Fear swayed most Americans during World
War II to believe that Japanese Americans
were the enemy — largely because they
looked the part. Can you tell just by
looking who’s a loyal, American citizen?
We don’t study history to memorize facts or to glorify the
past. We study history because of what it can tell us about
the present and future. What are some of the lessons of the
forced removal and detention of Japanese Americans during
World War II?
•
Fear can cause scapegoating.
Public opinion turned against Japanese Americans in
1942, when fear caused many reasonable people to
believe the charges made against them. This built support
for the expulsion of Japanese Americans from the West
Coast. Many people later came to regret their actions.
What other times in history have people been treated
unfairly? What did the government or citizens do about
the injustice? What injustices do you see today? What can
citizens or governments do to improve the situation?
•
Leadership matters.
In 1942, any number of political leaders on the West
Coast or in Washington, D.C. could have stopped the
mass expulsion of Japanese Americans but did not. In
2004, a Department of Justice investigation found that
Chloe’s teacher had behaved inappropriately, which led to
an atmosphere of intolerance where bullying took place.
What actions can you take when you witness injustice?
How would you inform people in leadership positions at
your school, in your community, in government?
•
Ordinary people can do extraordinary things.
In crisis situations, one person can make a difference.
During World War II, there were a few people who
stood up for Japanese Americans, which made a huge
difference both at the time and in retrospect.
(See the story of one of them on page 6.)
Think about eight-year-old Chloe on the playground:
if one person stood up for her, could that have made
a difference in shifting the mob mentality? What can
you do to make a difference in someone else’s life?
Racist graffiti in Seattle, 1945.
Courtesy of MOHAI, P-I Collection
(Continued from page 1)
Chloe remembers the exact moment when her friends began to treat her differently, “There were some pictures of Muslim ladies wearing the
headscarf hijab. And some of them said, hey, those weird ladies, her mom’s one of them. And then they all looked at me and said, ‘You’re one
of those bad Muslims, aren’t you?’ Before reading the book, I was just a normal kid. And then I turned into an Islamic extremist who hated the
world and wanted to kill everybody,” Chloe recalled. Chloe eventually changed schools. Her father, who had emigrated from the Middle East, felt
that Muslims were no longer safe in America and moved back to the West Bank, divorcing her mother.
Chloe is now a senior in high school, and her mother reports that the taunts continue. Though she is doing well academically, she and her
family still feel uncertain about their future. “It’s been a barrage of intolerance and ugliness,” her mother told a reporter. As of 2009, 10% of
all religion-based hate crimes were committed against Muslims, despite Muslims making up only 1% of the U.S. population. But as Americans,
Chloe and her family are determined to stick it out. She is now reading about the Japanese American World War II incarceration experience and
its aftermath.
Ten-year-old Norman became Norman Mineta, who was elected to Congress representing San Jose, California. While in Congress, he helped push
for legislation to have the U.S. government apologize to Japanese Americans who were placed in the wartime camps. Later, he served as U.S.
Secretary of Transportation in President George W. Bush’s Cabinet during the aftermath of the terrorist acts on September 11, 2001.
Seventy years after World War II we still witness intolerance bred by stereotypes toward those who resemble “the enemy.” President Roosevelt’s
Executive Order 9066, which authorized the mass removal and incarceration of Japanese Americans in 1942, is now history. But it is a history we
can learn from — and apply to — situations we come across today.
“Classmates” Courtesy of Roger Shimomura.
Japanese American Boy Scouts
in the Heart Mountain, Wyoming camp, 1943.
Courtesy of NARA
“What happens when you look like the enemy?”
— An American story
Why study history?
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