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Final Essay

Soroush Saberan A91020158

Notebook #5

My zine focuses on the effects the Japanese internment camps had on U.S. society both at the time and to this day, as well as what it reveals about U.S. society at the time and to this day. This analysis aims to show what we can learn from our past. It explains that the Japanese internment camps were morally wrong, and the result of racism part that was part of the U.S. society at the time. However, this racism still exists in today’s society, just in a different form. This is the type of analysis that aims to help its audience gain additional understanding by presenting additional viewpoints.

Throughout history, minorities are often treated differently from the rest of society. My zine explains that the way Japanese Americans in the U.S. during World War II were treated is clearly not how the U.S. would have treated their white citizens under any circumstances, and that today’s society is a reflection of that. A good example of how today’s society is a reflection of this is Donald Trump’s agenda against Mexicans and Muslims. As minorities, Trump treats Mexicans and Muslims as if they are not humans the same way white U.S. citizens are humans. My analysis points out how this is still happening to this day. My analysis also explains the importance of keeping minorities in mind to make sure crimes of similar nature to the Japanese internment camps do not happen again. The effect these internment camps had on people like Rea Tajiri and Fred Korematsu show that racism truly has huge effects on people’s lives.

Overall, my analysis has the goal of helping fix society by showing how we can learn from the past. However, my analysis also points out that for the most part, it does not seem like we are learning from our past, and thus aims to make this clear in order achieve its goal of helping to fix society.

Final Zine Link

http://issuu.com/soroushsaberan/docs/zine

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Remembering Japanese Internment

#issuu

Lily Nguyen

Wed, 12PM

Omar Padilla

February 22, 2017

Feedback to Soroush Saberan: https://shadowysongking.tumblr.com/

a) Soroush’s zine is centered around the internment of Japanese Americans in the United States during World War II in the 1940’s. He chose the wooden bird from the documentary, History And Memory: For Akiko and Takashige, as his object as a reminder of all the struggles they’ve endured while also displaying the significance of strength and perseverance as it has been passed on to future generations of Japanese Americans instead of focusing solely on the negatives; it is closure by choosing to honor the past.

b) “I remember having this feeling growing up, that I was haunted by something, that I was living within a family full of ghosts”. This is a powerful quote that should be included in the final zine as it effectively stirs up the readers’ emotions by painting a vivid picture of the sorrows that the narrator’s family had to carry. You could insert the quote near the end of the zine to dramatically leave a lasting impression.

c) Fred Korematsu was shamed for refusing to go to the internment camps because it was perceived as an inconvenience. You should also include the fact where he had to get plastic surgery on his eyes in order to hide the fact that he was Japanese. Try to include all the Fred Korematsu trivia on one separate page of the zine.

d) The propaganda poster that the U.S. used to portray the Japanese as violent killers should be included in the final zine as it was relevant in justifying the cause of sending all Japanese Americans to internment camps. You might need to edit as it could violate copyright laws. You should insert the image near the beginning of the zine for impact.

e) The relational analysis of how “whiteness” defines citizenship and how Japanese Americans were viewed as “lesser citizens” as the U.S. government would never treat their white citizens the same way by rounding them up to send to internment camps. The intersectionality between the two situations is powerful because it draws comparison to a current modern example where citizens of Flint, Michigan were not offered the same aid because they were in a poorer neighborhood. The issue of race, gender, ethnicity, and class matters because it influences the outcome of the situation. You could emphasize the importance of the government’s role in all these cases and how past mistakes keep repeating itself. You could also relate it to how modern society has not learned; Trump winning the presidency is an example of how little has changed.

