This series of five posts is to present the instructional resources I have assembled for LIBS 678 Project 2. I invite response to these suggestions. There are so many wonderful ideas for these books!
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| (Header Graphic designed in Piktochart by Wendy Nelson) |
Imprisoned: The Betrayal of Japanese Americans during
World War II
by Martin W. Sandler
Grade 7 and up
Genre: Non-fiction
Sandler, M. W. (2013). Imprisoned: The betrayal of
Japanese Americans during World War II. London: Walker Childrens.
Review: Many Americans are aware of the internment of
Japanese Americans during World War II, but few are aware of the details. Students
may be even less aware of this shocking and shameful episode, the outcome of
wartime panic and blatant racism. Sandler has prepared a thorough and extremely
readable account of the years-long imprisonment of American citizens and legal
residents of Japanese origin, which was based on no accusation or commission of
crime.
Perhaps as interesting is his history of the decades
preceding the war, in which racism and anti-immigrant prejudice pervaded
American dealings with the Japanese in the Western U.S. It makes more logical
sense, given this background, that the reaction to the Japanese attack on Pearl
Harbor was so swift and terrible. Japanese Americans were given a mere two
weeks to settle their affairs. Farmers who had sown their crops were forced to
sell farms or leave them in (hopefully) trustworthy hands. Homeowners and
shopkeepers were forced to sell everything for pennies on the dollar. Many
families arrived at the camps in shock and suddenly destitute after decades of
hard work to make their way in the United States.
The surprise is that they went so peacefully. Sandler makes
this comprehensible as well. Because of their experience with racism as well as
a cultural stoicism, Japanese Americans were anxious to appear as American and
patriotic as possible. Even in the harshest conditions in their desert
internment camps, Japanese Americans rose to the occasion, educating their
children, playing in baseball leagues, and organizing beautification
committees.
In an ironic twist, Japanese American men who joined the
military (many to escape the camps) were some of the most exemplary troops in
the Army, even liberating the concentration camp at Dachau. Others served as
Japanese translators. Not one Japanese American was ever found to be a spy for Japan.
After the war, Japanese Americans returned to their ruined lives and recovered
as best they could, many refusing to discuss their ill treatment. That it was
decades before they received a public apology and reparations is an American
disgrace. Those who wish to truly remember the past will find Imprisoned a
compelling read.—Wendy Nelson, 2015
Historian Sandler presents a cogent survey of Executive
Order 9066 and its aftermath. The order authorized the U.S. military to
relocate over 100,000 Japanese-Americans––many were U.S. citizens––from their
homes in Washington, Oregon and California to detention camps. Everything was
left behind. Neither the temporary holding centers nor the 10 internment camps
were ready to house, feed and care for the evacuees. Whole families were housed
in one small room, with meals in mess halls and humiliatingly public sanitary
facilities. A few government officials did object to the order, questioning its
constitutionality. Still, as the book’s subtitle conveys, the disgrace and
shame of the U.S. government’s treatment of these innocent people remains a
smear on the nation. Sandler opens with a history of the Japanese in the U.S.
before moving on to a discussion of the people, camps, conditions, Japanese-Americans
in U.S. military service and their lives after internment. (Irony of irony, it
was the most decorated unit in U.S. Army history—the Japanese-American
442nd––that liberated Dachau.) Many, many photographs add to general knowledge,
although captions lack dates—a nicety that would set a time frame.
It is a good summary of a bad time, perhaps leading readers
to question whether such events can reoccur in theirs. (places to visit,
sources, further reading including websites, index) (Nonfiction. 10-14)
Teaching Ideas
Pack Your Bags Lesson Warm-Up
(VA SOL USII.7, VUS.11, VUS.12 [deals specifically with Japanese internment], WHII.12a; VA English SOLs [nonfiction texts] 7.6, 8.6, 9.5, 10.5, 11.5, 12.5)
You are given only two weeks to get ready to leave your life behind. You can take one suitcase with you. You don't know where you're going or what the weather will be like, and you don't know how long you will have to stay. What will you pack, and why? Have students discuss the personal items they would bring. A favorite teddy bear? Books? Kitchen tools? What type of clothing would they pack? Do students realize that U.S. citizens faced this exact situation by the thousands during World War II?
Pearl Harbor and 9/11
Watch one or more short videos about Pearl Harbor and the subsequent American entrance into World War II. Discuss how this surprise attack would make people react. What are the effects of fear and anger on a nation? Then watch a short video about the attacks on New York and Washington on 9/11 and make comparisons. What did these situations have in common (sudden surprising attack, great loss of life, etc.), and what was different (no world war going on, no clear enemy, no declaration of war, etc.)? How do students think they would react if they were making decisions about how to respond to attacks such as these as a nation? Would they respond as the government did in 1941?
