The Japanese Internment - Essay Example

JAPANESE INTERNMENT War is all time a game for the shrewd politicians while a nightmare for the common man. Due to the selfish deeds and filthy politics played by the fistful politicians the innocent common man has to succumb. Japanese internment was the fine example of the suffering of the common people without reason. It is exhilarating to know the tales of the wars from those people who have actually gone through the dreadful experience of war. What happened to the common man when he had to prove his loyalty in a very crucial circumstance? What happened with the common man when his own nation asks the proof of his loyalty? The answers of these questions come to us through the story of Japanese American Internment. These people were imprisoned and interned for no strong reason. They were sent to the relocation camp far away from their homes. The disgraceful incident of internment started soon after the Pearl Harbor attack. On December 7, 1941 Imperial Japanese Navy attacked on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Suspicion prevailed all over among the outraged American people and their attitude towards the Japanese- Americans suddenly changed. On the background of the bombing on Pearl Harbor, the Presidential proclamations were signed which included 2525 (Japanese), 2526 (German), and 2527 (Italian). The Raciest Hysteria led to the forced evacuation and internment of the Japanese- Americans. Approximately 120,000 Japanese Americans were imprisoned and were sent to the war relocation centers. Among some young men of Japanese heritages became some of the most trustworthy soldiers. In 1990, Japanese American survivors of the camps started receiving redress checks of $ 20,000 along with a letter of apology from President George Bush. Keywords: Attack on Pearl Harbor, Japanese internment, relocation camp, redress Introduction: The Second World War had just started. There was a historic incident happened during this time. It was 19th February 1942. On the basis of the Pearl Harbor attack, Franklin Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066. According to the order 120,000 Japanese- Americans were rounded up to one of the 10 internment camps which were called “relocation centers.” The American government took such initiatives against the Japanese- Americans due to the fear that those people would otherwise support to the Japanese in Second World War. Thus more than 2/3 of the Japanese in US were interned who were the citizens of United States. They were never disloyal to America yet they were evacuated for no strong reason. The blatant euphemism was that they were humiliated by calling them ‘non-aliens.’ The misery of the people can be unfolded through various aspects. poignant hustle-bustle: The hustle bustle was going on when the Japanese were ordered to leave their houses and belongings within two days. While describing the evacuation process Lawson Fusao Inada in his book “Only what we could carry,” writes, “We went to sleep on the floor, as we had all our mattresses packed and made ready for the storage man who was to come the next day. The front room was littered with our baggage, a huge trunk, the beds which had been taken apart, the rolled up carpet, and small cardboard boxes filled with things we had repacked over again and again. “Let’s leave these things here; no let’s take them.” How very confusing, how utterly hesitant we were.” (p.g.3,‘The Day we left,’ Ben Jijima, Only what we could carry). It was quite perplexing and they couldn’t guess anything about their future. The future was in the darkness. They were no more the free citizens of a free and democratic nation but they were the internees. The nation that was their motherland had become foreign land for them. The feeling of alienisms was making the Japanese Americans more and more insecure. The internees were ordered to bring very few belongings. They were ordered to leave their houses within 48 hours. The American Japanese were shifted to a temporary assembly centers until the internment camps built. Among these assemblies thirteen assemblies were located in California. The camps were built in different places such as Topaz, Utah, Poston, Arizona, Gila River, Amache, Colorado, Heart Mountain, Wyoming, Jerome, Arkansas, Manzanar, California, Minidoka, Idaho, Rohwer, and Tule Lake. “Voices from the Camp,” by Brimner, Larry Dane is a personal testimony of Japanese American survivors and their personal experience in California during World War II. Brimner has depicted a vivid picture of the round ups, and the journey to the relocation camps, the daily life of the people in the camps. Here he describes how bitter experience they had there apart from being faithful and loyal citizens of America and how the individual rights were trampled in the name of national security. The day to day life of the people is always affected by the war. War creates an adverse effect on the common man who wants peace and security. The mental insecurity starches his mind. Life in Camps The life in the camps was very hard. The internees were living the life full of boredom and frustration. There would be a frequent political friction between the Japanese internees and the administration there used to be the conflict between the two generations of The Japanese internees, i.e. Issei (the first generation of the Japanese who migrated from Japan to US), and Nisei (the second generation of The Japanese-Americans who was born in US and were the citizens of US). The atmosphere was full of anarchy and violence. Physical harassment, strikes, protests used to happen in the camps. There was absolutely no place for morals ethics and under such circumstances life became worse than hell. The major problem in assembly centers and internment camps was the inadequate medical