Prisoners Without Trial - Book Report/Review Example

The changes which occurred during World War II not only affected the main warfront in Germany and the surrounding countries which were fighting in the different regions. There were also changes which occurred nationally, specifically as a response to the outbreak. One of the changes which occurred was in the United States with the incarceration of 120,000 Japanese Americans, specifically as a response to the threats of Communism and political ties which were a part of the war. In Roger Daneil’s book, Prisoners Without Trial, there is an explanation of what occurred during this time as well as the injustices which were a part of those who were coming from Japan and to the United States. Roger Daniels is a professor of Taft University in History with a specialization in immigration issues. For over 20 years, he has argued the cases of immigration to show the realities and complexities that are a part of the fluctuations in the United States and throughout the world. Through both his studies in patterns in history as well as his understanding of immigration, Daniels is able to provide continuous insight into how immigrants are treated in different times in history. The credibility of the author comes from his background as well as the in – depth studies in which he has provided through his life. The arguments which Daniel speaks about with his different concepts on immigration include an understanding of economics, culture and the pressures of politics, all which change the patterns of immigration and cause specific responses within the nation (Jones, 1). The book published by Daniels was first printed in 2004. The time frame and setting of the book is during World War II when thousands of Japanese immigrants were forced into migration camps and became prisoners to America. The thesis in which the author states is to show why there were so many Japanese Americans which were taken from their home in America during World War II as well as how this influenced the main parts of America. More important, Daniels identifies the violations of civil and human rights because of the political, economic and cultural agenda which was facing the nation. The concept of creating a wartime mistake was one which was ultimately accepted in the United States, despite the cruelty which was shown and the violations which were a part of the Constitution. Through the proofs that Daniels provides, there is a direct association with how this could occur again and how the proclamations of equal rights and the main capacity of America to assist immigrants can turn and may be reinforced with government regulations that overpower the democratic options in the United States (Daniels, 4). The author’s argument and agenda is based on questioning the democracy and human rights that are practiced throughout America. The prejudice and abuse which Daniels shows throughout the book toward the Japanese Americans is one that was directly practiced as orders from the government as a response to the surrounding environment. The movement of both immigration as well as the sudden push to put the Japanese – Americans into prison camps is both defined by the author to show that the government cruelty against immigrants and those that don’t fall under specific constitutional laws can become detrimental to thousands of people. The claims of America and the actions which are taken are then differing and controversial because of the rights which the government can claim in specific situations or swift action. The concern is not only in showing what happened historically, but also to question the actions and how they may affect history today (Daniels, 7). The argument in which Daniels shows is one which is believable. When looking at the current situation in history, it can be seen that changes are automatically made, specifically with an agenda for or against different immigrants. For instance, after 9/11, profiles for Islamic Americans were continuously being spotted, despite the innocence which many may have had. Today, immigrants from Mexico are facing different questions on rights and how to integrate into American society. In this book, Daniels makes a believable argument by showing the same fluctuation which occurred during World War II. His main agenda is shown first through the immigrant population of Japanese to America during this time frame. This is followed by the factual information on the incarceration of the Japanese while showing the mechanics of how the government pushed the agenda through in terms of the political changes in American society. The focus is to show what occurred between 1942 – 1946 with the Japanese which were incarcerated, including daily routines, expectations, treatment and political rights of those who were in the prisoner camps. More important, Daniels shows statistical evidence, policies, agendas and alternatives which occurred after the Japanese were put into freedom, moving specifically through the 1990s to show the rippling effect which occurred in society. Each of these sources are secondary with primary sources based on interviews with politicians and legitimate documents which showed how the incarceration worked. The book is one which had several strengths and weaknesses. The book was interesting to read, specifically because of the details given, approach which the author took and the details in which the subject implied. The human rights link and the in – depth research which is based around this specific thesis creates the main focus of the book and makes it so one becomes interested in finding out what has happened. However, the number of facts which the author states make the book like a historical record and account, as opposed to carrying a different tone in describing human rights and things which occurred during the war. A different viewpoint may have been taken if the focus were on more than the factual information, responses from the government and integration into society. Even though this book could have used more than factual resources, the aim of being a history book and showing an in – depth review of what happened is one which is significant and doesn’t hold any major flaws. The book is able to show the other side of immigration as well as the injustices which can occur within society. The ability for the author to show how simple it was to incarcerate Japanese, while providing accounted details of how many policies and laws took over basic Constitutional rights, made the book worth reading. Finding the factual information as well as the pattern which occurred before, during and after the incarceration also made the book interesting to read, specifically because of the link to historical recounts, documents and the main approach toward making war time moves. The book is one which reflects ideas which are learned in class. The question which is created starts with the agenda of World War II as well as the opposing viewpoints which were a part of this. The opposition is one which links to the precursors of the Civil Rights movement, as well as foreign and domestic issues which were a part of this time frame. One can see that the agenda of World War II directly links to these issues and humanitarian rights that are a part of the time frame. The book fits into the course by showing the links between these three areas and shows how the chronological progression in the United States was based on the links of World War II as well as the basic human rights which had to be fought for soon after the war was over. When looking at this, it can be seen that the war and the main agenda was one which was intertwined into other domestic issues of the United States and the general transformation which began to occur after the 1960s. The book can be used as an in – depth of review of one of the issues of the United States from this time period, specifically which links to other concepts and movements that are a part of the American agenda. The information which was new in this book was based on the in – depth analysis of immigration to the United States as well as the policies and agendas which took place to incarcerate the Japanese. While there was some familiarity with these issues from class, there wasn’t a direct connection to the in – depth happenings and policies which occurred. The incarceration which did occur and the policies which followed this are also not emphasized within the course because of the vast amount of material that is being studied. Having an in – depth analysis of this book with the lecture material is one which could be effective in learning contemporary American history, specifically because it provides a different type of insight into immigration and laws. The main agenda of the book in defining immigration and the lack of rights which pertain to it could then be defined as a main focus for study in the class. The concept of the incarceration of the Japanese during World War II is one of the most overlooked concepts in history. The agenda of the government, policy which was initialized and the decision to follow through with the different actions is one which went through with several different initiatives and pressures from the federal government. In Daniels book, there is a definition of what occurred as well as how it affected those in society. More important, there is a deeper understanding of what happened as a result of both the immigration and incarceration and some of the major downfalls which occurred in immigration laws, US history and the complexities of claiming innocent prisoners in a war time situation. Works Cited Daniels, Roger. Prisoners Without Trial. Hill and Wang: New York, 2004. Jones, Marianne. “Debating Immigration: Historian Takes the Pro Side.” University of Cincinatti, 2001. Read More