A History of the Japanese-Americans
by Kozo Tsuchimochi

A History of the Japanese-Americans Preface When I came here two and a half years ago, I was surprised to find the Japanese-Americans so different than me. As I attempted to be friends several of them, I felt rejected and alienated by them. I had to come to the realization that they were a different people. They looked exactly like the Japanese but spoke English and the elderly people sipped a Coke instead of Japanese tea. No big differences but something very different. I was interested to know more about them and their heritage. I read books about their history written by English and Japanese. I found some differences in expressions, language and point of view. I wondered if their history was a sensitive subject for them and us. Why? They have a history of 100 years in United States. I tried to seek out truth with eyes of neutrality. 1. Immigrant for United States The Japanese started to immigrant to United States around 1900. They worked on farms and in factories. The pay rate to work overseas work was typically much higher than pay for comparable work in Japan. As early as the late 1860's, Japanese contract laborers were taking jobs on the plantations of Hawaii and other islands in the Pacific. (Hawaii was an independent kingdom until 1893, was annexed by the United States in 1898, and set up a territorial government under U.S. law in 1900) Many of the majorities of the Japanese immigrants became farm workers. Most of the immigrants had come from small villages and rural areas in Japan where farming was the chief way of earning a living. First- growing farms in the western United States badly needed laborers, and the Japanese had a reputation as excellent farm workers. Many Japanese who arrived in Hawaii or the United States as almost penniless laborers became landholders within a very short time. After saving what they had earned as laborers, they moved upward by becoming sharecroppers, (or those who worked on a farm owned by someone else, yet allowed to keep some of the crop). If they were successful as sharecroppers, they might decide to go one step further and lease a farm. Finally, once they had enough saved, they might buy a farm outright. The opportunity to purchase private farmland was a major move towards greater independence and prestige. For Japanese men who wanted to stay in the United States and raise families, it was sometimes a necessity. The Japanese government would not permit women to emigrate from Japan to marry poor laborers, but Japanese women were allowed to emigrate to marry the owner of a successful farm. In Hawaii, where Japanese immigrants made up a large percentage of the population (about 39 percent in 1900 and nearly 48 percent by 1920), the Japanese influenced nearly every sector of the economy and settled throughout the islands. However, on the West Coast of America, the Japanese only made up a small percentage of the population. In 1920, about 110,000 people of Japanese descent lived in California, where they made up about 3 percent of the total population of the state. Like other minorities, the Japanese-Americans tended to live near one another for assistance and companionship. Neighborhoods nicknamed and designated as "Little Tokyo" sprang up in most of the largest cities on the West Coast. A strong sense of community developed among the Japanese citizens now living in America. These new communities forced numerous cultural and socioeconomic issues. Especially after the Issei [iee- sei](First generation of Japanese-American who were born in Japan) began to have children, education became a concern. Schools were set up where the children (Nisei [nee-sei], second generation of Japanese-American) could study Japanese culture and language. For Nisei who would later return to Japan and enter Japanese public schools, this was a practical course of study. As more and more Japanese-American families decided to stay in the United States, an American education became more important. Eventually, Japanese community leaders encouraged families to send their Nisei children to American public schools where all their classes would be taught in English. 