Notebook 4

Introduction

The internment of Japanese Americans in the U.S. during World War II is a significant event in U.S. history because not only does it reveal many of the atrocities that were (and still are) part of American society and politics, but it also relates to today’s American society, since many Japanese Americans live in the U.S.—many of whom are direct descendants of the Japanese Americans who experienced the Japanese internment camps first hand. Looking back, it is clear to most people today that the Japanese internment camps were wrong both morally and financially, since the Japanese Americans posed no threat, and imprisoning them only reinforced negative stereotypes of the Japanese Americans. The U.S. government did reimburse the Japanese Americans for their imprisonment, as well as make a law forbidding this from ever happening again. However, this did not solve a majority of the issues that were created by the internment of Japanese Americans. For example, the internment camps significantly boosted the amount of anti-Japanese propaganda, to the point where even reputable news outlets such as Life would portray Japanese people in a clearly biased fashion, as seen in the images below:

The Wooden Bird

A good example of the emotional damage caused by the Japanese internment camps is portrayed through the wooden bird described in Rea Tajiri’s film History and Memory: For Akiko and Takashige. In the film, Tajiri says “I remember having this feeling growing up, that I was haunted by something, that I was living within a family full of ghosts.” This is meant to explain the damage done by the internment camps onto future generations. This damage comes in many forms, such as emotional damage, but also societal damage, since much of the propaganda against Japanese Americans had long term effects on American society. The wooden bird was originally a part of the internment camps’ agenda to not appear as prisons (despite being prisons in practicality). The internment camps would have bird carving classes for the Japanese Americans in order to provide them with something to do, thus hiding the fact that what they were doing was wrong. This is interesting because as Sturken points out, even today, national events tend to avoid mentioning talk of the Japanese internment camps (702), clearly in order to hide the fact that what they were doing was wrong.

Works Cited:

History and Memory. Dir. Rea Tajiri. 1991.

Miles, Hannah. "WWII Propaganda: The Influence of Racism – Artifacts Journal - University of Missouri." Artifacts Journal RSS. University of Missouri, Mar. 2012. Web. 06 Feb. 2017. <https://artifactsjournal.missouri.edu/2012/03/wwii-propaganda-the-influence-of-racism/>.

Sturken, M. "Absent Images of Memory: Remembering and Reenacting the Japanese Internment." Positions: East Asia Cultures Critique 5.3 (1997): 687-707. 16 Jan. 2017.

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Notebook #3

Soroush Saberan

Omar Padilla

ETHN 2

6 February 2017

The internment of Japanese Americans during World War II reveals a lot about the relational dynamic between Japan and the U.S., as well as the effects of race and war onto political agendas. Japan and the U.S. have very different cultures, which makes the internment of Japanese Americans more complicated than one might suspect. For example, when Korematsu ran away from the internment camps in protest against the U.S. government for their decision, one might suspect that he was praised by his fellow Japanese Americans. On the contrary however, Korematsu was shamed by them for not following orders. (http://www.nytimes.com/2005/12/25/magazine/he-said-no-to-internment.html?_r=0) This shows a hint of what Japanese culture is like, and how different it is from American culture. Yet despite the relatively docile nature of the Japanese Americans, the U.S. used propaganda in order to portray the Japanese as violent killers.

Posters such as this one were circulated among the American public during World War II, making Americans believe that the U.S. was justified in sending all Japanese Americans to internment camps. (https://artifactsjournal.missouri.edu/2012/03/wwii-propaganda-the-influence-of-racism/)

The Japanese internment camps have many aspects that reveal the dynamic between the U.S. and the Japanese. The wooden bird from Rea Tajiri’s film History and Memory shows the emotional wounds left on the Japanese Americans as a result of the Japanese internment camps. Korematsu’s resistance towards the U.S. government, as well as the tension he had to deal with within his own community, uncovers some of the relation between how the U.S. government perceived the situation and how Japanese Americans perceived the situation. The propaganda by the U.S. shows their use of racism as a tool in war. In fact, the U.S had been spreading racism towards the Japanese, as well as people of other East Asian countries, long before World War II. The “Anti-Japanese Exclusion Movement” existed in the U.S. before World War II, and through politics and media, the U.S. tried to portray the Japanese (as well as other people from East Asia) in a very negative light. (http://encyclopedia.densho.org/Anti-Japanese%20exclusion%20movement/) This negative relationship between the U.S. and their Japanese American citizens explains the fact that there was little the Japanese Americans could do to fight for their rights. It was not until 1988 when the Civil Liberties Act was signed that the U.S. officially recognized what they did as racist and unjustified. (http://www.internmentarchives.com/showdoc.php?docid=00055&search_id=19269&pagenum=002) However, as stated in Sturken’s paper, the U.S. does not do much to acknowledge their mistake. In events meant to remember World War II, rarely is the internment of Japanese Americans mentioned (702).

