From DiscoverNikkei.org
War & Resistance
The defining experience for North American Nikkei is the events surrounding World War II. From the incarceration of persons of Japanese ancestry, two-thirds of whom were U.S. citizens, to military service in both the European and Pacific fronts, to the struggle for civil liberties and the eventual grassroots campaign for Redress, Nikkei during this time found themselves in between two worlds and in a life-long quest for justice and identity.
North American Nikkei were not alone in the far-reaching affects of global war. Nikkei from Canada, South America, Hawaii and other locations were not spared from prejudicial treatment or the infringement of rights.
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Military
Nikkei in military service, primarily the U.S. Armed Forces. Nikkei have served in all branches of the U.S. Armed Forces as far back as the Spanish American War in 1898. During World War II, many Nikkei volunteered from behind barbed wire to prove their loyalty, with many making the ultimate sacrifice for their country. In 1999, Hawaiian born General Eric Shinseki became the Chief of Staff of the United States Army and commanded over all four military branches.
World War II
Facing the bullets of the enemy on the battlefield and the sting of racism at home, Nisei soldiers contributed bravely to the Allied cause in World War II, most notably with the highly-decorated 442nd Regimental Combat Team/100th Infantry Battalion. In the Pacific theater, Nisei played a vital role as translators and interpreters in the Military Intelligence Service, but received little recognition because of the classified nature of their work. The Nikkei contribution to the war effort, including women in uniform, proved beyond question their loyalty and patriotism as Americans.
Nikkei Veterans' Groups
Links to various Nikkei Veterans' Groups
Resistance
During a time when Japanese Americans were stripped of their civil liberties and incarcerated without due process, four court cases challenged the injustice: Hirabayashi v. United States (1943), Yasui v. United States (1943), Korematsu v. United States (1944), and Ex parte Endo (1944).
Also, while some young Nikkei volunteered from behind barbed wire to serve in the U.S. military, others chose to resist the draft believing that it was unfair to serve a country that had labeled them as "enemy aliens."
Incarceration
Following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, President Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066 on February 19, 1942 giving the Army the authority to remove persons of Japanese ancestry from California, Oregon, Washington and southern Arizona. The War Relocation Authority built ten concentration camps in remote areas in the country's interior eventually housing approximately 120,000 Japanese and Japanese Americans. This action is seen as a failure of the U.S. government to protect the civil liberties of its citizens based on war hysteria and racial prejudice.
During World War II, Nikkei in Canada, Cuba and Australia were incarcerated as well. In addition, the United States government kidnapped over 2,200 Japanese Peruvian men, women and children to be used in a hostage exchange program with Japan. They were imprisoned at Crystal City, Texas and after the war found themselves a people without a country.
Repatriation
Canada Repatriation
United States Repatriation
Redress
On August 10, 1988, President Ronald Reagan signed into law HR 442, the Civil Liberties Act of 1988, authorizing an official apology and token reparations to thousands of persons of Japanese ancestry for their incarceration during World War II. The Redress movement to make the passage of this law possible took the hard work of many individuals, community organizations, and political leaders to achieve. But the search for justice was not without controversy as the community found itself divided over whether or not it was necessary to pursue this course of action. In the end, the Redress campaign and the official apology are seen as a affirmation that the Constitution works for all Americans.
Kachigumi / Makegumi
In the years following World War II, a faction of Brazilian Nikkei refused to believe that Japan had lost the war. These followers were called the "Kachigumi." Their leaders used propaganda to perpetuate their beliefs and even resorted to terrorist activities that resulted in the killings of those Nikkei who accepted Japan's defeat (known as the "Makegumi"). This mass delusion is considered to stem from the Kachigumi's zealous drive to establish a higher place within Brazilian society rather than find its basis in extreme Japanese nationalism.