do about the
curfew?' I said: 'Well, uh what were you doing the last coupla'
nights, were you out after eight?' And he says 'Yeah.' And I
said: 'Well, so was I.' And he said: 'Oh, then you violated the
curfew.' And he put me down. So those were the charges against me.
The uh, instruction (I'm condensing this) but the instruction of the
judge to the jury uh, as they were to leave was: 'You can forget all
that Constitutional discussion by the defense. The Western Defense
Command order is: That all persons of Japanese ancestry both alien
and non-alien must abide by these orders. You are to determine first
of all whether he is of Japanese ancestry. If he is, did he abide by
these orders?' And, all of those questions were admitted by me.
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Apologies and Redress
Frank Y.: Is $20,000 a Remedy?
That money that was sent to us, does that remedy everything that was
done? Can you imagine the Jews in Germany, saying, "Oh, they're
going to give us $20,000 so now that's all right," What the Germans
did to them. No. It's wrong. It should never be done again. And it's
the same with the evacuation of Japanese; it should never be done
again. ... It could be any other people.
(Frank Y. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
Rae T.: Hopes for Redress
I was a little cynical. I thought, "Oh, this will never happen,
$20,000, ha, ha, ha." Well, my mother, oh, she was so sure; "When I
get my $20,000..." I mean, she was sure that it was gonna happen;
and the rest of us, "Well, if it happens, it happens. If it doesn't,
it doesn't." But she was the one who looked forward to it most, and
then she died the year that redress was finally passed. And it's
just a really sad thing for me that she never, she never got to see
that because she would have really enjoyed it, the fact that there
was some justice after all. Because here is this woman who was
yelling about constitutional rights in 1941, and she waited all
these years, but she knew it was coming. ... But, anyway, she passed
away before it could finally be given to her.
(Rae T. Interview, Copyright 1998 Densho Project)
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Repairing the Constitution
Gordon Hirabayashi: Constant Vigilance
I would also say that if you believe in something, if you think the
Constitution is a good one, and if you think the Constitution
protects you, you better make sure that the Constitution is actively
operating... and uh, in other words "constant vigilance". Otherwise,
it's a scrap of paper. We had the Constitution to protect us in
1942. It didn't because the will of the people weren't behind it.
(Gordon Hirabayashi Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian
Institution)
Mary Tsukamoto: Will of the People
America is a land with wonderful possibilities and a beautiful
ideal, and the United States Constitution makes great promises for
us and Liberty is a very meaningful thing. As we celebrated Ms
Liberty's 100th birthday, we realized, what it could mean to our
people. But we have to be sincere, and make it ring true. And so, in
order to do that, we need to protect this fragile democracy. It
depends on human feelings, and the quality of leadership and courage
of the leaders are the ones that will determine which way it will
go. But the people need to insist that; insist on having courageous
leaders, people with integrity, people who are honest and will
uphold the Constitution to the letter.
(Mary Tsukamoto Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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Japanese Americans Today
Sparky Matsunaga: We Were Born on American Soil
We were born on American soil, consequently, under the Constitution,
we were Americans by birth. Of course we couldn't vote for the
President, uh, because we were not a state. We had no representation
in the Congress of the United States, so after the war, uh we
thought we should be recognized, fully, uh and... full recognition
would mean... making Hawaii a state of the Union.
(Sparky Matsunaga Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Daniel Inyoue: The Price Was Very Heavy
It was a time when some of us had to take extraordinary steps when
our Constitution did not require it, to prove to our neighbors that
we were worthy of being called Americans. The price was very heavy.
There was much blood that had to be shed. But looking back, I can
say with pride that I was part of it.
(Daniel Inouye Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Morgan Yamanaka: Could it Happen Again?
Today, I don't think this would ever happen to ethnic Japanese... at
this point on. In the 1940s we had no power in Washington. Today, we
have Senators, we have Congress people, we have mayors of cities of
the United States, we have governors of ethnic Japanese. This would
never happen with the ethnic Japanese community in the United
States... but it might happen with another group, with no power. And
therefore, I feel the ethnic Japanese community has a responsibility
to keep on pushing this knowledge. It won't happen to ethnic
Japanese, I'm pretty sure of that, but I don't want it to happen to
any other group of people.
(Morgan Yamanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
=========================
CONDITIONS
For many, the real trauma of internment was built around the scores
of small indignities endured each day. Taken together, their impact
on family structure and on an individual's sense of pride, dignity,
and self-respect was enormous.
"We lined up for mail, for checks, for meals, for showers, for
laundry tubs, for toilets, for clinic service, for movies. We lined
up for everything."