Overall, the Japanese internment camps reveal a lot about the extent of racism the U.S. promoted towards the Japanese. In addition, it reveals the little power Japanese Americans had when it came to the U.S. justice system. Not only because of the U.S. government, but also because of the culture within Japanese society, and the reluctance to cause unnecessary trouble, or to go against orders.

Works Cited

Anderson, Emily. "Anti-Japanese Exclusion Movement." Anti-Japanese Exclusion Movement | Densho Encyclopedia. Densho, 2017. Web. 06 Feb. 2017. <http://encyclopedia.densho.org/Anti-Japanese%20exclusion%20movement/>.

Bai, Matt. He Said No to Internment. New York Times, 25 Dec. 2005. Web. 30 Jan. 2017. <http://www.nytimes.com/2005/12/25/magazine/he-said-no-to-internment.html?_r=0>.

History and Memory. Dir. Rea Tajiri. 1991.

S. 1009, 32 (1987) (enacted). Print.

Sturken, M. “Absent Images of Memory: Remembering and Reenacting the Japanese Internment.” Positions: East Asia Cultures Critique 5.3 (1997): 687-707. 16 Jan. 2017.

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Notebook 2

Soroush Saberan

York Wed 12:00pm

ETHN 2

29 January 2017

During World War II, when Japanese Americans were being sent to internment camps, Fred Toyosaburo Korematsu fled his city in protest against the internment camps. In doing so, he had to sacrifice many things, such as his own look, as he had to get plastic surgery on his eyes in order to hide the fact that he was Japanese. Hearing this today, one might think that Korematsu was praised by Japanese Americans for his actions. On the contrary however, he was shamed for refusing to go to the internment camps, because it was perceived as an inconvenience. Even when Korematsu was sent to prison for his disobedience, the prisoners in his prison also disapproved of his actions, saying “All of them turned their backs on me at that time because they thought I was a troublemaker,” (http://www.nytimes.com/2005/12/25/magazine/he-said-no-to-internment.html?_r=0).

One national bind present in Korematsu’s situation is the national bind of citizenship. Today, forcibly sending all Japanese American citizens to internment camps is very clearly illegal. In fact, Korematsu “was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Clinton,” (http://articles.latimes.com/2011/may/24/nation/la-na-japanese-americans-20110525). However, this does not mean the past is forgotten. The Japanese Americans were citizens just like those who portrayed the ideal concept of “whiteness,” yet it is very unlikely that the U.S. government would ever treat their white citizens the way they treated their Japanese American citizens. It is thus clear that the definition of citizenship was (and still is) very different from person to person under the U.S. government. This problem may not be as pronounced today as it was during the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II, but it does indeed still exist. For example, the citizens of Flint, Michigan are treated as lesser citizens by not being given drinkable water. If the situation with Flint, Michigan were to happen in a rich white neighborhood, more action would certainly be taken to fix the problem. This brings up another national bind present in Korematsu’s situation—whiteness. The reason why Japanese Americans were treated so unfairly can be partly attributed to them lacking many traits associated with “whiteness.”

Korematsu’s treatment can also be related to intersectionality. He was treated poorly for being a Japanese American, but not only by the U.S., but also by his own community. By running away, his actions were seen as cowardly, which not only relates to his race, but also his gender. As a Japanese American, he is expected to behave honorably and not cause unnecessary trouble, but as a male, he is expected to not be cowardly and face difficulties without question. The combination of these two traits added to the judgement Korematsu received as a result of his actions.

