Japanese-Americans

1. Japanese-Americans 1940-1960 by Carley Butler Wesley Boston Amy Meier Meg Hutchinson Sara Desist Robert Campbell

2. Internment of Japanese-Americans • History • Internment began February 19, 1942, when President Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9066. • Japanese-Americans were rounded up from March 24 to November 3, 1942 and interned for years. • Approximately 120,000 Japanese-Americans were incarcerated, half of whom were children. • Two Steps • First, detention/assembly camps • Second, Internment camps

3. The Effect of Internment on Japanese- American Children • Emotional Effects • Resentment/shame • Fear • Loss of identity • Each person was given a tag with a number on it as identification. • For children just learning who they are and their place in the world, this was very damaging

4. The Effect of Internment on Japanese- American Children (cont.) • Deterioration of Families/Separation of Families • Families lived with other families in “tar paper covered- barracks” 24X96 feet, eliminating privacy. • Father was no longer the head of the family. • Children often spent most of their time playing and eating in the mess halls with other children. • Suicide rate in camps was double that of the national population. • 80% of those suicides were men, whose children were left fatherless.

5. The Effect of Internment on Japanese- American Children (cont.) • Physical Effects • Diet • Very few Japanese staples • Tongue, kidneys and liver were common meats • Other meats and staples often redirected from the camp warehouses • Children suffered malnutrition, until the residents of the camp began to raise their own animals and grow some crops. • Weather • While the weather varied depending on the camp, internees usually faced extremely hot summers and cold winters. • No air conditioning or heat. • Many children developed asthma from the dust.

6. Constitutional Violations • Freedom of Speech - prohibited from speaking Japanese in public areas. English was the required primary language. • Therefore Japanese-American children were unable to freely speak their native language. This made it difficult because many children did not have the proper teaching, and therefore learning a new language was very difficult

7. Constitutional Violations (Cont.) • Right to Life, Liberty and Property - frequent forced removal and detention of Japanese- Americans. • Frequently Japanese-American homes were raided by police and FBI, family members taken, and personal property taken: all done without warning or explanation. Children were forced to see their lives intruded upon and their family taken away for no reason.

8. Constitutional Violations (Cont.) • Right to Equal Protection Under the Laws – Japanese-Americans were deprived of their liberty and property by the state when forced from their jobs, homes, and communities into internment camps. • Children taken from their homes and everything they knew, and were imprisoned because of who they were. Most children did not understand what was happening let alone where they were being taken.

9. Constitutional Violations (Cont.) • Rights against involuntary servitude (slavery) - payment for work was way below the monthly average: those in the highest professions received only $19 a month. • Because of very low income it was not uncommon for young children to work, some voluntarily, to help out the family. Others were forced to work.

10. Family Roles In Japanese-American Families • Traditional Family Roles • Individual product of generations • Individual expected to act in clearly defined roles and positions • Marital Subsystem • Marriages arranged by family members • Husband leadership, authority, provider, and protector • Wife homemaker and child bearer

11. Family Roles In Japanese-American Families (cont.) • Parent-Child Subsystem • Mother nutrients and support • Father discipline • Children not solely raised by parents • Sibling Subsystem • Emotional ties strong (war and escape) • Sons Favored • Eldest Daughter child-care functions

12. Religion • Japanese immigrants (Issei) brought diverse religious beliefs and traditions. • Before WWII, about 85% of Japanese Americans practiced Buddhism. • Issei established 3 types of community organizations. • Churches • Political/social orgs • Japanese language schools.

13. Religion (cont.) • Churches/Social organizations • Focus of activity for Japanese-American communities. • Provided religious sustenance & a social life. • Expanded beyond religious services. • Women’s organizations • Youth groups • During WWII, served as storage for personal property. • After WWII, served as hostels for returning evacuees. • After WWII many Japanese organizations and churches died out.

14. Religion (cont.) • Celebrations • Many original religious values discarded and cultural celebrations/holidays preserved. • Many celebrations sectarian in nature, focusing on community sharing aspects. • Bon Festival (annual festival) • To commemorate the memory of their ancestors and their families through folk dances and food. • Carnival booths for children

15. Education (cont.) • Issei - the early immigrant pioneers from Japan. • Nisei - the American-born children of the Issei. • Concept of “On” - lifelong obligation of every citizen to his government & to his parents. • Nisei pledged their ultimate allegiance to the United States: their motherland. • Students were taught how to be good Americans. • Americanization was the primary goal. • The Pledge of Allegiance was said everyday. • Some classes raised money for the Red Cross and raised victory gardens

16. Education • In many internment camps volunteers began the schools and/or were teachers. • The WRA eventually provided education for all school-age children in the camps (ages 6 to 16.) • Japanese language schools were forbidden. • Japanese-American teachers were paid $16 - $19 per month while Caucasian teachers were paid $150-$200 per month. • Eventually, all camp schools (except those in Tule Lake, California) were accredited by their respective states. • Internment accelerated loss of Japanese language & culture in America. • Issei wanted their children to be American. • The Nisei did not encourage ethnic identity in their own children.

