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On December 7, 1941,
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16 year-old Aki Kurose shared in the
horror of millions of Americans
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when Japanese planes
attacked Pearl Harbor.
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What she did not know,
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was how that shared experience
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would soon leave her family and
over 120,000 Japanese Americans
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alienated from their country,
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both socially and physically.
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As of 1941,
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Japanese American communities had been
growing in the US for over 50 years.
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About one-third of them were immigrants,
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many of whom settled on the West Coast
and had lived there for decades.
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The rest were born as American citizens,
like Aki.
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Born Akiko Kato in Seattle,
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Aki grew up in a diverse neighborhood
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where she never thought of herself
as anything but American–
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until the day after the attack, when a
teacher told her:
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“You people bombed Pearl Harbor."
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Amid racism, paranoia,
and fears of sabotage,
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people labelled Japanese Americans
as potential traitors.
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FBI agents began to search homes,
confiscate belongings
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and detain community leaders
without trial.
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Aki’s family was not immediately subjected
to these extreme measures,
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but on February 19, 1942, President
Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9066.
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The order authorized the removal of any
suspected enemies–
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including anyone of even
partial Japanese heritage–
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from designated ‘military areas.’
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At first,
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Japanese Americans were pushed to leave
restricted areas and migrate inland.
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But as the government froze
their bank accounts
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and imposed local restrictions
such as curfews,
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many were unable to leave–
Aki’s family among them.
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In March, a proclamation forbid Japanese
Americans from changing their residency,
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trapping them in military zones.
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In May, the army moved Aki and her family,
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along with over 7,000 Japanese Americans
living in Seattle
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to ‘Camp Harmony’
in Puyallup, Washington.
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This was one of several makeshift
detention centers
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at former fairgrounds and racetracks,
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where entire families were packed into
poorly converted stables and barracks.
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Over the ensuing months,
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the army moved Japanese Americans
into long-term camps
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in desolate areas of the West and South,
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moving Aki and her family to
Minidoka in southern Idaho.
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Guarded by armed soldiers,
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many of these camps were still being
constructed when incarcerees moved in.
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These hastily built prisons were
overcrowded and unsanitary.
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People frequently fell ill and were unable
to receive proper medical care.
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The War Relocation Authority relied on
incarcerees to keep the camps running.
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Many worked in camp facilities or taught
in poorly equipped classrooms,
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while others raised crops and animals.
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Some Japanese Americans rebelled,
organizing labor strikes and even rioting.
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But many more,
like Aki’s parents, endured.
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They constantly sought to recreate some
semblance of life outside the camps,
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but the reality of their
situation was unavoidable.
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Like many younger incarcerees,
Aki was determined to leave her camp.
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She finished her final year
of high school at Minidoka,
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and with the aid of an anti-racist Quaker
organization,
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she was able to enroll at
Friends University in Kansas.
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For Aki’s family however, things wouldn’t
begin to change until late 1944.
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A landmark Supreme Court case
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ruled that continued detention of American
citizens without charges
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was unconstitutional.
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In the fall of 1945,
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the war ended and the camps closed down.
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Remaining incarcerees
were given a mere $25
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and a train ticket to their
pre-war address,
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but many no longer had a home
or job to return to.
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Aki’s family had been able to
keep their apartment,
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and Aki eventually returned
to Seattle after college.
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However, post-war prejudice
made finding work difficult.
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Incarcarees faced discrimination
and resentment
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from workers and tenants
who replaced them.
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Fortunately, Japanese Americans
weren’t alone
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in the fight against
racial discrimination.
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Aki found work with one of Seattle’s first
interracial labor unions
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and joined the Congress
of Racial Equality.
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She became a teacher,
and over the next several decades,
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her advocacy for multicultural, socially
conscious education
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would impact thousands of students.
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However, many ex-incarcerees,
particularly members of older generations,
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were unable to rebuild
their lives after the war.
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Children of incarcerees began a movement
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calling for the United States to atone
for this historic injustice.
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In 1988, the US government officially
apologized for the wartime incarceration–
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admitting it was the catastrophic result
of racism, hysteria,
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and failed political leadership.
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Three years after this apology,
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Aki Kurose was awarded the
Human Rights Award
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from the Seattle Chapter
of the United Nations,
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celebrating her vision of peace and
respect for people of all backgrounds.