Premium Essay

Japanese American Internment Analysis

Submitted By
Words 1705
Pages 7
The internment of Japanese-American citizens during World War II is a dark and often overlooked stain on America’s history. In 1942, Executive Order 9066 was signed by Roosevelt ordering the internment of all citizens of Japanese ancestry. For a war being fought against an anti-Semitic Germany, it seems ironic now that America would intern its citizens based on race too similarly to the way Germany interned its citizens based on religion. It can be difficult to understand how a nation based the principles of freedom and liberty could intern any population of people, but by taking a look at other unethical situations in United States’ history and world history, an explanation can begin to be found in the ideas of authorization, routinization, …show more content…
This is especially noticeable in the treatment of the Japanese-Americans within the camps they were moved to as well as the camps themselves. Strategically placed in areas “chosen for their remoteness,” the camps forced the people within them to become completely severed from the outside world (“Internment - Japanese - Behind the Wire”). In the camps, the Japanese-Americans faced a loss of their culture as the government enforced rules requiring them to go to school, eat, work, and interact in certain ways (“Japanese Relocation During World War II”). The background given from the U.S. National Archives describes family living conditions as “four or five families with sparse collections of clothing and possessions squeezed into...tar-papered barracks.” Despite little physical harm being done to the internees, “armed guards and ever-present snipers in the watchtowers were constant reminders of the residents’ new status,” (“Immigration - Japanese - Behind the Wire”). These conditions that people were forced to live in made them seem more like animals in pens than people being detained against their will by law, and with the same conditions and routines being followed in the camps everyday, it is easier to understand how those in charge could carry on these routines. From …show more content…
While the “during” has already been discussed in the context of routinization as well, the “before” part was crucial for the acceptance of Executive Order 9066. Dehumanization of people of Japanese ancestry was heavily influenced by the propaganda that was spread across the United States. Posters across the nation labeled the Japanese as “a ruthless and animalistic enemy that needed to be defeated” (Miles). These images of the Japanese enemy portrayed Japanese people in a way that made them look more animal than human. This was not a difficult task, as during this time period, Americans related with images of white people with “attractive features” as trustworthy friends and citizens (Miles), and the images of the Japanese were purposely not fitting of this mold. The Japanese were further dehumanized in American life through offensive nicknames that made them seem even more separated from Americans. As Hannah Miles describes in her essay on anti-Japanese propaganda, “racial distinctions were purposefully included in order to further alienate the Japanese as the other people.” The use of propaganda to dehumanize populations that are an intended enemy is never unusual, and in a war built and fueled by propaganda, it is no surprise that even America could use it to

Similar Documents

Premium Essay

Its Very Hard

...English, 2nd period December 5, 2011 Character Analysis of Farewell to Manzanar World was II had brought people so many pains. Jeanne, a Japanese American, who migrated to American, had to fight against prejudices during the war. That’s why Jeanne wants public to know about her internment camping time. In 1973, Jeanne wrote a realistic book about her childhood in Manzanar. Jeanne was a static character. Otherwise, Jeanne was too young to realize what was happening at that time. In the other hand, Papa, Jeanne’s father, is a dynamic character. He was not really a trouble maker but he was too conservative, and that was a reason for problems he caused. Jeanne and Papa contrasted with each other through their thought. Internment camping time was changing Jeanne’s opinions, a seven years old girl leads to a changing of a naïve girl without any definitions of internment camp into a thoughtful girl: because of so many prejudices of American for Japanese. World is not complicated as a seven years old girl’s thought, but she had been aware the real life, gradually. At that time, Jeanne was a naïve girl, and she did not understand what the internment camp was behind it. Jeanne thought the internment camping time was an adventure, and journey. Later then, Jeanne found out many unspoken prejudices. All of these small things had changed completely apart of Jeanne’s personality. Jeanne was pretty sad because the internment time had changed her Papa and turned him into a...

Words: 808 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Essay On Japanese Internment

...This investigation will focus on the key motivations behind the internment of Japanese individuals camps after the end of World War II, and attempt to answer the question “To what extent was President Franklin D. Roosevelt responsible for Japanese internment during and after World War II?” Japanese internment was the forced removal of Japanese civilians, specifically in the Pacific Coast region, which arose when President Franklin D. Roosevelt passed Executive Order 9066 on February 19, 1942 in response to the bombing of Pearl Harbor, which occurred on December 7, 1941. In order to thoroughly explore this topic, the following subtopics will be considered: context of Pearl Harbor and how it had affected America’s perception of the Japanese...