17. Children At Play • Play was redefined • Without chores, children had time to play • Children were now less dependant on their parents, since the government provided all their needs

18. The War Relocation Authority (WRA) • The WRA encouraged children to engage in favorite American pastimes • Football, Basketball, and Baseball • The WRA also encouraged children to join organizations such as the Girl Scouts and the Boy Scouts • There were many opportunities for socialization in the form of dances, talent shows, and sporting events • Organized activities of mainstream leisure promoted assimilation

19. Study Guide Questions • What are three main emotional effects of internment that Japanese American children suffered? • What are two physical effects Japanese American children suffered during internment? • What is the role of the mother? • What is the role of the father? • The individual is a product of what? • Forced to speak English, the Japanese were being robbed of what right? • Unwarranted and frequent searches and seizures of Japanese American homes is the violation of what right? • Moving Japanese Americans into interment camps violated what right? • Who brought the first Japanese religions to the U.S. and what was the main religion? • What was the importance of churches to Japanese Americans? • What is the popular annual festival celebrated by Japanese Americans? • What was the purpose of education in internment camps? • How did internment ultimately effect the ethnic identity of second generation Japanese American children? • Even though the War Relocation authority encouraged children to engage in favorite American pastimes, for many children these activities produced ___________. • Children in the camps partook in organized activities of mainstream leisure that promoted_____________.

20. Japanese American During 1940 - 1960 By: Wang Chun To

21. Terms to describe Japanese generational and cohort groupings • Issei – the early immigrant pioneers from Japan. • Nisei – the American-born children of the Issei. • Sansei – children of Nisei. • Kibei – young Nisei (usually sons) sent overseas for a Japanese education. • Shin-Issei – post 1965 Japanese immigrants. • Senso Hanayome – post World War II brides. • Nikkei – a relatively recent term which is used to refer to Japanese Americans as a whole.

22. Traditional Japanese Families • Mostly male-dominated and vertical in structure with interactions based on clearly prescribed roles, duties, and responsibilities. • They do not distinguish from religion but on ethical behavior and how one acts toward parents, friends, and strangers. • Children were raised to practice the Confucian values of 19th century Japan during the reign of Emperor Meiji. (For example, arranged marriages required adaptation…yet divorce, desertion or separation was a rare alternative. ) • The Japanese expectations which emphasized stoicism or to be obligate and do not go out of duty.

23. Traditional Marriages • Proxy marriages were often based on photographs alone, which were legal under Japanese law. • The young “picture brides” usually faced many hardships beginning with the long boat trip. • In addition to the anticipation and anxieties associated with meeting their spouses for the first time, many became homesick or physically ill. • Japanese women “disowned” their daughters if they married men who were not Japanese.

24. Sansei childhood • Sansei, the daughters of Nisei (third generation), born for the most part between 1940 to 1960. • Mostly do not speak the language. • Enjoy options in their everyday lives and unprecedented in the history of Japanese Americans. • Most are college graduates and work, whether or not they are married or have children. • Their choice of careers is almost unlimited.

25. Sansei – as they became an adult • More than half of the Sansei had married to non-Japanese when they became an adult. • Many set up households with male companions without formal marriage. • Sansei women still recognize many positive Japanese cultural values that resonate in their thinking and actions. • Mostly think of the importance of family and a deeply infused sense of obligation and responsibility.

26. Historical Events During 1940 - 1960 • 1941- Japan attacks U.S. fleet and military bases in Pearl Harbor; U.S. declares war on Japan, Germany, and Italy; incarceration of community leaders. • 1942 – Japanese Americans of draft age declared “enemy aliens”; President Roosevelt signs Executive Order 9066, Japanese Americans exclusion from West Coast; incarceration of 120,000 Japanese Americans in “relocation centers.” • 1943 – Military recruitment for all-Japanese-American combat unit, 442nd RCT activated; Internees denied right to vote; confusing loyalty questionnaire administered in camps causes family conflicts.

27. Historical Events During 1940 – 1960 (continue) • 1945 – 45,000 Japanese war brides enter the U.S. • 1946 – U.S. drops atomic bombs on Hiroshima/Nagasaki, ends war with Japan; Japanese American resettlement of West Coast met with hostility and housing shortages. • Walter-McCarran Immigration and Naturalization Act passed; Asian immigrants allowed to become naturalized citizens; repeal of Alien Land Laws in California. • 1959 – Hawaii becomes 50th state; first Japanese American, Daniel Inouye, elected to Congress. • Nisei were born (second generation Japanese Americans)

28. Questions: • What are the terms that describe Japanese generational and cohort groupings • Term 1) the American-born children of the Issei. • Term 2) and the children of Nisei.