Videos about Pearl Harbor: http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/pearl-harbor/videos
Videos about 9/11: http://www.history.com/topics/9-11-attacks/videos/911-timeline
The Immigrant Experience
Some of the racism and prejudice against Japanese Americans that Sandler describes in Imprisoned was part of a general prevalence of anti-immigrant sentiment in the early 20th century. Using textual evidence from the book, have students list some of the common themes of the immigrant experience—for example, cultural isolation, lack of resources, discrimination, education, language barrier, etc. Divide students into groups and have each group read an oral history from a different immigrant culture. Then discuss how the Japanese American experience was similar to or different from the oral histories the students have read.
Oral histories: http://www.nps.gov/elis/learn/historyculture/oral-histories.htm
What the Country was Told
Examine a primary source, Relocation of Japanese Americans, written in 1943 by the War Location Authority. Discuss: who seems to be the intended audience for this publication? Does the perspective differ from that of Sandler? Do students feel that this 1943 publication was truthful and honest? Also have students explore the San Francisco News articles from the Virtual Museum of the City of San Francisco. What was the American public told about the potential Japanese American internment? After reading Sandler's book, discuss wartime propaganda and look for examples of fear-mongering and propaganda in these articles. If they were living in 1942-1943, what do students believe they would have done or thought?
Relocation of Japanese Americans: http://www.sfmuseum.net/hist10/relocbook.html
News articles: http://www.sfmuseum.net/war/evactxt.html
Personal History Writing Prompt
Have students select one photograph from Imprisoned that contains at least one unidentified person (does not have to be Japanese American.) Students should spend a few minutes imagining who this person is, where they have come from, where they are going, and what their daily life is like. Who are their family and friends? How does this person feel about the situation in which they find themselves? What are their hopes, dreams, fears, and regrets? Then students should write a one-page first-person narrative from the point of view of the person in the photograph. Invite students to share their writings out loud with the class.
Further Explorations
http://amhistory.si.edu/perfectunion/experience/index.html
A More Perfect Union: Japanese Americans and the U.S. Constitution
This virtual Smithsonian exhibit (based on a Museum of American History exhibit that toured the country) takes visitors on a journey from early Japanese immigration through today. Many of the physical articles from the exhibit are on virtual display.
Clara Breed Collection
http://www.janm.org/collections/clara-breed-collection/
"Miss Breed" was a San Diego children's librarian during the time of Japanese American internment. She maintained a correspondence with many children in the camps, keeping them supplied with books and other needed items. This site exhibits 243 of the letters and postcards children sent to Miss Breed from the camps. Includes images, biographical information, and transcripts of each piece of correspondence.
National Archives: Japanese Relocation and Internment During World War II
http://www.archives.gov/research/alic/reference/military/japanese-internment.html
A treasure trove of links to primary sources, photographs, lesson plans, and much more related to the topic.
WWII Japanese Relocation Camp Internee Records
http://www.japaneserelocation.org
Students can search for individual records for Japanese Americans who were imprisoned in the camps. Each entry contains the full "personnel file" for the person including links to possible family members.
Dorothea Lange Photos
http://www.moma.org/collection/artists/3373
The Museum of Modern Art website displays 34 of American photographer Dorothea Lange's best-known works, including several from the Japanese American internment camps.
Still more Dorothea Lange Photos: http://www.shorpy.com/dorothea-lange-photographs
Impounded: Photos of Japanese Internment
http://www.npr.org/programs/totn/features/2006/11/impounded/gallery.html
From NPR, a one-minute video slideshow of Dorothea Lange's photos of the Japanese American Internment camps.
Allegiance: A New Broadway Musical
http://allegiancemusical.com
Coming September 2015 to Broadway and starring George Takei, Telly Leung, and Lea Salonga, Allegiance is based on Takei's real experiences as a child in the internment camps. The story follows a Japanese American family through the war years and beyond.
Partner Titles
Remembering Manzanar: Life in a Japanese Relocation Camp
Cooper, M.L. (2002). Remembering Manzanar: life in a Japanese relocation camp. New York: Clarion Books.
This book for young adults is a non-fiction close account of life in a specific Japanese American internment camp. While Imprisoned deals with camp life in general, this book focuses on life in Manzanar, making it a good companion to Imprisoned.
Dear Miss Breed: True Stories of the Japanese American Incarceration During World War II and a Librarian Who Made a Difference
Oppenheim, J. (2006). Dear Miss Breed: true stories of the Japanese American incarceration during world war ii and a librarian who made a difference. New York: Scholastic Books.
Miss Breed was a librarian who corresponded with many young Japanese Americans in the internment camps. This book is appropriate for middle school and up. These letters from children will spark student interest in the topic of Japanese internment and make them see the young people in the camps as real children like themselves.
