Japanese Internment Camps
The real story
Who, What, Where, When ,Why & How.....
Shortly after the bombing of Pearl Harbor President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed an act ordering all Japanese-Americans to evacuate the West Coast. This meant they would have to be relocated to internment camps. Roughly 120,000 people, some of them being American citizens were placed in one of these ten camps. They thought this would prevent sabotage of the war effort.
How it was portrayed
This 1942 poster was made to generalize all Japanese-American and or Japanese as the enemy. By portraying them as an animal. It was also made to make Americans fear the Japanese. Its propagandize cultural and racial animosity. This lead to an historical fallout for the Japanese forever.
Not only did the media make unrealistic, cruel illustrations of the Japanese but also used real life images of some in the Life magazine. This magazine displayed images of how loyal Japanese and Chinese are suppose to look. Also including how the enemy is deemed to look. By Examining the skin color and facial features of each race basically establishing they all look the same. In essence exhibiting them to Americans, more so the Japanse.
Bias
This whole act was a violation of civil rights. Most of them were American citizens. The propaganda placed in the media was made completely of racial stereotypes. They pointed out their different appearances as being a bad thing. Also by giving them the nickname "Japs".
Cultural Criticisms
The reason this topic has cultural criticism is because by relocating almost the entire population of the Japanese in America is assuming they are all the enemy. Just because of their race they were targeted. They could have been American citizens and it still wouldn't have mattered because they were Japanese. They were put in this awful position because of the way the media portrayed them to their fellow Americans. The media dehumanized them in every way they could to make the people fear them.
My opnion
As being biracial this hits home for me. I know what its like to be stereotyped or discriminated against just because of my race. People are afraid of what they don't know and understand. I know if this happened to my race I would be deeply sadden because were all the same there is no difference on the inside. You can't generalize an entire race because of the actions of some people in that race. No one deserved to be treated this way.
Citaions
Source Citation
"Japanese American Internment." Gale Encyclopedia of U.S. History: Government and Politics. Detroit: Gale, 2009. Student Resources in Context. Web. 6 May 2015.
The Immigrant Experience,1999
The Asian-American Experience, 1999
The Constitution and Supreme Court, 1999