The United States And Japan

During World War II President Roosevelt issued an Executive order to ban people in the United States with Japanese ancestry into internment camps. The President’s Executive order gave the military power to ban people with Japanese ancestry from Washington state to California to southern Arizona. About 122,000 men, women and children were moved into the internment camps. They lost their properties, homes, businesses and their liberties.

In 1941, the Japanese surprise attacked Pearl Harbor and consequently, the United Stated entered World War II. Thus, in 1942, FDR issued Executive Order No. 9066 which allowed the Secretary of War to designate military areas. The executive order led to Public Law 503 in which Congress made it a criminal offense to violate military orders under Executive Order No. 9066, therefore, allowing the military to begin excluding anyone of Japanese ancestry in the military areas and forcing them to report to internment camps. Fred Korematsu, a Japanese American citizen, willingly refused to evacuate under Civilian Exclusion Order No. 34 and was arrested and convicted. Korematsu appealed his conviction to the Supreme Court where Korematsu V United States was heard with Korematsu as the petitioner and the United States as the respondent.

During the early 1940’s during the World War II era. The Supreme Court held the Korematsu v. United States, which became one of the biggest Supreme Court cases. The United States. Supreme Court held the conviction of Fred Korematsu, who was an American citizen born in Oakland, California but was also of Japanese descent from Japanese immigrants. Korematsu violated an exclusion order requiring him to submit a forced relocation during the World War II. After the bombing of the Pearl Harbor in the Pacific Ocean by Japan’s military against the United States and the United States entry to World War II. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt issued an executive order on February 19, 1942, the Executive Order 9066 gave authorization to the Secretary of War and the United States as military areas. The issue ,mainly applied to one-third of the land area of the United States and was used against those with “Foreign Enemy Ancestry” which mainly include Japanese, Italians, and Germans. The issue also gave the authority to hold certain people in internment camps, mainly the Japanese. This action by the United States were seen as a form of discrimination. The people who were held in internment camps were forced to leave their homes and were no longer able to work at their jobs, this became a huge impact on the economy as being not being able to work at your

As stated in our book, The Essential America, Idaho’s governor declared: “A good solution would be to send them all back to Japan the sink the island. They live like rats, breed like rats, and act like rats.” This attitude was widespread, and the government finally succumbed. President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order #9066 two months after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. This order stated that all Japanese Americans were to evacuate the West Coast.

During World War II Japanese Americans were forced to relocate from their homes and business along the western coast of the United States of America. The very action that followed were created by one of the United States most controversial orders to modern date. Signed into effect on February 19, of 1942. President Franklin D. Roosevelt would release Executive Order 9066, the order would cause the incarceration of hundreds of thousands of Japanese Americans. Later the Order was expanded to include German and Italian Americans. Although given provisions to live life, the areas selected and center conditions caused much debate among some government officials, and later among civilians. Was signing this Order in the best interest of the American government? Was this the only possible way to keep espionage and American secrets safe from the Japanse Empire? Was President Roosevelt simply acting on his wartime powers? Was President Roosevelt acting on rage and prejudice against the japanse people for the attack on Pearl Harbor. Not until president Ronald Reagan come into the

After the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor by the Japanese that propelled the U.S. into World War II, paranoia causes President Roosevelt to sign an executive order forcing all people of Japanese ancestry; including those born in the U.S. to be moved to concentration camps. Even in the towns where the camps were located, stores would post signs saying “No Japs Allowed”.

On December 7, 1941, the Empire of Japan attacked the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, bringing the United States into World War II (Prange et al., 1981: p.174). On February 19, 1942, United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9066 authorizing the Secretary of War and Military Commanders to prescribe areas of land as excludable military zones (Roosevelt, 1942). Effectively, this order sanctioned the identification, deportation, and internment of innocent Japanese Americans in War Relocation Camps across the western half of the United States. During the spring and summer of 1942, it is estimated that almost 120,000 Japanese Americans were relocated from their homes along the West Coast and in Hawaii and

President Roosevelt then signed Executive Order 9066 which resulted in Japanese imprisonment. Overall, the decision of Japanese internment was not justified because it was made out of racial prejudice against Japanese which already occurred before the war while Germans and Italians were not looked at negatively, sabotage against the United States would likely be carried out by Japanese Nationals who were more of a threat than Japanese Americans, and the decision was a result of poor leadership and irrational fear. ` To begin, racial prejudice and anti-Japanese sentiment existed before the attack on Pearl Harbor. In the early 1900’s, Japanese Americans were denied the right to marry out of their race, to own land, and to become citizens of the United States. During this time period, there was little tolerance toward people of color.