Miss Breed was a librarian who corresponded with many young Japanese Americans in the internment camps. This book is appropriate for middle school and up. These letters from children will spark student interest in the topic of Japanese internment and make them see the young people in the camps as real children like themselves.
Only What We Could Carry: The Japanese American
Internment Experience
Inada, L.F. [ed]. (2000). Only what we could carry: the Japanese American internment experience. Berkeley, CA: Heyday Books.
An anthology of letters, stories, poems, and art that, while not specifically for a young adult audience, will be of interest to students. These personal stories will help bring the experience alive for students and develop background knowledge.
An anthology of letters, stories, poems, and art that, while not specifically for a young adult audience, will be of interest to students. These personal stories will help bring the experience alive for students and develop background knowledge.
Under the Blood-Red Sun (Prisoners of the Empire series)
Salisbury, G. (1994). Under the blood-red sun. New York: Delacorte Press.
This series is a fictional account of events in the life of a Japanese American boy after Pearl Harbor and is set in Hawaii. Under the Blood-Red Sun is the first in the series of four books so far. The most recent book was published in 2014. As a fictional account of the same themes discussed in Imprisoned, this series makes a good set of partner titles for the book.
This series is a fictional account of events in the life of a Japanese American boy after Pearl Harbor and is set in Hawaii. Under the Blood-Red Sun is the first in the series of four books so far. The most recent book was published in 2014. As a fictional account of the same themes discussed in Imprisoned, this series makes a good set of partner titles for the book.
Farewell to Manzanar
Houston, J. & Houston, J. D. (2012). Farewell to Manzanar. New York: Ember Books.
This young adult book is a touching memoir about the author's life as a child in the Manzanar camp. Little Jeanne Wakatsuki was an American citizen who was imprisoned along with her family and 10,000 other Japanese Americans in 1942. This book is a personal story that will enrich students' empathy with the plight of incarcerated Japanese Americans.
All Resources Listed
Allegiance: a new
broadway musical. Available at http://allegiancemusical.com
Cooper, M.L. (2002).
Remembering Manzanar: life in a Japanese relocation camp. New York: Clarion
Books.
Crafted
Knowledge. (2015). WWII Japanese relocation camp internee records. Available at
http://www.japaneserelocation.org
History.com.
(n.d.) Pearl harbor videos. Available at: http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/pearl-harbor/videos
History.com.
(n.d.) 9/11 attacks. Available at http://www.history.com/topics/9-11-attacks/videos/911-timeline
Houston, J. & Houston, J. D. (2012). Farewell to Manzanar. New York: Ember Books.
Inada, L.F. [ed]. (2000). Only what we could carry: the Japanese American internment experience. Berkeley, CA: Heyday Books.
Inada, L.F. [ed]. (2000). Only what we could carry: the Japanese American internment experience. Berkeley, CA: Heyday Books.
Japanese American
National Museum (2015). Clara Breed collection. Available at http://www.janm.org/collections/clara-breed-collection/
Kirkus Reviews.
(May 22, 2013). Review: Imprisoned: The betrayal of Japanese Americans during
world war ii. Retrieved from https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/martin-w-sandler/imprisoned/
Museum of Modern
Art. (n.d.) The collection: Dorothea Lange. Available at http://www.moma.org/collection/artists/3373
National Park
Service. (n.d.) Ellis Island: Oral histories. Available at http://www.nps.gov/elis/learn/historyculture/oral-histories.htm
National Public
Radio. (n.d.) Impounded: photos of Japanese internment. Available at http://www.npr.org/programs/totn/features/2006/11/impounded/gallery.html
Oppenheim, J.
(2006). Dear Miss Breed: true stories of the Japanese American incarceration
during world war ii and a librarian who made a difference. New York: Scholastic
Books.
Salisbury, G.
(1994). Under the blood-red sun. New York: Delacorte Press.
Sandler, M. W.
(2013). Imprisoned: The betrayal of Japanese Americans during World War II.
London: Walker Childrens.
Shorpy.com. (n.d.) Dorothea Lange photos. http://www.shorpy.com/dorothea-lange-photographs
Smithsonian National Museum of American
History. (2001). A more perfect union: Japanese Americans and the U.S.
constitution. Available at http://amhistory.si.edu/perfectunion/experience/index.html
U.S. National Archives and Records
Administration. (n.d.) Archives library and information center: Japanese
relocation and internment during world war ii. Available at http://www.archives.gov/research/alic/reference/military/japanese-internment.html
Virtual Museum of
San Francisco. (n.d.) Internment of San Francisco Japanese. Available at http://www.sfmuseum.net/war/evactxt.html
War Relocation
Authority. (May 1943). Relocation of Japanese Americans. Available at http://www.sfmuseum.net/hist10/relocbook.html
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