Internment of Japanese Canadians during world war 2
In 1942, 23,000 Japanese Canadians lived on the West Coast of British Columbia. The majorities of them were Canadians by birth or naturalized citizens. While they worked as fishermen and laborers and paid their taxes, they were denied the right to vote. Thirty-five years after the first person of Japanese origin settled in Canada, Japanese Canadians continued to face persecution and racism. Despite the racism, the community continued to develop and prosper. During the years of limited immigration, women arrived and families began to grow. Japanese Canadians, still without the franchise, volunteered for service in WWI. By 1919, Japanese Canadians owned nearly half the fishing licenses in B.C., but by 1925, 1,000 fishing licenses were stripped from them. In 1941, Japanese Canadians were fingerprinted and photographed and were required to carry registration cards. War was imminent. Immediately after the bombing of Pearl Harbour, 1,800 Japanese Canadian fishing boats were seize . . .
During the "evacuation", many people were given only 24 hours notice to vacate their homes, before being sent to "clearing sites" where they were detained until internment camps were prepared. The government justified this action. Many signed out of fear, or misguided loyalty to Canada. Initially, 10,000 Japanese Canadians signed for repatriation. All of their property and belongings held by the Custodian of Enemy Property "in trust", were sold without owners' consent. As the war ceased, Japanese Canadians were no longer alone. While the Supreme Court ruled in favour of deportation, Prime Minister King decided to yield to public opinion and end the program. By November 1942, after eight months of operation, the Commission managed to breakup and up-root families and sent nearly 22,000 individuals to road camps, internment camps and prisoner of war camps. Japanese Canadians were allowed to travel freely and return to the West Coast. Public sentiment was beginning to lean in the community's favour. Security Commission was in charge of the expulsion orders.
Common topics in this essay:
Japanese Canadians, Enemy Property, Japanese Canadian, Security Commission, British Columbia, japanese canadians, Minister King, Measures Act, Japan War, Supreme Court, Japanese Americans, japanese canadian, custodian enemy property, enemy property, custodian enemy, supreme court, property trust, internment camps, japanese origin, war measures, fishing licenses, war measures act, |
Acceptance Essays
