Japanese American Concentration Camps

World War 2 was not officially initiated until German Nazi’s invaded Poland on September 1, 1939. America did not get Involved in the war until December 7, 1941, Japan bombed Pearl Harbor, war was not declared on Japan until the following day. December 11, 1941 Germany declared war on the united States. The war was now In full force, with America raging war against the Japanese and the German Nazi’s.
Back home In America, they to were taking action to protect their homeland. In February of 1942, President Roosevelt signed an executive order to relocate all Japanese Americans. This occurred because of the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Many feared that the Japanese were attempting to “Remain loyal to their homeland” and were acting as spies. Even without concrete evidence, President Roosevelt signed for them to be relocated. These camps were still located on American soil and were not death camps.
The camps were concentration camps, a place where they go to basically do hard labor all day. Many Japanese American families sold their homes and assets, here was no guarantee that their lives would continue as normal upon their return. Their homes sold for fractions of the price they were actually worth, even Japanese vets of WWW were forced to leave their homes and assets behind. It did not matter If the families were born and raised In America and had never been to Japan, the fear of an invasion was to great to allow a possible security issue be lose. Until the camps were finished the Japanese Americans were held in stables at local racing tracks. Ten camps were completed and the camps were built in remote areas of seven western tastes : Arkansas, California, Wyoming, Colorado, Idaho, and Utah. The housing was poor, Tarpaper Barracks were the housing for the Japanese. There were communal mess halls for family to dine with one another, the children had to attend school and the adults had the option to work for 5$ a day.

The Japanese definitely were not living high class, but the camps they were located to where heaven to the Jewish In Germany. The plan for the camps was for them to be self sufficient, by farming for food. The solo was not Ideal for this plan however. The homes were not heated or lolled during seasonal changes and the food was made army grub style. The Japanese Americans were not allowed to leave because security would not hesitate to shoot one who tried to escape. There was armed security that stood round clock watch over the Japanese Americans. 27,000 Japanese Americans were wrongfully relocated into concentration camps, when challenged by Fred Sauerkraut, the Supreme Court showed little to no sympathy and said it was war time necessary for the camps. The government and the people without a Japanese bloodline agreed that it was simply for the time of war. The camps never got to be the point of the horrific f the Nazi’s camps and that was greatly appreciated, but the act in itself was considered wrong and In history is labeled as a bad move In American history.
January 8 1945, the first families were released from the camps. Most families had nowhere to go and nowhere to work. A lot of Americans would not hire Japanese Americans due to their own racism that grew because of the war. In 1988 the court tried to apologize for the wrong act of putting the Japanese Americans into compared to what the families had to go through during and after the camps. In hope America will stoop low enough to concentration camps again.