Japanese Americans: Oppression and Success

This is a somewhat older book on the subject, being put out in 1971. Sections include those relating to the immigration of Japanese into the US, what happened to them after that, the internment camps, what happened after those, and sections on Japan including it's history, religions, etc. It's more along the lines of a sociological analysis than a purely historical recitation of events.

As such it's quite an interesting book with a significant section on the camps and the events that led up to the internment of the people of Japanese ancestry in the US.

In relation to early anti-Japanese feelings in California the author cites various specific incidents of violence being committed by whites against the Japanese immigrants.

Something which I hadn't seen elsewhere; the Kingdom of Hawaii had passed a constitution in 1887 which prohibited persons from the orient from voting. The Kingdom was later basically overthrown by US businesses and the once independent country became an official US territory and eventually a state.

The first anti-Japanese land law was enacted in California in 1913, showing that there was a long history of anti-Japanese sentiment in the state, well before the events at Pearl Harbor.

Another thing I hadn't seen elsewhere was the position of the Communist party in the US in relation to the internment of the Japanese Americans. They were in favor of the internment, and they even helped to spread rumors about fifth column activities by Japanese Americans in the attack on Pearl Harbor. There's actually quite a bit in the book about various liberal/leftist groups and how they reacted, or didn't react, to the anti-Japanese prejudice, evacuation and internment.

There's also quite a bit on Earl Warren's anti-Japanese statements in California. (He was later the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, by the way.)

A very interesting quote from the book:In their function and mode of operation, these were essentially prison camps but overlaid with a thick patina of official euphemism. Some called the camps internment camps, some concentration camps, and this author prison camps.

He goes into the gradual dissolution of the camps and talks about the process being one that was quite difficult and not as easy as some other books would lead one to believe, noting that the process was fought each step of the way on various legal issues.

Another quote: The Japanese Americans were the victims of a pointless, cruel injustice. Aided in their rehabilitations by only a few individuals and impecunious organizations, they had in fact to depend essentially on themselves to survive through the camp period, to establish a record of unmistakable loyalty to the United States, and to find their way back to normal life.

There's also a section on how the people of Japanese ancestry in Hawaii managed after the end of the war.

Definitely a very interesting book.



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