2. Issei and Nisei There are many differences between generation and generation language, thinking, custom, etc. Sometimes I can't understand that my parent's ways. However, we speak the same language and share the same sense of values. But Issei and Nisei are divided by cultural differences in customs and language. Issei were born in Japan, adhering to Japanese customs and, speaking only in Japanese. Their descendents, Nisei, were born in United States, and adopting American customs and speaking English as their 1st language. There is a stronger generation gap between the Issei and Nisei in Japan. I want to introduce that one part of reports which about Issei and Nisei. In October and November of 1941, Special Representative of the State Department Curtis B. Munson, under Roosevelt's orders, carried out an intelligence gathering investigation on the loyalty of Japanese-Americans. This was the first time the United States government investigated the Japanese-Americans because of the war. The Munson Report "1. The Issei --- First generation of Japanese. Entire cultural background Japanese. Probably loyal romantically to Japan. They must be considered, however, as other races. They have made this their home. They have brought up children here, their wealth accumulated by hard labor is here, and many would have become American citizens had they been allowed to do so. They are for the most part simple people. Their age group is largely 55 to 65, fairly old for a hard-working Japanese." " The Issei have to break with their religion, their god and Emperor, their family, their ancestors and their after-life in order to be loyal to the United States. They are also still legally Japanese." "2. The Nisei --- Second generation who have received their whole education in the United States and usually, in spite of discrimination against them and a certain amount of insults accumulated though the years from irresponsible elements, show a pathetic eagerness to be Americans. They are in constant conflict with the orthodox, well disciplined family life of their elders. Age group --- 1 to 30 years." " The weakest from a Japanese standpoint are the Nisei. They are universally estimated from 90 to 98 percent loyal to the United States if the Japanese-educated element of the Kibei is excluded. The Nisei are pathetically eager to show this loyalty." The U.S. government thought that the Issei were dangerous but that the Nisei would be loyal and peaceful. However, one year later, both generations were forced to move to relocation camps as casualties of the war between the American and Japanese. 3. Anti-Japanese Movement San Francisco Mayor Eugene E. Schmitz had been elected with the support of the Union Labor Party, which objected to competition from immigrant workers, particularly the Japanese. The Union Labor Party claimed that the new immigrants worked for lower wages and were driving the Americans workers out of their jobs. In response to these complaints, the Japanese government in 1900, restricted the number of passports issued to Japanese laborers wishing to immigrant to the United States. Still, many Japanese managed to enter the United States illegally via Hawaii, Canada, or Mexico. Another factor that contributed to the anti-Japanese sentiment in the western United States was the outbreak of the Russian-Japanese War in 1904. The rapid success of Japanese military forces in this conflict and, later, capture of Korea by Japan made many U.S. citizens fearful of the " Yellow Peril" --- the motion that Oriental people threatened the living standards and political power of the Western forces. Fears were expressed that the West Coast would be flooded with a wave of new Japanese immigrants at the end of the Russian- Japanese War. American labor groups were worried that their jobs would be endangered. Finally, in 1905, serious anti-Japanese prejudice reached a pinnacle. The Japanese work force was accused of a monopoly, undercharging and dominating the construction, railroad and shoe-repair businesses in California. These charges were not accurate, but many Americans chose to believe the rumors. The San Francisco Chronicle, the city's leading newspaper, ran front- page articles on the danger of additional immigration to the America by the Japanese. The San Francisco Chronicle charged that the Japanese-Americans were still loyal to the Meiji emperor of Japan and insisted that the immigrant children were crowding other children out of San Francisco classrooms. In 1906, the San Francisco school board ruled that Japanese-American students could no longer go to school with American students of European descent. The board directed all children of Japanese immigrants to attend a separate "Oriental school" in Chinatown. The Japanese Association of America immediately protested this order. They pointed out, that attendance at this special school would be extremely difficult for those Japanese children who lived far from Chinatown. More importantly, Japanese families were insulted by the order. The Japanese government added their protest to this form of discrimination. President Roosevelt described the San Francisco board's decision as a "wicked absurdity." Racial prejudice, not overcrowding at the schools, was the motivation for the school board's ruling. The facts showed that out of a total enrollment of 25,000, there were only 93 Japanese students attending the San Francisco schools. Another false claim widely publicized during this anti-Japanese movement was that many