Mine Okubo, Citizen 13660
"We had to live under the constant pressure that the food might all
stop one day, and it gave me very uneasy and uncomfortable feelings
to see the guards watching us from the tower. We were fenced in. I
couldn't take my eyes off my children for even a moment so that they
would not go outside the fence. The guards were to shoot anyone that
did." Internee
"The diet of rice, macaroni, and potato was hardly a suitable diet
for... anyone." Akiyo Deloyd, The Japanese American Family Album
"We were fed things we weren't accustomed to. Beef brains, tongue,
kidneys and liver were the mainstay of the kitchens. We had very few
Japanese staples." George Sakamoto, The Japanese American Family
Album
===============
special story - a child's perspective
Intro
John Chancellor: Introduction
Two centuries ago, the framers of the Constitution wrestled with the
fundamental problem of government: how to balance the rights of
individual citizens and minority groups against the need for order
and defense of the society itself.
This is the story of a group of Americans who suffered a great
wrong. The American Civil Liberties Union called it 'the worst
single wholesale violation of the civil rights of American citizens
in our history.'
The story began shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor, when this
country was mobilizing for a long war, and the future looked bleak,
and when some Americans wondered if the United States might lose.
The country made a big and tragic error in 1942, but we learned from
our mistakes, so we won't make them in the future.
The aim of the Constitution was not to create a 'perfect union'
none of the framers believed mortal beings were capable of
a 'perfect union.' They wanted instead to form a 'more perfect
union.'
The important thing is, we're still trying to accomplish that.
(John Chancellor Video, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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Issei: The First Generation
Mutsu H.: Getting Married
DG: Did your father do part of this ceremony?
MH: No, bishop did. It's Dr. Fox. And it's wedding funny was after
platform and now, "She is your wife. Will you please kiss her?" And
then he said, "Oh, no Japanese doesn't." And then Dr. Fox said, "No,
you have to. This is America. America people kiss wife." "No."
BF: And this was going on during the ceremony?
MH: Yes, in the ceremony-arguing. And finally Doctor. said, "Well,
then never complain later." He said, "Yeah, I know." And then okay.
We didn't kiss. [Laughs]
(Mutsu H. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
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U.S. Mainland
Mary Tsukamoto: Nisei in Florin
And so my husband's father was 75 years old. He had come to Florin
when he was 25, and so he had been in Florin more than 50 years, and
had raised and planted every grape, and all the persimmon trees and
walnut trees in our yard and everything. So we worried about the
elderly Isseis, about what would happen to Grandpa, who was no
longer young.
(Mary Tsukamoto Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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Crisis: Pearl Harbor
Akiko K.: No Longer an Equal American
Well, I'd just come home from church. And then we kept
hearing, "Pearl Harbor was bombed, Pearl Harbor was bombed." I had
no idea where Pearl Harbor was. My geography was not that
sophisticated. I had no idea, and my father said, "Uh-oh, there's
going to be trouble." And I said, "Well, how come?" He said, "Well,
Japan just bombed Pearl Harbor." And, he says, "We're at war with
Japan." But, I thought, "Why should it bother me?" You know, "I'm an
American." And then he said, "You know, we are aliens." My
parents... "We don't have the citizenship, so they're gonna' do
something, we'll probably get taken away." But at that time, my
parents had no feeling that we would be removed because-so they were
saying my brother would have to take on the responsibility to keep
the family together, because they may be removed or put into camp or
whatever. And, then when I went back to school that following
morning, you know, December 8th, one of the teachers said, "You
people bombed Pearl Harbor." And I'm going, "My people?" All of a
sudden my Japaneseness became very aware to me. I no longer felt I'm
an equal American, that I felt kind of threatened and nervous about
it.
(Akiko K. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
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Constitution and Executive Order
Mary Tsukamoto: Learning of E.O.
We were shocked to realize that the President had signed this. We
just kept saying, "But... we live out in the valley, not on the West
Coast, not near, a... a airport or a naval base." Surely, you know,
they wouldn't think that we needed to move too because we were busy
raising strawberries, and harvesting crops that would really help
our nation. We couldn't believe that they would need all of us to
quit our work to produce our fruit, food for victory... and then be
put away.
(Mary Tsukamoto Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Morgan Yamanaka: No Possibility of Resistance
There was no question of refusing or resisting that order. And I
think one has to appreciate what our parents, the immigrant parents
taught us: "Always respect order coming from the people above you.
Respect your teachers, respect the government, respect the law. Be
obedient, be reserved, be a good Japanese according to good Japanese
traditions. We as parents are telling you to do what your teachers
say you do." What do our teachers say? "Be aggressive. Say your
peace. If you disagree, say you disagree." They were often in
conflict here.
(Morgan Yamanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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Process
Sue Embrey: Registering After the Notice
These men in jeeps, they went around posting the notices up, and in
our area everyone was supposed to report to the Union Church. So my
oldest brother went down and he signed in all of us. And my Mother
felt that we should all go together because she didn't know what
would happen if we were separated. So he got a family number for all
of us, I think I still remember it... 2614.