Following the December 7, 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor by Japan, racial tensions increased in the United States, especially on the West Coast (Divine 898). The anti-Japanese sentiment led to President Franklin Roosevelt’s Executive Order 9066, which gave military officials the power to limit the civil rights of Japanese Americans (Danzer 802). The order also authorized the forced relocation of all Japanese Americans to concentration camps (Divine 898). These camps were located in desolate deserts and flatlands in the interior of the United States (Sato 67). Two thirds of the 120,000 Japanese Americans who were forced to relocate were “Nisei”, or native born American citizens (Divine 898).

After the bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, many people were dubious towards many Japanese-Americans and believed they were working with Japan. With this, on February 19, 1942, President Roosevelt signed the Executive Order 9066, moving several Japanese-Americans into concentration camps, calling it a “military necessity” (Ewers 1). When this happened, many Japanese-Americans lost everything they had owned such as houses, farms, and their rights as American citizens.

The relocation of Japanese Americans was an event that occurred within the United States during World War II. On February 19th, 1942, Franklin D. Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9066, which forced all Japanese Americans living in the West Coast to be evacuated from the area and relocated to internment camps all across the United States, where they would be imprisoned. Approximately 120,000 people were sent to the camps and the event lasted through the years 1942 and 1945. The main cause of the relocation and internment of these people was because of fear made among Japanese people after Japan had bombed Pearl Harbor in 1941. Citizens of the United States had been worrying about the possibility of Japanese residents of the country aiding Japan, and/or secretly trying to destroy American companies.

One may ask, why would someone move innocent US citizens, force them to live in terrible camps, and force them to leave their homes selling all their personal belongings. Well, the answer to that is, because rumors spread that Japanese-Americans were planning to sabotage the US after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Following the bombing every Japanese-American was viewed as if they had been the one who bombed Pearl Harbor. There was racial prejudice spread that was anti-japanese. Although many people thought the Japanese American relocation was needed to keep the United States security during the war against Japan, these relocation centers were violations of Japanese-Americans’ rights.

During World War II, the 1942 attack by Japan on US base, Pearl Harbor, resulted in the Executive Order 9066. In result of the order the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) evacuated Japanese residents to designated relocation camps governed by the War Relocation Authority (WRA). Many Japanese residents sacrificed they possessions, careers, and even their health to remain as law-abiding citizens even under the questioning of their loyalty. Japanese Americans were considered as threats to national security and became subject to racism and prejudice by the government. Japanese Americans who were moribund or critically ill were allowed to stay in the excluded areas, but even the crippled were forced into the camps. (Jensen, Gwenn M.) Because

Mindful of the hardships during war times for all Americans, the Court implies that it is the responsibility of citizens to bear this burden, “We uphold the exclusion order …Not unmindful of the hardships…But hardships are part of war,…the burden is always heavier.” (Korematsu, 357). The hardship of one race seemed to outweigh that of another, no mention is made about the fact that the only race ordered to evacuate by reporting to Assembly Centers followed by indeterminate confinement to detention camps were Japanese Americans. The Supreme Court outlines that this case is about an exclusion order and not racial prejudice, “Our task is simply, our duty clear…we are specifically dealing with nothing but an exclusion order. To cast this case into the outlines or racial prejudice…merely confuses the issue.” (Korematsu, 358) Korematsu was a loyal citizen of the U.S., his loyalty was never attested; nevertheless, he faced charges against him because he refused to obey an order which singled him out because of his ancestry. “Guilt is personal and not inheritable” (Korematsu, 364). The military acted to protect the nation against espionage and sabotage, they were acting in the interest of the nation and at the time of the Pearl Harbor attack time was limited, the loyal could not be segregated from the disloyal. During wartimes however the US Government needs to be mindful that this is a country made of vast cultures, races, religions and the US Constitution

Like Athens and Sparta, were the United States and China drawn into a war neither power wanted because of their alliances?