DISCUSSION TOPIC: JAPANESE AMERICAN INTERNMENT IN WW II

The Procedure

Divide your time between looking in at one particular internment camp from the chart directly below with extensive browsing in the general resources listed on this page.  Take a file card of notes about each and come to class ready to discuss.

The Primary Question

Where should we place Japanese-American internment within the larger history of World War II?

Secondary Questions

How would you compare and contrast the history of Japanese-American internment with that of Japanese-Canadian internment?  To what extent are the two stories linked?

Possible Starting Places

Alice George, "Eighty Years After The U.S. Incarcerated 120,000 Japanese Americans, Trauma And Scars Still Remain," Smithsonian, February 11, 2022.

  Elaine Chong, "Japanese Internment Camps: How A Long-Lost Kimono Unearthed A Family Secret," BBC News, February 21, 2022.

  Sam Ratner, "The Long-Lasting Scars Of Japanese-American Internment," The World, PRI, July 28, 2020.

Cordelia Hebblethwaite, "Pain And Redemption Of WW II Interned Japanese-Americans," BBC Newsmagazine, February 18, 2012.

  "In Focus: World War II -- Internment Of Japanese Americans," Atlantic (August 21, 2011).

  "Betrayed: Surviving An American Concentration Camp," American Public Television, 2022.  (57 mins)

Japanese-American Internment In The News

  Olivia Tasevski, "The Overlooked Story Of The Incarceration Of Japanese Americans From Hawaii During World War II," The Conversation, June 13, 2023.

  Chris Klimet, "Japanese American Artists Recall The Trauma Of Wartime Incarceration," Smithsonian, March 7, 2023.

  Molly Enking, "The First-Ever List Of Japanese Americans Forced Into Incarceration Camps Is 1,000 Pages Long," Smithsonian Smart News, November 18, 2022.

  Taylor Welk, "'Proof I Was There': Every Japanese American Incarcerated In Second World War Finally Named," Guardian, October 11, 2022.

  Lisa Wong Macabasco, "'Wound Of The Incarceration Extends': Remembering The Japanese American Internment," Guardian, April 5, 2022.

  Lauren Gambino, "'We're In Danger Of Forgetting': Congressman's Warning 80 Years After Japanese American Incarceration," Guardian, February 19, 2022.

  Connie Y. Chiang, "The Shameful Story Of Environmental Injustices At Japanese American Incarceration Camps During WW II," The Conversation, February 10, 2022.

  Susan H. Kamei, "How Memories Of Japanese American Imprisonment During WW II Guided The U.S. Response To 9/11," The Conversation, September 3, 2021.

Nolan Cool, "What Happened To Japanese American Houses During Incarceration?," Smithsonian, May 13, 2021.

  Philip Byrd, "Baseball Behind Barbed Wire," Smithsonian, May 10, 2021.

  Bradford Pearson, "For Japanese-Americans, Housing Injustices Outlived Internment," New York Times, August 20, 2020.

  Isabella Rosario, "The Unlikely Story Behind Japanese Americans' Campaign For Reparations," Code Switch, NPR, March 24, 2020.

  Katherine J. Wu, "California To Apologize For Incarceration Of Japanese Americans During WW II," Smithsonian Smart News, February 19, 2020.

  Etelka Lehoczky, "George Takei Recalls Time In An American Internment Camp In 'They Called Us Enemy,'" NPR, July 17, 2019.

  Peter Manseau, "The Complex Role Faith Played For Incarcerated Japanese-Americans During World War II," Smithsonian, February 15, 2019.

Natasha Varner, "The U.S. Imprisoned Japanese Peruvians In Texas, Then Said They Entered 'Illegally,'" The World, PRI, October 1, 2018.

  German Lopez, "Supreme Court Finally Condemns 1944 Decision That Allowed Japanese Internment During World War II," Vox, June 26, 2018.

  Marjorie Backman and Michael Gonchar, "Teaching Japanese-American Internment Using Primary Resources," New York Times, December 7, 2017.

  Erin Blakemore, "View Daily Life In A Japanese-American Internment Camp Through The Lens of Ansel Adams," Smithsonian Smart News, February 28, 2017.

"We Remember Manzanar, Minidoka, Heart Mountain. . . ," Pacific Citizen, February 24, 2017.

  Colin Dwyer, "75 Years Later, Americans Still Bear Scars Of Internment Order," The Two-Way, NPR, February 19, 2017.

  Lisa Morehouse, "Farming Behind Barbed Wire: Japanese-Americans Remember WW II Incarceration," The Salt, February 19, 2017.

  Erick Trickey, "Fred Korematsu Fought Against Japanese Internment In The Supreme Court. . . And Lost," Smithsonian, January 30, 2017.

  T. A. Frail, "The Injustice Of Japanese-American Internment Camps Resonates Strongly To This Day," Smithsonian (January 2017).

  Alvin Chang, "Hey Donald Trump: Japanese Internment Was Paranoid And Racist," Vox, November 17, 2016.

German Lopez, "When Japanese Internment Is Cited To Justify Trump's Policies, Don't Wonder Why People Are Scared," Vox, November 17, 2016.

  Natasha Varner, "These Images Of Japanese American Incarceration Were Embargoed For Almost 30 Years," The World, PRI, April 30, 2016.