Words: 542 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Korematsu V United States

...1942, President Franklin Roosevelt signed the Executive Order 9066. This order allowed the United States military to section off parts of the US as military areas. In these areas they were trying to exclude specific groups of people from them. The group they were trying to exclude were the Japanese-Americans because they were believed to be acting as spies and sending signals to enemy submarines. The order requested that many Japanese-Americans leave their homes and business. However, many were forcibly removed from their homes and placed in internment camps during World War II. Frank Korematsu, a US-born man of Japanese descent, knowingly resisted the order to be relocated. Korematsu was later arrested and convicted for remaining in a “Military Area.” His case went to the Supreme Court where it was decided that exclusion orders based on Executive Order 9066 were in fact constitutional. Therefore, his conviction was upheld. Issue: Does Congress and the Executive possess the power to exclude persons of racial minority groups from a areas in the United States? Rule: The Supreme Court affirmed the conviction of Korematsu for violating the exclusion order forcing all persons of Japanese ancestry from designated military areas. The strict scrutiny test was applied here and the court found that the government's actions were valid. Application of Rule: This order was ruled constitutional because it was a priority to protect the country in a time of warfare rather than the...

Words: 392 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

Korematsu V. United States

...1942, President Franklin Roosevelt signed the Executive Order 9066. This order allowed the United States military to section off parts of the US as military areas. In these areas they were trying to exclude specific groups of people from them. The group they were trying to exclude were the Japanese-Americans because they were believed to be acting as spies and sending signals to enemy submarines. The order requested that many Japanese-Americans leave their homes and business. However, many were forcibly removed from their homes and placed in internment camps during World War II. Frank Korematsu, a US-born man of Japanese descent, knowingly resisted the order to be relocated. Korematsu was later arrested and convicted for remaining in a “Military Area.” His case went to the Supreme Court where it was decided that exclusion orders based on Executive Order 9066 were in fact constitutional. Therefore, his conviction was upheld. Issue: Does Congress and the Executive possess the power to exclude persons of racial minority groups from a areas in the United States? Rule: The Supreme Court affirmed the conviction of Korematsu for violating the exclusion order forcing all persons of Japanese ancestry from designated military areas. The strict scrutiny test was applied here and the court found that the government's actions were valid. Application of Rule: This order was ruled constitutional because it was a priority to protect the country in a time of warfare rather than the...

Words: 392 - Pages: 2

Free Essay

Japanese Americans

...World War II: The Internment of Japanese-American Citizens American History 129 History 129 Professor 22 April 2005 On December 7, 1941, the United States of America suffered from an unanticipated attack on Pearl Harbor. President Franklin D. Roosevelt stated that this day would live in infamy. This attack brought forth an array of drastic changes for the lives of Japanese-American citizens that were currently living in the United States at the time. Officials in Washington became highly involved in deciphering a plan to prevent further espionage, and sabotage from happening. After the attack many Americans had strong anti-Japanese attitudes (NARA). This brought the Executive Order 9066 into full effect. Two months following the attack on Pearl Harbor, President Roosevelt decided to instate the Executive Order 9066 into full effect. Executive Order 9066 was the starting point for the internment of Japanese-American citizens living inside of the United States. Officials feared that Japan had plans of further invading the homeland. Officials believed that Japanese-American citizens would side with Japan, and aid them rather than the United States. Order 9066 would bring the fear of invasion to a since of security. This order had to power to have the ability to relocate all people of the Japanese decent on the western coast to the Midwestern states, and it did exactly that. This order affected 117,000 people of Japanese descent, and two-thirds...

Words: 1025 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

The Displacement of Japanese-Americans

...panic spread across the whole country, but struck specifically hard on the West Coast. A fear almost resembling paranoia became evident in the following months. Any descendant of Japanese ancestry had to suffer the effects of this fear. In 1941 there were approximately 110,000 Japanese-Americans living in the United States, most of whom were concentrated on the West Coast. Even though 71,484 were Nisei, or American born citizens, they were subject to hostile and adverse treatment (Ropp). Opposition was openly directed at the Japanese by the press. California’s Governor Olsen and Attorney General Earl Warren fixed their attention on removing Japanese-Americans from all civil service posts, and revoking their state issued licenses from practicing medicine and law. In accordance with this, insurance companies canceled policies and markets and restaurants refused their services and displayed malicious signs such as: “We poison rate and Japs! Japs Shaved; not responsible for accidents. (Miller 311)” Extreme pressure began to grow for major evacuation. This pressure came from many different factions. Politicians, business and economic interests, and anti-Oriental organizations such as the American Legion were outspokenly in favor or resettlement. All were convinced that every Japanese-American, whether U. S. citizen or not, had the ability and/or desire to participate in espionage and sabotage for the “Empire” in case of invasion (McWilliams). In view of this public opinion...