older Japanese were attending school with much younger children. Actually, there were only two immigrants over 20 years of age attending schools in San Francisco, and they were there only to learn English. Leading educators across the U.S. spoke out against the San Francisco school board's order. Early in 1907, President Roosevelt stepped in and convinced the school board to reverse its decision and dissolve the order. As part of the agreement the U.S. government would now limit the immigration of Japanese into the United States. This agreement was not enough, to silence anti-Japanese forces. Several years of discussion and negotiation eventually led to the "Gentleman's agreement" (1908) in which the Japanese government agreed to voluntarily limit immigration of its citizens to the United States, in order to prevent formal anti-Japanese legislation from being passed. 4. The Coming the War In 1931, Japan invaded Manchuria (Northeastern China), drawing a strong protest from the governments of the United States and many other nations. In 1934, Japan withdrew from the League of Nations and scrapped an international treaty limiting the size of the Japanese navy. In 1937, Japan invaded China. Japanese military actions - including the destruction of the city of Nanking in December 1937 and the sinking of the Panay, a U.S. gunboat caused anti-Japanese sentiment to mount rapidly in the United States. The United States government stopped oil shipments to Japan, and the relations between the two countries worsened. The previous arguments about unfair business competition, loyalty to the Japanese emperor and the evil influence of the Japanese on America's families, were brought out and used again. In December 7, 1941, Japanese Airforce surprise attacked Pearl Harbor and killed many American servicemen. From that moment, Japanese- American's lives would be changed. Many Japanese-Americans listened intently to the radio that morning but they never realized how the events would change their lives. Later that afternoon, the police came to their homes and seized all radios, fearing that the Japanese Army could communicate with the Japanese- Americans. Many respected and upstanding Japanese-Americans were taken to police stations without reason. Americans responded to the Japanese-American in two distinct ways. Many Americans felt sorry about the situation. But others asked the Japanese-Americans to resign from their jobs. The police enforced a curfew on the Japanese. The Issei objected. They could not go out after 8 p.m. or travel more than 8 miles away. Furthermore, all Japanese-Americans who lived in California were asked to leave their homes. At first, it was believed that only Isseis had to go to the camps. But the Los Angeles Mayor had stated, "A Jap is a Jap" so it was decided that not only the Isseis but the Niseis, who believed that they were Americans; were to be imprisoned. This is a race war, as far as the Pacific side of this conflict is concerned.The white man's civilization has come into conflict with Japanese barbarism. Christianity has come into conflict with Shintoism, atheism, and infidelity. One of them must be destroyed (Grodzins 86). The preceding statement that the decision to intern Japanese- Americans was based not on actual defense concerns, but on racial prejudice and economic competition. Political leaders ignored the advice of both the U.S. Army and the FBI concerning internment; neither entity believed that the evacuation was a good solution. The Army general staff stated that an attack on the West Coast was nearly impossible. Therefore, the 5th column action that was so feared, would be ineffective and unlikely to occur. Yet, their contention was ignored. Edward Ennis of the Alien Enemy Control Unit of the Justice Department was quoted as saying the following: The congressional hotheads ignored the opinion. They said Army and Navy authorities were jackasses, that they had been proved wrong at Pearl Harbor, that there was no reason to accept their testimony, and that the California congressmen were not going to wait for another Pearl Harbor in Los Angeles (Grodzin 73). In addition to the Army's statement as to the lack of necessity, the FBI advised government officials those individual reviews of loyalty and observation of suspicious would be sufficient to maintain security on the west Coast. Despite these statements against internment, the efforts of Western delegates were rewarded with the signing of Executive Order 9066 by President Roosevelt on Friday 19, 1942. The Order gave the Secretary of War the authorization to establish military areas "from which any or all persons may be excluded as deemed necessary or desirable." This Presidential action was followed in March of the same year by Public Proclamation No. 1, issued by General DeWitt of the Western Defense Command, and