29. The End Thank you

30. Carley’s Bibliography Brimmer, Larry Dane. Voices from the Camps: Internment of the Japanese Americans During World War II. New York: Franklin Watts, 1994. Contrat, Masie and Richard Contrat. Executive Order 9066. Los Angeles: California Historical Society, 1972. Exploring the Japanese American Internment Through Film & the Internet. 2002. National Asian American Telecommunications Association. 29 Jan. 2005 http://www.jainternment.org Harth, Erica, ed. Last Witneses Reflections on the Wartime Internment of Japanese Americans. New York: PALGRAVETM, 2001.Hoobler, Dorothy and Thomas Hoobler. The Japanese American Family Album. New York: Oxford University Press,1996.Itatani, Elizabeth. Personal Interview. 29 Jan. 2005.Tong, Benson. "Race, Culture and Citizenship Among Japanese American Children andAdolescents During the Internment Era." Journal of American Ethnic History 23 (2004): 3-41.

31. Wes’s Bibliography A More Perfect Union: Japanese Americans and The United States Constitution. Tour Exhibit, 1994. http://americanhistory.si.edu/perfectunion/resources/touring.html#SECTION5 Civil Rights - Japanese Internment. Interview Transcripts. 2004 Bristol Productions http://wwiihistoryclass.com/civil-rights/html/transcripts.html Hohri, William. Repairing America An Account of the Movement for Japanese-American Redress. 1988, Washington State University The LegiSchool Project. The Japanese- American Internment During WWII: A Discussion of Civil Liberties Then and Now. California State Capitol, May 2, 2000. (Senate Publication Number 1028-S, pp. 30-34) http://bss.sfsu.edu/internment/rightsviolated.html.

32. Amy’s Bibliography Imamura, Anne E., The Japanese Family, www.askasi.org., 1990. La Violette, Forrest Emanuel, Americans of Japanese Ancestry, Arno Press, New York, 1978. O’Brien, David J. and Stephen S. Fugita, The Japanese American Experience, University of Washington Press, 1991. Okimoto, Daniel I., American in Disguise, A Weatherhill Book, New York, 1971. Sharts-Hopko, Nancy C., Japanese-Americans, www.unix.oit.umass.edu. Spickard, Paul R., Japanese Americans: The Formation and Transformations of an Ethnic Group, Twayne Publishers, New York, 1996. Yamaguchi, Yoji, A Student’s Guide to Japanese American Genealogy, Pryx Press, 1996.

33. Meg’s Bibliography American Online. Bringing Japanese religions to America: Isseis and new Isseis. From Japanese Religions in America: Selected English Bibliography. Retrieved January 31, 2005, from http://members.aol.com/slametan/yjrl5/html. J.R. Hillels. A Handbook of Living Religions. Penguin (1991). National Park Service. A History of Japanese Americans in California: Organizations and Religious practices. Retrieved February 1, 2005, from http://www.cr.nps.gov/history/online_books/5views/5views4c.htm. Ontario Consultants of Religious Tolerance. Buddhism traditions: East & West. Retrieved February 1, 2005, from http://www.religioustolerance.org/ buddhism2.htm. Personal Interview: Mrs. Futsunai. Jan 31, 2005, through phone conversation. Wikipedia Encyclopedia. Japanese Americans: Religion, Celebrations, & Major Celebrations in the United States. Retrieved February 1, 2005, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese-Americans/

34. Sara’s Bibliography Armor, John, and Peter Wright. Manzanar. New York: Times Books, 1988. Azuma, Eiichiro, “The Pacific Era Has Arrived”: Transnational Education among Japanese Americans, 1932-1941. History of Education Quarterly 43.1 (2003): 64 pars. Proquest. Crafton Hills Coll. Lib., Yucaipa, CA. 30 Jan. 2005. http://www.historycooperative.org/journals/heq/43.1/ azuma.html>. Harth, Erica. “Democracy for Beginners.” Last Witnesses: Reflections on the Wartime Internment of Japanese Americans. Ed. Erica Harth. New York: Palgrave, 2001. 187-201. “Reading: The Incarceration Years.” Densho: The Japanese-American Legacy Project. 2002-2005. 19 Jan. 2005. http://www.densho.org/learning/ spice/lesson4/4reading4.asp. “Relocation of Japanese Americans.” War Relocation Authority. Washington, D.C. 1943. TheVirtual Museum of The City of San Francisco. 30 Jan. 2005. http://www.sfmuseum.org/hist10/relocbook.html. Tunnell, Michael O., and George W. Chilcoat. The Children of Topaz: The Story of a Japanese-American Internment Camp. New York: Holiday House, 1996.

35. Robert’s Bibliography Arora, A., Inose, M, Yeh, C., Okubo, Y., Li, R.H., & Greene, P. (2003) The cultural adjustment and mental health of Japanese immigrant youth. Adolescence, 38(151), 481-501. Graham, L., & Brandon, T. (1993) Japan. In A Trip Around the World (pp. 76-84). Greensboro:Carson-Dellosa. Smithsonian National Museum of American History A More Perfect Union Retrieved January 27, 2005 from http://americanhistory.si.edu/perfectunion/non-flash/internment_community.html Taft, R. (1986). Methodological considerations in the study of immigrant adaptation in Australia. Australian Journal of Psychology, 38, 339-346. Tong, B. (2004) Race, culture, and citizenship among Japanese American children and adolescents during the internment era. Journal of American Ethnic History, 23(3), 3-41.