Words: 1459 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

Writ of Habeas Corpus a Right or Not

...Writ of Habeas Corpus: A Right or Not? Shelly Shelton POL 201 American National Government Instructor: Amy Lyons August 4, 2014 The words war, terrorism, and death strike fear, anger, and pain in to the hearts of many. We want to retaliate against those who have caused us to feel this way. To somehow make them pay for the wrongs they have committed against us. In order to do this we kill, capture and or detain them. This is a fact of war, even an undeclared one. When these persons are taken prisoner do they lose their right to fair treatment, trial by constitutional standards and civilized means of interrogation? To answer these questions and others let us look at our history as well as review how our courts have viewed cases and situations that have arisen from actual war and the war on terrorism. Looking at the history of the United States it can be seen that the framers of the Constitution took civil liberties and civil rights into consideration when writing the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Article I Section 9 of the Constitution states “The Privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus shall not suspended, unless when in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion the public Safety may require it.” This writ is issued to determine if a person has been afforded due process of the law and to prevent unlawful imprisonment. It literally means “you should have the body.” (Unknown, 2013). The writ has been mentioned as early as the fourteenth century in England. The English people lived...

Words: 2107 - Pages: 9

Premium Essay

Compare and Contrast

...Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet vs. American Pastime During World War II in 1940’s, the United States was at war with Japan. President Franklin Roosevelt signed an executive order requiring those people who were Japanese descendants to move West Coast. The United States were afraid of Japanese Americans spying for Japan. The living conditions of Japanese American internment camps were very challenging for them because of the housing, food and the daily experiences that the Japanese went through. Nowadays, there are some books and movies that demonstrate what life was like to be living life in an internment camp. For example, the book Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet written by Jamie Ford and the movie American Pastime by Desmond Nakano show how difficult was to live an internment camp, how was the father and son relationship between the main characters and how people were maltreating the Japanese just because of their ethnicity. In American Pastime there is a typical American family who just happen to be Japanese heritage. They were sent to an internment camp and were forced to move out form their home to be relocated in an internment camp in topaz, Utah. The life of the Nomuras family had a radical change, just like the Okabes family in the book Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet. They were in the same situation like the nomuras. They have adapt themselves to sleep in small rooms cells or barracks and have meals three times a day in mess halls were portions...

Words: 519 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Hotel On The Corner Of Bitter And Sweet Analysis

...In Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, Jamie Ford presents racism as a demoralizing aspect in American society in the 1940’s, by using pathos to hook you in and demonstrate the strength and perseverance of many Asian-Americans during WWII. Ford goes back and forth between the present (late 1980’s) and when Henry was 12 years old (the 1940's). This form of writing helped show the main characters struggle with racism throughout his whole life. Henry Lee is a Chinese American growing up in Seattle Washington in the 1940’s. He lived in Chinatown but was the only Chinese person at his school. This made his day to day difficult. What made it worse was the evacuation of Japanese to internment camps. In fear of being separated from his family, his father made sure everyone would know that he is Chinese. “...his father pinned a button to his shirt that read, “I am Chinese”.” (Ford, 12) Henry wore this button every single day. His world was changed for the better when a new girl joined Rainer...

Words: 702 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Sarmy Camp Research Paper

...In 1942, the United States had war with japan. The U.S Army are moved to downward away from Japanese West Coast.The U.Sarmy are desert camp in the middle of American desert up in 1945.The U.S government said was it could not tell who might be loyal to Japan.Their none of immigrants from Japan or their children,who were in American citizens were ever proven to be dangerous to America during World War II. In one day,Ken father look around the camp and he thogh they had something to do this camp.In the camp we weren’t fun,and the camp was in the middle of nowhere and no matter what we do.ken dad began walking over the dry, like cracked dirt.Ken start as a question hi father(1).His Father said,`American is at war with Japan,and the government thinks that Japanses Americans can’t trusted and this is why we here in this camp.’(1) One day ken mom and dad came to his school ,and get out off school.They move to a place where they had to live in horse stalls than move to the camp.The camp was so hard and the day time and so cold at night.They need to stay in line to eat to use bathroom.They live in small place with no wall called barracks.They can’t even sleep at night because kids were cry at night.They don’t have no job at camp.People were just...