facility. Some internees had to lose their lives due to inadequate medical aid and the emotional stress they were suffering. They were housed in tarpaper covered barracks which had no plumbing as well as cooking facility. The condition of the camps was dreadful. While describing the condition Yoshika Uchida states, “Those stables just reeked. There was nothing you could do. The amount of lye they threw on it to clear the odor and stuff, it didn’t help. It still reeked of urine and horse manure. It was so degrading for people to live in such environment. It’s almost as if you are not talking about the way Americans treated Americans.” (p.g.70, ‘Only What We Could Carry’) The Japanese were mortified in such an appalling way that they cried and cursed the government. The Government was responsible for their hardships. Once they were living a well-brought-up life and the discourteous policy of the government towards them made them to live a life shoddier than a dog. Michael L. Cooper while describing the state of mind of the American Japanese states, “After living in well furnished homes with every modern convenience, suddenly being forced to live the life of a dog is something which cannot so readily forgot.” (p.g.28, Barbed Wire Communities, Fighting for Honor). One more such touching story of a famous actor Pat Mortica is a vivid example of the massive sufferings of the American Japanese during the internment. Pat Mortica was one of the 11,000 people in the internment camp. Due to the hard life in internment camp he had to spend most of his life in the hospital because of the spinal tuberculosis and he lost his ability to walk. In one interview he speaks about his experience in internment camp very bitterly. “I remember doing the Pledge of Allegiance at the beginning of the school day.  It was in a barracks.  (I remember) my English class; and looking out the window and seeing the American flag waving, juxtaposed against a guard tower in the background, I had this sense of ‘What’s this all about?’    Why am I saying ‘liberty and justice for all?’    I was too young to rationalize this, but I do remember the hurt of bigotry began early on and was to last for many, many years.  Whenever I think about it, it still hurts.” Thus the strong belief once the Japanese Americans had on liberty, patriotism and democracy was getting shattered. The life seemed to be rambling in the storm of confusion and doubt.   The citizens of the United States were imprisoned not by the totalitarian regime but by their own nation without any charge or trial. This was the tragedy of the American Japanese. After a very hard time of about two to three years the internees were finally relieved and allowed to go back to their homes. The Japanese internment discussed with two contradictory opinions. Some people criticized the activity for being a concentration camps and violation of Habeas Corpus while other put forward the opinion that the camps were necessary on the basis of the Pearl Harbor attack. moan of the Issei: When the war broke out, the first generation of Japanese immigrants called Issei was prohibited to become the American citizens. Many restrictions were imposed on them. Toyo Kazato expresses her strong grievance about the Issei during through beautiful poetic verses. “Do they think I am an enemy from today? Since the war has broken out? What fierce stares people give me All so suddenly.” (p.g.98, ‘Only What We Could Carry’) The American Japanese were loyal and faithful to America. They were in search of a chance to prove their loyalty. Both The Nisei and Issei wanted to show that they are the real citizens of America and not the part of Japan. Japanese-American Evacuation Claim Act 1948 The Japanese-American Evacuation Claim Act 1948 was very significant for the Japanese American people to rebuild their losses. After the sad historic incident of the internment, in 1946 two evacuation bills were introduced in the Senate and the House which proposed to pay for the property losses of Japanese Americans. The faith and loyalty of the Japanese Americans were appreciated by President Truman when he stated, “You fought not only the enemy, but you fought prejudice – and you have one.” (p.g.53, The Postwar Decades (1945-69), Achieving the Impossible Dream: How Japanese Americans Obtained Redress) But the opponents were not in favor of the redress because the Italian Americans and German Americans were excluded from the benefits which Japanese Americans were enjoying. A revised version of the bill, H.R.3999 was introduced and passed unanimously. On July 2, 1948, The Japanese-American Evacuation Claim Act was signed by President Truman. In 1960 the younger generation of the Japanese Americans was inspired by the civil right movement. This movement was known as Redress movement. It was succeeded when in 1970 the then President Gerald Ford proclaimed that the internment was wrong. Later on the compensation of $20,000 per head was given to those who had been interned. Conclusion: The Japanese internment thus was criticized for being unjust and was implemented due to racism and not because of military necessity. The natural right of every animal on this planet is to be liberal and to live a secure and safe life and this right had been supersede by the nation which is called as an abode and a birthplace of democracy and which always boasts of being a land of individuality and freedom. The external losses of the Japanese American can be repaired but what about the internal loss. The humiliation the hardship which they had to suffer is unforgettable. Sources 1. Voices from the Camps by Larry Dane Brimner 2. Only What We Could Carry The Japanese American Internment Experience edited by Lawson Fusao Inada 3. Fighting for Honor by Michael L. Cooper 4. Achieving the Impossible Dream by Maki Kitano Berthold Read More