designated military areas in the states of Washington, Oregon, California and parts of Arizona from which persons of Japanese, German, or Italian heritage might be exception of a few European enemy aliens, implemented solely against residents of Japanese ancestry. The War Relocation Authority was created in March of 1942 in order to administer over the camps and by August 7th, 110,000 people from Military Areas 1 and 2 were relocated. Evacuees were sent to three different types of camps; assembly centers, relocation centers, or internment camps. Internment camps were intended for enemy aliens, many of whom had been arrested by the FBI in the aftermath of Peal Harbor. The Army through the Wartime Civil Control Administration ran assembly centers. They served as way stations for most evacuees as they were assigned to relocation centers. They remained at these centers for the majority of their internment. Relocation Centers Permanent detention camps that held internees from March, 1942 until their closing in 1945 and 1946. Amache (Granada), CO Opened August 24, 1942. Closed October 15, 1945. Peak population 7318. 31 Japanese-Americans from Amache volunteered and lost their lives in World War 2. 120 died here between August 27, 1942 and October 14, 1945. Gila River, AZ Opened Jury 20, 1942. Closed November 10, 1945. Peak Population 13,348. Divided into Canal Camp and Butte Camp. Over 1100 citizens from both camps served in the U.S. Armed Services. The names of 23 War dead are engraved on a plaque there. The State of Arizona accredited schools in both camps. 97 students graduated from Canal High School in 1944. Nearly 1000 prisoners worked in the 8000 acres of farmland around Canal Camp, growing vegetables and raising livestock. Heart Mountain, WY Opened August 12, 1942. Closed November 10, 1945. Peak population 10,767. In November 1942, Japanese-American hospital workers walked out because of pay discrimination between Japanese-American and Caucasian workers. In Jury, 1944, 63 prisoners who had resisted the draft were convicted and sentenced to three years in prison. Room ranged in size from 16' x 20' to 20' x 24'. There were 200 administrative employees, 124 soldiers, and 3 officers. Military police were stationed in 9 guard towers, equipped with high beam searchlights and surrounded by barbed wire fencing around the camp. Manzanar, CA Opened March 21, 1942. Closed November 21, 1945. Peak population 10,046. Jerome, AR Opened October 6, 1942. Closed June 30, 1944. Peak population 8497. Minidoka, ID Opened August 10, 1942. Closed October 28, 1945. Peak population 9397. Poston, AZ Opened May 8, 1942. Closed November 28, 1945. Peak population 17,814. 24 Japanese-Americans held at Poston later lost their lives in World War 2. Rohwer, AR Opened September 18, 1942. Closed November 30, 1945. Peak population 8475. Topaz, UT Opened September 11, 1942. Closed October 31, 1945. Peak population 8130. Tule Lake, CA Opened May 27, 1942. Closed March 20, 1946. Peak population 18,789. One of the most turbulent camps. The prisoners held frequent protest demonstrations and strikes. The Commission on Wartime Relocation and Internment of Civilians (CWRIC) concluded its report with several recommendations: that there should be a formal apology made by Congress, any Japanese-American veteran or civil servant's benefits that had been revoked were to be reinstated, funding was to be provided for educational programs, and a onetime payment of $20,000 was to be made to each survivor. These recommendations were made law by the Civil Rights Act of 1988, $900 million was eventually appropriated, and the first checks were issued on October 9, 1990. 5. Go for broke The average height was about 5'4", average weight about 125 pounds. They typically brown eyes and skin, and liked rice. They had funny sounding names like Kazumura, Hirata, and Inouye. But they played baseball, listened to big band music, and were Americans, almost. They were for the most part second generation Japanese-Americans and their country was just attacked by the Empire of Japan. President Franklin D. Roosevelt announced the formation of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team with the famous words "American is not, and never was, a mater of race or ancestry." However, many Japanese-Americans citizens were still living in Relocation Centers. On the other hand, a lot of Nisei thought that it was a good opportunity to show their patriotism and loyalty to United States. So, they joined the U.S. Army. Nearly 10,000 Hawaiian Nisei volunteered and over 2,600 were accepted. From the mainland of the Japanese-American in the concentration camps, only 1,256 Nisei volunteered. There were some 23,606 Nisei of draft age in the camps. From the camp volunteers around 800 joined the Army. In the mainland, most Japanese- Americans lived in West