(Sue Embrey Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Rae T.: FBI Search
RT: I didn't realize the enormity until much later, but I soon found
out what it meant for all of us because they came for my dad that
night, early in the morning of December 8th. And...
AI: What happened?
RT: They picked him up. Well, I was sleeping in a bedroom on the
main floor, which was fairly close to my folks' room; in other
words, not quite adjacent. But I was awakened by this commotion. ...
Oh, my, my mother. I told you she's very outspoken. And she is the
one that I heard. I did not hear my father say anything, but my
mother went on a rampage. I mean, she didn't care if they were FBI
men or not, and she was proclaiming to them that she was "an
American citizen," and she "had the rights of an American citizen,
and how dare they come breaking into my house." [Laughs] And oh yes,
I heard her. And I wasn't sure what was going on. I really didn't
know that they were going to take my dad. I just thought that it was
a little it must be a very wild event for my mother, for sure,
because she was really carrying on, but that didn't matter to them.
(Rae T. Interview, Copyright 1998 Densho Project)
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Moving Out:
Mary Tsukamoto: Getting Ready
We just figured they were sending us up in the mountains
somewhere... you know, to be... And so I started to gather rice,
small sacks of rice and... and collected the packages of dehydrated
soup and jello and things that were light, so that they wouldn't be
such a heavy baggage for us to carry because they said you could
only take what you carry. And we knew we had to take blankets and
sheets and bedding and things as well as some of our clothes. And we
had no idea whether we were going to a hot place or a cold place, so
our family was quite concerned about how to get ready.
(Mary Tsukamoto Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Morgan Yamanaka: One Week to Leave
We had one week to get ready. And what we could carry would include:
bedding eating utensils and clothing. Questions arose: Where are we
going? we don't know, we're not gonna tell you. How long are we
going? We don't know , we' won't tell you. There was a rumor that we
were being sent to Manzana, and no, that didn't prove true, we were
sent to Santa Nita racetrack.
(Morgan Yamanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Sue Embrey: We are American Citizens
I had a neighbor who said something to me toward the last few days
before we left Los Angeles. He says, "You know, we're American
Citizens, and we really could fight this thing." And, you know, I
was just 18. It's hard for me to believe that other people who may
have been older than I hadn't thought of it, there were lawyers in
our community. I just had the feeling that this was something the
whole community was going to go through because, even though there
were alternatives, maybe this was the best way to... to tell the
government that, you know, we're loyal, and we'll do whatever we
need to do in order to help in the war effort. And... because there
was so much suspicion cast on the Japanese population regardless of
whether they were citizens or not, that maybe this was the only way
out.
(Sue Embrey Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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First Stop: Assembly Centers
Mary Tsukamoto: Treated Like Animals
And I never will forget, the train stopped and we got off and they
put us on a big truck. It looked like one of those cattle cars.
Anyway, we stood up because there were no chairs for us to sit on
this pickup and crowded into this truck. They drove us to the Fresno
Assembly Center. And then we got off there and they told us to get
in and there was the barbed wire gate, and the MPs around there and
uh... We had to go in through that gate and after we got in there we
knew that the gate was shut. And so, we saw all these people behind
the fence, looking out, hanging onto the wire, and looking out
because they were anxious to know who was coming in. But I will
never forget the shocking feeling that human beings were behind this
fence like animals [crying]. And we were going to also lose our
freedom and walk inside of that gate and find ourselves... cooped up
there. And the police, the MPs with their guns and some of them had
bayonets. I don't know what they were going to do with it, if they
thought we were gong to run away I guess. But anyway, when the gates
were shut, we knew that we had lost something that was very
precious; that we were no longer free.
(Mary Tsukamoto Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
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Permanent Camps:
Morgan Yamanaka: Arriving at Camps
We were sent... to Topaz, from uh, Santa Anita; we were again not
told exactly where we were going. All I remember was going through
desert country that was Barstow god-forsaken country, never been
back there. Somehow wound up in this middle of nowhere...
absolutely. And that's all I remember. This stark, naked... I had
never been out of San Francisco, and to be dropped in the middle of
Utah desert was in retrospect, it was a traumatic experience. To
think of it at that point, it was shocking at best. Sand, dust,
nothing except these tar-paper buildings. Middle of nowhere.
(Morgan Yamanaka Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Mutsu H.: A Human Being
Amache camp guarded by very young soldiers. One time soldier stop me
and, "Hey you." "You want to talk to me?" He said, "Yeah. Are you a
human being?" I said, "Yes. Don't you think so?" "Yeah. You look
like a human being, but when I came from South Carolina, they said
that the Jap is not a human being. They are like a gorilla so if you
want to, kill them. That's what I learned when I came. And then I
looked from top every day and you people look like a human being,
and you people all wearing beautiful clothes."