Words: 489 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

Summary: Uncover The History Hidden In WWII

...Uncover the history hidden in WWII. The Internment and Concentration Camps happened in WWII. The Nazi camps were started, because of all people Hitler judged. The japanese camps were started because of Pearl Harbor. The camps are not the same, because they had different purposes, people, and were the people were treated different. Nazi concentration camps and Japanese internment camps are not the same, because they had many different purposes. The Nazi camps were used to hold all who were against Hitler and people he judged, also they were used to build for the war. In the Holocaust Documentary the camps each had their own jobs such as making ammunition, clothing, weapons and etc. Japanese camps were used to house Japanese Americans during the war. George Takai said that the people from the camp were surrounded by tanks, three levels of barbed wire, and soldiers pointing in not out. The comparison of the camps are different the Japanese American camps were built out of fear and the Nazi camps were built for the war. Then later the killing of millions of Jewish people. The people were killed by gas chambers, acid showers, and even burned to death. The Nazi camps were built for war and killing not housing. The Japanese camps were built for housing not killing....

Words: 578 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Farwell To Manzanar Analysis

...identity changes. Before the attack from the Japanese at Pearl Harbor life for the Wakatsuki family was pleasant and peaceful. In 1941 the family had been living in Ocean Park because of George Ko’s, “papa”, line of work. Papa was a licensed fisherman who had two boats on Terminal Island’s port that he was captain of. The Wakatsuki family was the only Japanese family living in Ocean Park. Since Jeanne was so young at the time, she identified more as American than Japanese. She did not have much interaction with Japanese people other than her family. Papa would threaten the young children with, “I’m going to sell you to the Chinaman” to get them to act right. This taught them that being Oriental was a bad thing, which created a great...

Words: 1703 - Pages: 7

Premium Essay

Japanese Internment Camps Dbq Analysis

...During World War II the American government put all Japanese Americans on the west coast into internment camps. The reason they gave for this was that they were worried the Japanese Americans would act as spies or saboteurs for the Japanese government, so the government’s solution was to lock them up to prevent them from doing so. However, according to the documents the real reason for the internment of the Japanese Americans was because of their race. In Document C, an excerpt from an editorial published in 1942 in the NAACP’s official magazine, they talk about how although the Germans and the Italians on the east coast are “dangers… the American government has not taken any such high-handed action” against them like they did with the Japanese....

Words: 310 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

Japanese Internment Camps Summary

...provides information about Japanese Internment Camps in a positive way. Despite its title, Americans of Japanese ancestry or immigrants from Japan seem happy in the film to be relocated inland. They were provided with a proper housing that is twenty by twenty-five feet, with windows, stove, and lumber for the Japanese relocation people to integrate their new home to their liking. Japanese Americans were provided food in a mess hall that was mostly grown at the Internment Camps. Agricultural work was common in these communities and a high wage of fourteen to sixteen dollars a month was given to every worker. In these Japanese Internment Camps, a sense of community was easily made due to their similar background and experience. Among these communities, they created schools, churches for various religion, and a democratic government in order to settle rules and disputes. Some white Americans visited the camps in order to provide aid to the Japanese community. Military personnel surrounded the internment camp, guarding the wired fence to protect these new Japanese communities. Some Japanese relocation camps aided in the military as some went out of the camps...

Words: 562 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Farewell To Manzanar Analysis

...After the Pearl Harbor bombing over 110,000 Japanese Americans were forced into internment camps. In the novel Farewell to Manzanar by Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston tells her story of forced Imprisonment at Manzanar.Jeanne Wakatsuki learned through internal conflicts that one can not be happy until they accept themself. “In order to please my accusers...I tried for the first few years after our release to become someone acceptable.’”(185)This is important, because it shows how Jeanne regrets not being herself, which made her unhappy .“if refused by someone’s parents I would never say “ Go to hell”(160) I would see it as my fault.”’This supports the claim, because she does not want to make people uncomfortable, but it have a negative effect on her....

Words: 298 - Pages: 2