Coast especially in California. In California, there was a strong anti-Japanese movement for a long time and at that time, Japanese- Americans were evacuated to Relocation Centers. Most of Nisei believed that they were American. However, they also had to move Relocation Centers with their parents who were Issei. I imagine that Nisei people could no longer just the American government. That's why they could not join to Army as the Hawaiian Nisei had. Ten units made up the 442nd Regimental Combat Team. They consisted of a Headquarters Company, Anti-tank Company, Cannon Company, Medical Department, Service Company, 100th Battalion, 2nd Battalion, 3rd Battalion, 522nd Field Artillery Battalion, and 232nd Army Band. By June 1943, the 442nd RCT arrived at Camp Shelby. When the 442nd Regimental Combat Team arrived in Italy in June of 1944, it absorbed the 100th Infantry Battalion into its ranks --- a happy reunion with friends or relatives for many of the Japanese-American soldiers. The 100th Infantry Battalion, after having marched through the city of Pisa in northern Italy, continued its operations as the U.S. Army crossed the Arno River. Subsequently, the 100th Infantry was pulled back from the front lines for a month's rest, and in September 1944 it joined the Seventh Army in the invasion of France from the south. During this time, the 442nd Regimental Combat Team performed what was probably its most heroic action --- the rescue of the famous Lost Battalion of the 36th Texas Division of the U.S. Army. The Lost Battalion had been isolated behind German lines for one week, and the German high command was determined that the battalion would not be rescued, no matter what the cost might be. The 100th and 442nd Regimental Combat Team was ordered to rescue the Lost Battalion. During this engagement, the 442nd lost more soldiers than in any of its other operations during the entire war. Some units lost 60 percent of their troops, and casualties ran even higher in some rifle companies. The fighting was so heavy that many companies had only 30 to 40 soldiers left, and one company was down to fewer than 10. After nearly six days of combat, the 442nd Regimental Combat Team rescued the Lost Battalion. In March 1945, the Japanese-American units joined the 92nd Division and fought in Italy for the rest of the war. One of the most decorated soldiers in World War 2. The 100th had the distinction of being called the "Purple Heart Battalion" because almost everyone who served in the 100th had at least one Purple Heart. Like the Tuskeegee Airmen, the 100th Battalion/ 422nd Regimental Combat Team had to fight two wars, one in Europe and one at home. ("Americans: The story of the 442nd Combat Team") Conclusion I didn't know about Japanese-American's history before, and if I had not come to the United States, I would not have been alerted to the trials they went through --- immigrating to America, reclaiming themselves, loving the country and, eventually serving the country as American soldiers/prisoners. There are no excuse Japan's ruthless attacks against other nation in Asia during World War 2. But our legacy has been relative to the war since human existence. In other words, people tend to overlook or forget how terrible the war. For example, especially Japanese people from my generation do not know its misery and truth. Also, even governments sometimes involve with activity to conspire war. Consequently, there is always a possibly for another war in the future. It can almost be said that we, as humans, have not learned from the casualties of war. Why I don't want to justify about history because most recounts of the wars do not have neutral or objective points of view. Maybe, even in Japanese- American's history, some of people have not told the whole recounted story for their own protection. No one can say for sure what will take place over the next fifty years. The learning of the Japanese-Americans only time will tell. I have learned that the most important issue is "to know" the truth about our history, and not judge it without the fact or the whole story. I now have a greater understand of the differences between the Japanese and their Japanese-American counterparts. Reference Books "I Can Never Forget" by Thelma Chang "Enemy Alien" by Kiyo Hirano "Nisei Regiment" by R. Conrad Stein "Camp and Community" by Jessie A. Garret and Ronald C. Larson "Story of The 442nd Combat Team" Published by Information-Education Section "The Japanese in America" by Noel L. Leathers Web Suit http://www.lib.washington.edu/exhibits/harmony/Exhibit/transport.html http://www.uwec.edu/Academic/Geography/lvogeler/w188/life.htm http://pages.nyu.edu/~jsf3122/docnisei.htm http://www-leland.stanford.edu/~megnm/Hwebiv.html http://www.oz.net/~cyu/internment/camps.html Special Thanks for John Yazawa Kamla Franklin Keiro Nursing Home