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Japanese
Why must the US evacuate us from our homes and put us into camps? I am just as loyal to this country as any other American of any race. I am a Nisei (American-born Japanese) and do things the American Way. I believe that myself and my people have not done anything to be considered “dangerous” to this country, therefore why should we be evacuated from our homes?
I have an obligation to this country. I want to show my loyalty and do my part for America because I am an American. I wanted to join the U.S. Army to show my loyalty and natural love for this country. However, once my family received the evacuation orders, we felt we had no choice but to comply with these orders. It was disheartening to have my freedom and dignity taken away by the country I had loved and been loyal to.
We arrived at the control centers where each family was assigned a number. We were only able to take what we can carry. The camp was enclosed by barbed-wire fences with guard towers and we stayed in barracks. There was only one electric light in each barrack and army cots with a blanket. I saw soldiers everywhere carrying rifles and the terrified faces of many Japanese American.
Japanese-American families had all their belongings labeled with a number that was assigned to them before they entered the camps. This family had been processed through the control centers as seen through the tags on their coats and the belongings they were only able to carry. It is apparent that this family has adopted the American culture based on their clothes such as their slacks, petticoats, leather jackets, and hats.
At one point during WWII, Nisei men were forced to serve in the U.S. Armed Services. Nisei men had to take loyalty questionnaires before they were enlisted. Some 33,000 Japanese Americans decided to seek equality and justice by serving in the U.S. Armed Forces to show their loyalty and right to duty. Some men were interpreters and translators. Other Japanese Americans did labor in the camps.
Japanese Americans were taken to interment camps and lived in barracks that were divided into four to six rooms. Most of the camps were located in remote, desert areas.
Due to the war, Japanese Americans endured hatred from white Americans because they were seen as “enemy aliens” ever since Japan bombed Pearl Harbor. Thus, many Japanese Americans faced humiliation and suffered in the internment camps they were forced into. The double victory for them was that they hoped to seek equality and justice by serving in the army where they are shown to be true, loyal Americans. At the end of the war they hoped to be respected for all their efforts and to have been proud fighting for their country. In reality, when Japanese Americans soldiers returned home in America, they still faced racial prejudices and discrimination. Soldiers that had earned highest honors and medals were still discriminated and most white people saw past what they did for the country in the war. Service to Japanese Americans were denied at barbershops, restaurants, and other stores.