Overall, Korematsu’s actions were noble, and helps emphasize the unjustness of the Japanese internment camps. Not only was the Japanese internment camps unfair for illegally forcing citizens to live in internments camps, but it was also unfair for taking advantage of the idea of “whiteness.” In addition, it highlights the unfairness that still exists to this day.

Works Cited

Bai, Matt. He Said No to Internment. New York Times, 25 Dec. 2005. Web. 30 Jan. 2017. <http://www.nytimes.com/2005/12/25/magazine/he-said-no-to-internment.html?_r=0>.

Goodnough, Abby, Monica Davey, and Mitch Smith. "When the Water Turned Brown." New York Times, 23 Jan. 2016. Web. 30 Jan. 2017. <https://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/24/us/when-the-water-turned-brown.html>.

Savage, David G. "U.S. Official Cites Misconduct in Japanese American Internment Cases." Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times, 24 May 2011. Web. 31 Jan. 2017. <http://articles.latimes.com/2011/may/24/nation/la-na-japane

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Notebook 1

The documentary History and Memory: For Akiko and Takashige, Rea Tajiri, the director and narrator of the film, mentions a wooden bird that her mother greatly valued. Tajiri’s mother would not let her touch the wooden bird, saying “No no no, grandma gave me that.” Tajiri later learns that the wooden bird was made by her grandmother in a Japanese internment camp in the US during World War II. This wooden bird holds a lot of significance, because it represents the sorrow that passed on from the Japanese internment camps onto future generations of Japanese Americans. Tajiri emphasizes this notion, saying that “I remember having this feeling growing up, that I was haunted by something, that I was living within a family full of ghosts.”

At first, the wooden bird may not seem to have much of a significance in the context of the Japanese internment camp where is was originally made by Tajiri’s grandmother. However, the fact that she kept the bird suggests otherwise. Tajiri talks about the struggles that were inflicted upon Japanese Americans due to the internment camps, both emotionally and economically. Thus one possible explanation for why Tajiri’s grandmother kept the wooden bird and eventually gave it to her daughter was because of the memories that came with it, despite them being sad memories. It was a reminder of the struggles that the US inflicted upon its Japanese American citizens. So in the context as a family heirloom, it reminds the family of their grandmother and how she might have felt towards the internment camps.

In her analysis of the documentary, Marita Sturken points out that Tajiri’s reconstructions of her grandmother’s memories may not even be accurate, but that does not matter (699), for what matters is the memories passed as a result of the internment camps. The wooden bird shows that the internment camps tried to keep the Japanese Americans busy in order to distance themselves from seeming like prisons rather than camps, when in reality they really were prisons. Artifacts such as the wooden bird and photographs smuggled from the internment camps seem to be enough to pass the memories down generation to generation. Really, the wooden bird represents a rift between the US and Japanese Americans. The wooden bird is a result of the internment camps trying to avoid looking like prisons, thus escaping the idea that what they were doing is wrong. However, Sturken points out that even today, national events tend to avoid mentioning talk of the Japanese internment camps (702). This adds to the importance of the wooden bird being passed down through multiple generations, since it is a constant reminder of the wrongs of the past, making it clear when the same wrongs happen in the present.

Overall, the wooden bird holds a lot of symbolism. The internments camps were mandated by the US, which is where the wooden bird was made. And the wooden bird was made by Tajiri’s grandmother and passed down through the family in order to remind them of what happened in World War II to Japanese Americans.

Works Cited:

History and Memory. Dir. Rea Tajiri. 1991.

Sturken, M. "Absent Images of Memory: Remembering and Reenacting the Japanese Internment." Positions: East Asia Cultures Critique 5.3 (1997): 687-707. 16 Jan. 2017.

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