(Mutsu H. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
Masao W.: Rejection is Very Hard
You grow up thinking you're a citizen, and you want to be a part of
this society you're in, and then the, let's say the weight of the
rejection, is something that was pretty unexpected. But when reality
sets in, like the "Camp Harmony" and these little shacks in
Minidoka, then the real negative things start coming to your head,
you know. "What the hell is this?" And I think it bothered a lot of
us tremendously. You try to be a good citizen, you try to do what
you're supposed to be doing, and the rejection is very hard,
difficult.
(Masao W. Interview, Copyright 1998 Densho Project)
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Conditions
Nancy K. Araki: A Child's Perspective
We were in Amache for about six to eight months, I.. I'm not quite
sure, but then we left camp and went to Provo, Utah and spent
probably about another six to eight months. I started kindergarten
there and that was very traumatic. It was really difficult, both
because I just felt really alone and just having the experience of
not knowing where I am, and who I was in relationship to everything
else, and there was just some hostility, um within the township. For
example, you know, I couldn't get an ice cream cone... and that was,
you know, for an adult, that seems, probably doesn't mean too much,
but for a little kid, it meant a lot.
(Nancy Araki Interview, Copyright 2001 Smithsonian Institution)
Frank Y.: Sand and Food
It was very, very dusty. The dust was powdery fine and if I recall,
it was about 3 or 4 inches deep. So every time you take a step there
was just a puff of smoke, I mean of dust, and if you had even the
slightest breeze... wow, you're in like a fog. And when you go to
the mess hall to eat, of course when you chew the food, you can feel
the grit of the sand. And it's amazing, even that, you get used to
it. I gradually got used to the mixture of sand and food. [Laughs]
It was terrible.
(Frank Y. Interview, Copyright 1997 Densho Project)
==============
HOME AND BARRACKS
http://americanhistory.si.edu/perfectunion/non-
flash/internment_barracks.html
From 1942 to 1946, home for most Japanese Americans was one of 10
WRA camps, all patterned on military facilities. Hastily built, with
tarpaper walls and no amenities, the barracks were hot in summer and
cold in winter. Most did not meet minimal standards for military
housing. A visiting judge noted that prisoners in federal
penitentiaries were better housed.
"This was my first impression of Manzanar. Oh, it's really so hot,
you see, and the wind blows. There's no shade at all. It's
miserable, really. But one year after, it's quite a change. A year
after they built the camp and put water there, the green grows up.
And mentally everyone is better. That's one year after." Kango
Takamura, Beyond Words: Images from America's Concentration Camps
"During the winter, our wet hair became frozen, and our fingers
would stick to the metal door knob because we had to walk outdoors
back to our barracks." Shigeru Yabu, Heart Mountain Wyoming
Foundation
"There was a lack of privacy everywhere. The incomplete partitions
in the [latrine] stalls and the barracks made a single symphony of
yours and your neighbors' loves, hates, and joys. One had to get
used to snores, baby-crying, family troubles... The sewage system
was poor, [and] the stench from the stagnant sewage was terrible."
Mine Okubo, Citizen 13660
========================
WORK
http://americanhistory.si.edu/perfectunion/non-
flash/internment_work.html
Internees were encouraged to work in camp-sponsored self-help
programs. All of the relocation centers operated farms, and the food
grown was often exchanged between camps. Camp administration offices
also provided other opportunities for employing residents. The pay
was low, ranging from $12 for a month of 48-hour weeks as an
agricultural worker to $19 a month for physicians, dentists, and
other professionals.
"The call went out for people with any kind of skill to offer their
services. Thousands were responding, with great surges of community
spirit, sometimes with outright patriotism, wanting 'to do their
part.' Woody signed on as a carpenter. One of my brothers-in-law was
a roofing foreman. Another ran a reservoir crew. Mama had worked as
a dietician in Washington after she was married. In camp this was
high-priority training... Nineteen dollars a month. This was top
wage for an internee. Unskilled labor started at eight." Jeanne
Wakatsuki Houston and James D. Houston, Farewell to Manzanar
"Along the rows of barracks were planted victory gardens. Great
care and attention were given to them by the owners, who were
spurred by competitive pride. The best were those of former truck
gardeners and nurserymen." Mine Okubo, Citizen 13660
Work-release programs offered residents one route out of the camps.
As early as May 1942, camp residents who were willing to work as
field laborers were offered seasonal furloughs. Though elaborate
investigations of "character" and "loyalty" were required of the
participants, by 1943, 17,000 Japanese Americans had permanently
left the WRA camps under the work-release program.
=============
COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES
http://americanhistory.si.edu/perfectunion/non-
flash/internment_community.html
Life did continue behind the barbed wire. Though residents had been
deprived of their most basic rights, Japanese Americans recreated a
community structure that enabled them to live as normal a life as
possible.
Civic associations, religious observances,
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