By John Karnish – Undercover Hippie.
Most people would agree that the facts of history vary depending on the source. The accounts of the American Revolution are dramatically different when told by the British, than when told by the United States. However, are large segments of history never mentioned? You better believe it!
I learned about the following topic when I was watching PBS late one night. I NEVER heard about it in ANY of my American or World History classes! Very few people my age, “mid-20’s,” know anything about this subject. The subject I’m talking about is Japanese Relocation Camps.
If you shrugged your head in bewilderment, here is some information you might want to know. On March 18, 1942, President Roosevelt signed a document that would call for the building of 10 camps in the Western United States, which would house over 110,000 Japanese Americans. These camps were generally built the same. They were fenced in, with usually 14 barracks, and made of wood and tarpaper. There also was usually a dining hall and a recreation hall.
The Japanese were forcefully moved into these camps after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. It wasn’t taken into consideration whether a family had been in the country for generations or for weeks. Not only were these people taken from their homes, they were also forced to work. They usually made camouflage netting to support the war and model ships that were used to help train the navy. The Japanese also grew fruit and vegetables which were used in the camps, but also for commercial purposes.
Many of the relocated Japanese were born in America and had never even been to Japan! The Ogawa family had moved to San Francisco in 1929 and had survived quite well with their successful grocery store. When the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, this naturalized, American family was forced along with many others into government relocation camps.
It is estimated that 662 babies were born and 221 adults died at just one camp. Unfortunately, they were all away from the comforts of their own homes. These camps don’t fit the “land of the free” image the United States paints in our textbooks, but that doesn’t mean we should leave them out of American History. We need to talk to our educators and get them to add the relocation camps to their lesson plans. We need to write to the textbook publishers and have them include this segment of history in their chapters on WWII. It is very important that we learn from history so that we don’t repeat it. If we do not learn history, then we are doomed to failure.
The Justice Department is currently seeking information
about individuals who were interned in these camps and
who may be eligible for redress under the Civil Liberties
Act of 1988. Call 202-219-6900 or write: Office of Redress Administration, P.O. Box 66260, Washington, D.C. 20035-6260.
War Relocation Authority Camps in Arizona, 1942-1946
http://www.library.arizona.edu/images/jpamer/wraintro.html
Ogawa Family Information
http://despina.advanced.org/15511/families/ogawa.htm