  German Lopez, "Why George Takei Loves America, Even After He Was Held In A U.S. Internment Camp," Vox, December 8, 2015.

  Jaime Gonzalez De Gispert, "The Japanese-Peruvians Interned In The U.S. During WW 2," BBC News, February 22, 2015.

  Sam Whiting, "Fred Korematsu's Courage Honored At Smithsonian," SF Gate, December 20, 2012.

  Richard Goldstein, "Gordon Hirabayashi, World War II Internment Opponent, Dies At 93," New York Times, January 3, 2012.

  Nina Bernstein, "Relatives Of Interned Japanese-Americans Side With Muslims," New York Times, April 3, 2007.

  Dinitia Smith, "Photographs Of An Episode That Lives In Infamy," New York Times, November 6, 2006.

Jonathan Mahler, "G.I. Japanese," New York Times, June 18, 2006.

William Glaberson, "War On Terrorism Stirs Memory Of Internment," New York Times, September 24, 2001.

Francis X. Clines, "A Park And Sculpture Will Honor Japanese-Americans," New York Times, October 21, 1999.

Todd S. Purdum, "U.S. Starts To Dust Off A Dark Spot In History For All To See," New York Times, June 20, 1998.

Dirk Johnson, "War Legacy: Japanese-American Diaspora," New York Times, August 14, 1995.

David Margolick, "Japanese-American Judges Reflect On Internment," New York Times, May 19, 1995.

Roberta Hershenson, "Remembering The Relocation Camps," New York Times, October 15, 1989.

Irvin Molotsky, "Senate Votes To Compensate Japanese-American Internees," New York Times, April 21, 1988.

Video Sources

  Densho, "Ugly History: Japanese American Incarceration Camps," TED-Ed, October 1, 2019.  (5 mins)

  "Toyo Miyatake: Infinite Shades Of Gray," Japanese American National Museum, 2021.  (29 mins)

  "Picturing Japanese American Internment: Dorothea Lange," American Masters, PBS Learning Media.  (6 mins)

  "Why The U.S. Photographed Its Own WW II Concentration Camps," Vox, January 10, 2022.  (15 mins)

  "How A 1944 Supreme Court Ruling On Internment Camps Led To A Reckoning," Retro Report, PBS Learning Media.  (10 mins)

  "Rabbit In The Moon," 1999.  (85 mins) -- A video that is available through streaming through the Vancouver Island Regional Library with a valid library card.

Japanese Canadian Internment In Comparison

Japanese Canadian Internment: An extensive series of links from my History Of B.C. course page.

Web-Sites

  Camp Harmony Exhibit -- University Of Washington Libraries:

  Children Of The Camps -- The Documentary:

  Of Civil Wrongs And Rights, The Fred Korematsu Story, POV:

Exploring The Japanese American Internment:

  "Japanese American Incarceration," National WW II Museum:

  Japanese-American Internment Camps During WW II, University Of Utah:

  Japanese American Internment -- Wikipedia:  An entry from the on-line encyclopedia.

Japanese American Relocation Digital Archives -- University Of California:

Japanese Internment Camps, History.com:

More Perfect Union -- Japanese Americans And The U.S. Constitution:

Teaching With Documents -- Documents And Photographs Related To Japanese Relocation During World War II, National Archives:

War Relocation Authority -- Through Our Parents' Eyes:  A presentation from the University of Arizona.

War Relocation Centers Of World War II -- When Fear Was Stronger Than Justice:

Audio Sources

Japanese Americans Interned During World War II, Telling Their Stories Oral History Archives Project, Urban School Of San Francisco.

  "Across The Ocean: A Japanese-American Story Of War And Homecoming," Code Switch, NPR, May 24, 2023.  [34 mins]

  Gabriel J. Sanchez, "A Project Collects The Names Of Those Held At Japanese Internment Camps During WW II," All Things Considered, NPR, January 29, 2023.  [6 mins]

  "George Takei Got Reparations; He Says They 'Strengthen The Integrity Of America,'" Weekend Edition Saturday, NPR, February 18, 2022.  [5 mins]

  "The Internment Of Japanese Americans," Witness History, BBC World Service, August 4, 2020.  [9 mins]

"The Internment Of Japanese Americans During World War II," Diane Rehm Show, WAMU, May 12, 2015.  [51 mins]

"The Legacy Of Civil Rights Leader Fred Korematsu," Talk Of The Nation, NPR, January 31, 2012.

  "Honoring A Japanese-American Who Fought Against Internment Camps," All Things Considered, NPR, January 30, 2014.

"The Legacy Of Civil Rights Leader Fred Korematsu," Talk Of The Nation, NPR, January 31, 2012.

  "The Japanese-American Internment Experience," On Point, NPR, August 26, 2011.

  "The Creative Art Of Coping In Japanese Internment," Morning Edition, NPR, May 12, 2010.  [6 mins]

  "Newly Released Photos Tell Story Of Internment," Talk Of The Nation, NPR, November 21, 2006.

"Incarceration Of Japanese Americans During WW II," Omnibus, BBC World Service, January 10, 2002.  [24 mins]

Articles

Heather Stevens, "Japanese American Internment During World War II":  Materials developed for Maryland's Anne Arundel County Public School System.

Other Resources

"Japanese American Internment Camps During WW II," Lesson Plan, NEH Edsitement: