English 9: Question of the Week (3/30/12)

Friday, March 30, 2012

Question of the Week (3/30/12)

Using your notes, write a reflection on the documentary "Unfinished Business". It should be at least 250-300 words. Cite 3 facts about the 3 men featured in the documentary: Fred Korematsu, Min Yasui, and Gordon Hirobayashi. Since you haven't seen the end of the film, post your thoughts on how you think the Supreme Court will rule. Be sure to comment on another classmates' reflection. Post by 3 p.m. on Tuesday. As this is your last post for quarter 3, no partial credit will be given to late posts. Enjoy your weekend and happy posting!

33 comments:

AnonymousApril 1, 2012 at 2:26 PM
I think that what happened to the Japanese during World War II was terrible, and these three men were great leaders in their actions of rebellion. I think that how the Japanese were ordered to leave their houses was very unfair, especially because many of them were American citizens. They were evicted from their houses, sometimes in the middle of the night, and told to grab a whatever belongings that they could carry, and then leave. Other people's houses were watched by guards, and spotlights were trained on their houses at night. The Japanese who had not been removed lived a life of fear, and did not know when they would be taken away. The life for the Japanese at relocation centers was terrible, and they had to sleep on bags filled with straw. There was much racial hatred against them, and when they left the camps to find work, they often had trouble finding jobs because nobody would accept them. Some of the Japanese joined the war just so that they could get out of the camps. Gordon Hirobayashi was sentenced nine months in prison just because he was outside of his house past eight o'clock p.m. He had to beg the police officer to arrest him, because he wanted to show people that they could stand up for themselves. Fred Korematsu tried to join the U.S Navy, but was rejected because of his race. Min Yasui was arrested by the FBI for being an enemy alien, and was later taken to an internment camp. I think that the Supreme Court will rule the three men innocent, because they did not really do anything wrong.
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AnonymousApril 1, 2012 at 9:04 PM
The award winning documentary, “Unfinished Business” showcased the harsh realities of the Japanese internment camps, and the prejudice and inexcusable actions that allowed this to happen. In the spring of 1942, more than 110,000 Japanese Americans were taken from their homes under President Roosevelt’s Executive Order 9066- justified by protecting America’s national security after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. During the time after Pearl Harbor, fear was running rampant through the United States. The government attempted to settle some of this anxiety by locating the “threat” and pointing a finger at the Japanese Americans living in the USA at the time. The government began creating lists of Japanese Americans that were potential enemies- formed mainly on appearance and occupation. Then commenced a shameful period in American history where ostracizing, hating and fearing the Japanese was a sign of patriotism. Laws began to make life for the Japanese increasingly challenging, including strict curfews and not being allowed to own any cameras or radio transmitters. Violation of such laws was considered a criminal offense. Some Japanese, such as Gordon Hirobayashi intentionally disobeyed to prove that the government’s actions were unjust. He purposely violated the curfew and turned himself into the FBI to appeal to the Supreme Court. His case lost with the reasoning that the Japanese were all disloyal. He was taken away from his family, along with other men, leaving their families with no means of support. When people begin to get shipped to the internment camps, life became even more frenzied. The Japanese could only bring what they could carry along with their luggage being investigated for contraband. Fred Korematsu is an example of someone who tried to evade evacuation by getting plastic surgery. However, like many others he was caught and sent to prison. At the camps themselves, conditions were awful, with assigned barracks, mattresses of straw, and sleeping in sheds of cattle. All of this proved to be both demeaning for the people and the realization that there was no “American Dream”. Toward the end of the internment, adults were allowed to leave the camp to do labor in the Midwest. Min Yasui tried to enlist 9 times during this time, and was denied every single one of them. This also showed the suspicion surrounding the loyalty of Japanese American citizens. At the end of the war when all of the Japanese were set free, there was never any public apology from the government, and there was a continued embarrassment about being Japanese. These events have taken away their pride. In 1983 Japanese internment cases were reopened, including the three men mentioned above. It is my belief that the court will find all of these men innocent because of the clear unconstitutionality surrounding the internment.
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AnonymousApril 2, 2012 at 8:50 AM
"Unfinished War" is the documentary that tells about the injustice in the lives of three Japanese men during World War II, after Pearl Harbor. Despite many of them being patriotice, and having no connection to Japan, they were harshly discriminated against. Some even were willing to fight for their country, and wanted to enlist, such as Min Yasui, a lawyer, who, when he tried to enlist, was rejected. What is more is that his father, who had urged him to join, saying it was his patriotic duty, was put on a list of suspicious persons soon after. Because of the way they looked, or their heritage, strict regulations were imposed on Japanese families on the west coast. Curfews were imposed, families were forced to turn in radios, short wave receivers and cameras, and general prejudice was set against them. However, these strict impositions seemed mainly for comfort of the public, so it looked as if something was being done, as the police did not seem to want to arrest the Japanese breaking the law, as seen by Gordon Hirobayashi. He purposely went looking for a police officer after dark, and after finding one, the officer told him to go home before he got in trouble, even after he showed him his birth certificate, proof he was Japanese. However, Hirobayashi finally got himself arrested, and was sentenced to jail time. He took his case to the Supreme Court, who agreed with his former sentence. Before long, however, the Japanese had more than strict regulations surrounding their lives. They were rounded up and forced to stay in internment camps. Fred Korematsu tried to evade the encampment, feeling that his rights were being taken away. He got minor plastic surgery, changed his name, and moved. This worked for several months, although he was eventually found and sentenced to prison time, and then returned to an internment camp. The treatment of these men was inequitable, and after the war was over, the government never apologized, or offered any compensation regarding the way they had treated their own citizens. Years later, cases surrounding the internment camp were reopened, including those of the aforementioned men, under the premise that the government had previously withheld and suppressed information. I think that the Supreme Court will rule in favor of these three men, as their treatment violated several of their rights as American citizens. What they did should be celebrated, instead of evaded as it has been for many years now.
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AnonymousApril 2, 2012 at 11:54 AM
I think that the documentary “Unfinished Business” sends a powerful message about the harsh reality of the Japanese concentration camps. It takes us inside the lives of Japenese whose families were split up by the government for the “safety” of the U.S. but not every Japanese person in the united sates was taken into the camps, some individuals fought for the rights that they expected from the United States when they moved here. Gordon Hirobayashi was a young man when the military began their roundup of Japanese citizens. He saw how unfair things were, and in a fit of righteous anger he got himself arrested by walking about town after the Japanese curfew hours. He was thrown in jail, but that was his goal, he purposefully broke the law to make an example of himself. Gordon was hoping to make an impact on people, revealing how unfair these racially discriminating laws were. Gordon wanted people, to fight back, even in small ways, against the unfair new rules and regulations. Another Japanese man, Fred Korematsu, tried to take a sneakier route in opposition to the law. He also thought that the internment camps and new laws were unfair, and biased. Hiding out with his girlfriend, Fred took measures to ensure that he was not discovered, like getting some plastic surgery to make him look more Caucasian. Eventually he was discovered, but he held out for several months. The camps ruined Fred’s life, he had to change how he looked and separated himself from his family (who he had trouble relating with in these times of trouble). When the authorities found him, he was thrown in jail, and ended up in the internment camps with the rest of the Japanese. Though the camps were not nearly as horrific as German/Nazi concentration camps in Europe, the premise was similar. Separate a class of people, alienate them from the rest of society. Of course, the Japanese in the camps were not happy about this. They wanted to get out. One way to leave the camps was to prove loyalty to the U.S. Min Yasui was desperate to enlist; he loved his country and was desperate to protect it. Min’s father was also a patriot, telling his son that it was his duty as an American to fight for America. Nevertheless, Min was rejected from the army on account of his race. The treatment that the Japanese people endured during this time in history, and the decisions that the government made about Japanese Americans, seems almost Orwellian. I think that the supreme court will rule in favor of the Japanese now that they can “look back” from a modern standpoint and make a fairer ruling. “Unfinished Business” is aptly titled; it brings back to light the dark aspects of America during the war, aspects that are uncomfortable to talk about, but must be dealt with to achieve closure.
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AnonymousApril 2, 2012 at 5:02 PM
The documentary “Unfinished Business” is a true and full depiction of how the Japanese were evicted and placed in a terrible situation. So many Japanese were taken from their homes, leaving the shops and businesses they had worked hard to build and manage ruined. Three of these unfortunate people were strong and willing enough to stand up and try to fight for their promised rights, which were being taken away from them. The first hero was Gordon Hirobayashi who, after seeing the conditions these people were being put in, was outraged. He was so sure about it being wrong that he intentionally disobeyed the curfew. After looking around for a long time for someone to arrest him for doing so, he was finally arrested and put in solitary confinement. He was showing the rest of the Japanese that they should fight back for their rights. He was a big influence to them. Another one of these great characters was Fred Korematsu, another Japanese who could be detained. He was a less radical person than Gordan, as he avoided the internment for a long time. To do this, he got plastic surgery to make him look less Japanese, as well as changing his name. Eventually, he was taken by the military. He was put on trial and found guilty of hiding from the law. The last of these gallant individuals was Min Yasui, who, when hearing about the possibility of being evicted, enrolled in the US army to fight for his country and to get out of the camps. Later, after the war was over and done, the Japanese were still afraid of recalling those terrible moments in the past that have been burned in their minds. The Supreme Court refused to repent for their sins until they were bombarded with the complaints. They wanted people to forget about it since it was such a big mistake, but it had been so long that it was part of the Japanese’s’ character, how they thought of anything was due to this event. The internment was an unforgivable lack of thought.
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AnonymousApril 2, 2012 at 6:54 PM
The documentary "Unfinished Business" is much-needed for all people in the U.S., and even around the world, to watch since it shows what exactly happened in the Japanese internment camps and how Japanese-Americans were treated during the era. The whole experience had a tremendously negative impact on them. People of Japanese heritage, even if they were American citizens or had proved their loyalty to the U.S., were herded and shipped to low-standard living conditions just because of how they looked. The vast majority of these people could not dare retort, yet three of them did. Three men who sought to escape the wrongdoing and to teach white Americans a lesson. These three men were Gordon Hirobayashi, Min Yasui, and Fred Korematsu, all who worked in different ways, as explained in the documentary. Gordon and Min had terrible experiences, yet I think Fred had the largest impact. He was trying very hard to assimilate into American culture, yet he was labeled as a Japanese. A Japanese who couldn't even speak the language and didn't know anything about its culture. His shock at him being named a Japanese led him to feel embarrassed about his proud heritage. Such grievous acts were committed in a democratic country that is in such a high position in today's world largely because of its immigrant population. But today, in a time that preaches freedom and encourages all voices to be heard, the Japanese-Americans are getting THEIR voice back. They are realizing how badly they were treated, and how badly their previous generations were affected. They are now realizing that they need to settle a score with some "Unfinished Business".
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AnonymousApril 2, 2012 at 8:25 PM
In the documentary, "Unfinished Business", the prejudice and injustice toward the Japanese that emerged after the bombing of Pearl Harbor is greatly emphasized. The film put a spotlight on three specific Japanese men that made a notable impact during World War II, when the hatred for their race was raging. In 1942, over 110,000 Japanese Americans were extracted from their homes and sent to an unknown place , with the only reasoning being that some Japanese background was evident upon their faces. A number of these people didn't even know how to speak Japanese, but were deemed a threat because they simply looked like those that had bombed Pearl Harbor. One man named Fred Korematsu even got plastic surgery and changed his name in hopes of dodging this reasoning for evacuation. However, this type of action was rare, as most were to afraid to end up in prison, like he did. As the thought of the Japanese being almost alien-like became more and more prevalent, it became patriotic to join the masses and ostracize them. This made it increasingly challenging for them to feel as though they still had their rights. At one point, the Japanese individuals had to endure a search for contraband, and limit themselves to only bringing luggage with them that they could carry. Rules only became more strict, and soon curfews were enforced. This became too much for some to live with, and a few individuals, including Gordon Hirobayashi, purposely defied these laws in order to make a point. Although this meant turning himself in to the FBI, he knew that the case would make an impression and felt that it was his duty to stand up for not only himself, but for his race. Eventually, his story even made it to the Supreme Court. Even though the Japanese being corralled into internment camps was a terrible thing, it provided a sense of comfort for the rest of the nation knowing that they were safe from the "enemy". Unfortunately, this way of thinking outweighed the obvious: that the government was being completely unfair. This feeling of relief in safety grew in people, and caused individuals like Min Yasui, a lawyer, to be denied the chance to fight for his own country because his loyalty seemed so questionable. The actions of Fred Korematsu, Gordon Hirobayashi, and Min Yasui were extremely courageous things to do, and they spoke for most all of the Japanese prisoners in their attempts to proclaim their undeserved treatment. My thoughts are in complete accordance with that of those three men, and therefore predict that the Supreme Court will rule in their favor when the cases were brought back up in 1983.
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AnonymousApril 2, 2012 at 8:31 PM
Joe Williams

This was one topic that I have not learned much about. Now I realize how big of a deal these camps really were. Min Yasui, one of the Japanese men, was the third son of 9 kids, he was very patriotic, but resigned after Pearl Harbor. When he tried to enlist again, they refused him. Gordon Hirobayashi was well educated and posed no serious threat to anyone. He went up to the police after the curfew on purpose and they would not arrest him, they just told him to run along. He had to try very hard and was finally put in jail. Fred Korematsu had plastic surgery to try to evade being captured. He was caught a few months later and was put in prison.
I do not agree with the roundup of the Japanese Americans but I do not believe they were completely wrong with what they did. I believe that the government was under a lot of stress came up with what they thought of as the best possible solution at that time. They wanted to have the situation under control so the men could safely be shipped overseas to fight. I think that only non U.S. citizens who have lived in Japan within the last few years should have been detained. Also, they should have been given better living conditions and fair compensation. I think that if the Japanese were at least compensated in a reasonable amount of time than things would have gone a lot smoother. Next time anything like this happens, I’m sure nothing to this extent will happen again.
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AnonymousApril 2, 2012 at 9:18 PM
In the documentary “Unfinished Business”, it portrays the fear the Japanese had to face every day after Pearl Harbor. Over 110,000 Japanese Americans were extracted from their homes simply because they looked different. Many of these people that were forced out of their homes, did not even know the Japanese language or culture. The film showed the stories of three men, Fred Korematsu, Min Yasui, and Gordon Hirobayashi. These men fought for the rights of the American citizens. One man, Fred Korematsu, got plastic surgery and changed his name in order to stay with his beloved girlfriend. This case is rare but it the fear he faced in order to change his identity to protect himself. Japanese Americans became the targets for hate crimes because American citizens needed to blame someone. The government enforced curfews for the Japanese Americans because of the violence towards them. Gordon Hirobayashi purposely left his home after curfew to be arrested and also point out the flaws of the government’s choice. The Japanese American citizens appreciated Gordon’s actions for the people that were attacked. Later, the government forced the Japanese Americans to stay in interment camps. The government followed the adage “better safe than sorry” and locked up all Americans with Japanese ancestors. This ensured safety for the American citizens and it also protected the Japanese American citizens but it prevented people, like Min Yasui, to fight for his own people. Min Yasui was a lawyer and knew his rights were taken away. His colleagues begged him not to protest but he fought for his rights. The actions of these men knew of the consequences but they were courageous and wanted their rights back. I believe that the Supreme Court will be in favor of these three men.
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AnonymousApril 2, 2012 at 10:53 PM
The documentary “Unfinished Business” centers around three Japanese men who lived through World War II. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941, Japanese Americans were unfairly targeted as a result of racial prejudice and widespread panic. During this period, about 110,000 Japanese Americans and other U.S. citizens were put in internment camps around the country as the government’s attempt to prevent a similar event from occurring again. The members of the camps lived in miserable conditions, with poor food and straw mattresses. They could only bring what supplies they could carry, and families were ripped from their homes. All around the U.S., Japanese citizens were accused of collaborating with the enemy. MinYasui, one of the Japanese men, had an incredibly patriotic father, more patriotic than many of the citizens of American heritage. However, when Yasui honored his family and tried to enlist, he was rejected from the army because of his race. The FBI suspected his father to be a spy, and the Americans assumed Yasui was guilty by association. As a result, he was afraid to walk through the streets because of the hatred and discrimination he was met with. When a curfew was imposed, he was sentenced to nine months in solitary confinement for violating it. Fred Korematsu was also targeted because of his Japanese heritage. Soldiers put a spotlight on his parent’s nursery, and his house was searched for contraband. He was so desperate to stay with his Caucasian wife that he got minor plastic surgery and left his family in order to escape the government. Eventually, he was found and imprisoned as well. Gordon Hirobayashi, the last Japanese man featured in the film, had pacifist parents. He was a Quaker, which made him a pacifist as well. However, he was still persecuted because of his race. The government made no attempt to learn about his life or search for incriminating evidence; they just rounded citizens up based on their heritage. Hirobayashi was arrested for five months for violating evacuation orders, and then he was sent to an internment camp. He had the opportunity to join the army in a special Japanese war force in order to escape the camp, but he refused because of his beliefs and was forced to remain in the camp. Like these three men, thousands of Japanese Americans had their rights stripped away by the government. This action was fueled only by racism. After this traumatic experience, these American citizens lived in doubt of their own legitimacy and place in the U.S. Years passed before survivors were willing to talk about this period of their lives, and some still resist bringing up the painful times. However, the government made no move to apologize or compensate for their unfair treatment. The court trials of Yasui, Korematsu, and Hirobayashi, forty years later, are just the beginning of the government’s acknowledgement of the racism that plagued the Japanese Americans during World War II.
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AnonymousApril 3, 2012 at 10:19 AM
The film “Unfinished Business” describes the living situations and the stories of the men, women and children that were kept in internment camps during World War II. These people were locked up simply because of what they looked like mostly without any evidence of espionage against them. It was certainly unfair to the Japanese that they were locked up and if I were a Japanese American I too would be furious. Even though this round up and mass incarceration was unfair I believe it was completely necessary, it was for the good of the country. Right and wrong changes during war time, it’s like the difference between a rehearsal and a performance for a play; during rehearsal some slips and mistakes and even some horsing around will be tolerated. During the actual performance however, there can be no weak links, everyone must no their lines and their can’t be any possibilities of someone who is not completely devoted to making the play a success. During a war there must be no one in the entire country who does not want their own country to win. If there is the slightest bit of disloyalty it could kill thousands.
Fred Korematsu is one of the men who had a test case many years after the first case and was found not guilty of all charges. This case was essentially the government’s apology, I believe that if the same events happened again they would do the same thing as before which I believe would be necessary. It would not be right or fair however it would be necessary. Min Yasui until his death in 1986 worked tirelessly to get monetary funds given to Japanese internment camp victims. Gordon Hirobayashi also helped to improve the standing of Japanese Americans and make sure nothing like the internment camp ever happened again. These men are brave in fighting for what they believe in however I believe what’s done is done and the healthiest thing to do is move on and not take things to court, holding on to anger is often very dangerous.
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Tim O'RourkeApril 3, 2012 at 10:28 AM
I think the documentary “Unfinished Business” was a very powerful story. I believe that the Japanese went through a lot of hardships for no reason. They story really focused on the lives of three specific men along with the overall theme of what was happening. The Japanese people were being put into internment camps for the reason of being Japanese. They Japanese were taken from their homes and could only take what they could fit into a suitcase. They were sent all across the U.S. and everywhere they went they were discriminated. There was a lot of racial discrimination during this time period. The Japanese had to endure beatings, killings, and a lot of hatred from the so-called “Americans”. The camps they were put into weren’t a good living style. They crowded hundreds of people into one house, and they got food, and could go out into the towns, but whenever they did they were usually run out. The story focused a lot on the lives of Fred Korematsu, Min Yasui, and Gordon Hirobayashi. When president Roosevelt ordered the eviction of all Japanese people from their homes Fred Korematsu didn’t go. He was with his girlfriend and he didn’t want to leave her, so he had plastic surgery on his face to make him look less Japanese. While he was on the street one day he was arrested, and his girlfriend left him, and he was sentenced to the Central Utah War Relocation Center. Min Yasui wanted to show that they were being treated wrongly so he stayed out past the assigned curfew for Japanese people and went up to the police man to be arrested. The police officer wouldn’t arrest him so he walked down to the police station and begged to be arrested. He then went and traveled to his family, which was against the law for Japanese to travel. Min Yasui was sentenced to nine months in prison. Gordon Hirobayashi was an American sociologist. He turned himself in for curfew violations spent 90 days in prison and later sent a year in Federal prison for refusing the induction into the armed forces. I believe that the Japanese were unjustly treated. This could have been bad for the future of the U.S. The Japanese went through a of of hardships and none of them were fair for the reason they were sentenced into the camps.
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Ross MartinApril 3, 2012 at 10:36 AM
In December of 1941 Japanese fighter and bomber planes attacked the United States. They were sent to bomb Pearl Harbor which at the time was an American naval base situated on the island of Hawaii. In order to try and prevent any more attacks on American soil, the United States government created places where the Japanese people living in America could stay under the watch of guards. These were called internment camps. In 1942, over 110,000 Japanese people (most of them were American citizens) were rounded up into places like stadiums, racetracks, or large fields. Life in the internment camps was hard and below standards of most living conditions today. Some accounts say that their beds were made of straw and when they were kicked out of their homes, the victims were allowed to pack their entire life into a simple suitcase.
The movie Unfinished Business follows three men who went through the internment camps. Minoru Yasui was a lawyer from Oregon. He was a second generation in the United States and his parents moved to Oregon. He was arrested in 1942 for disobeying the curfew law. He was sent to a camp and from 1942 to 1986 he fought the legal system in order to clear his name. The court overturned his conviction. He died later that year. Gordon Hirabayashi was another man who was not only an American citizen but was also in the army. But in 1942, he was put in prison for not following the curfew. His case was also overturned and the government cleared him of his conviction charges in 1987. Fred Korematsu was another man who was hurt by the legal system. In 1942 he was arrested for simply being a “Jap”. However he got the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Bill Clinton in 1998.
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AnonymousApril 3, 2012 at 12:28 PM
What happened to the Japanese-Americans during World War 2 was one of the most unfair things that has happened in recent american history. Many Japanese-Americans were put into internment camps for nothing more than the way that they looked. They were profiled as enemies because they came from a country we were fighting. Luckily there was three men who would not stand for this. Their names where Min Yasui, Fred Korematsu, and Gordon Hirabayashi. To protest Hirabayashi purposely got himself arrested. After nine months of solitary confinement he finally got his chance for a court appeal. Korematsu lost all employment after the attack on pearl harbor and wasn’t allowed to join the navy. He even tried to avoid imprisonment in an internment camp. Yasui was arrested for being an enemy and then was later taken to an internment camp. These men where some of the few who fought against these camps out of the all the people who were imprisoned. These people were taken from their homes and their income taken away from them. They weren’t told where they were going and were put into put into horrible living conditions with uncomfortable beds and hardly any food at all. Hopeful something like this will never happen again and I do think it will not. There will always be prejudice of course, but hopefully not to the extreme that it was taken to during world war 2. I do hope and I do believe that we will never again lock up american citizens just because of the way that they look or their ancestry.
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AnonymousApril 3, 2012 at 1:06 PM
Although the documentary “Unfinished Business” is about the internment of Japanese-American citizens during WWII, it mainly focuses on three men who resisted these actions of the government. Many Japanese-Americans felt wronged by what the United States' government was doing, but they did not have the strength or courage to resist. Fred Korematsu, Min Yasui, and Gordon Hirobayashi were American citizens of Japanese ancestry who did have the courage to fight back. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Min Yausi quit his job as a lawyer and went to join the Navy, but was denied because of his race. After President Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, setting curfew, internment, and other rules for all people of Japanese descent, Gordon Hirobayashi purposefully stayed out past the 8 pm curfew, and brought himself to a police station so that they would arrest him. Even though he knew he would be imprisoned, he wanted to make a stand saying that what the government was doing was wrong. When all Japanese were ordered to go to the internment camps, Fred Korematsu changed his name and had plastic surgery to evade internment and stay with his Caucasian girlfriend. However, eventually he was caught and received a jail sentence. All three of these men resisted the actions of the government because they believed its actions to be wrong, even though they knew there would be consequences.

I agree with the statement that the camps they were putting the Japanese into were not internment camps, but concentration camps. Although they were not killed, they were treated like prisoners and lived in horrible conditions. I also find truth in the statement that the Japanese-American people were not “evacuated.” An evacuation occurs usually by request of the people, and is meant for the safety and protection of their lives. This was not an evacuation. Over the building in which the supreme court cases were held for the three men, it says “Justice Under Equality.”I do not feel like this was upheld, because the three men were sentenced to prison for not following the military order, but it was that in the first place which got them there. When the military order was given forcing all Japanese-Americans to be put in internment camps, the government was not giving equality to the people who deserved it. One of the goals the founding Fathers had when they established our nation and wrote the constitution was that it would be a land of freedom, for all people. This should not depend on one's religion or ancestry. A phrase that effectively describes the arresting of “dangerous citizens” is guilt by association. Anyone who looked Japanese or had anything to do with Japanese business, government, or corporations whether past or present, was on the list of people to be taken to the camps first. The military was also told to arrest Buddhist clergy, because it was a prevalent religion in Japan, and the Japanese government supported the religion.
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AnonymousApril 3, 2012 at 1:10 PM
The movie Unfinished Business is the story of three Japanese men: Fred Korematsu, Min Yasui, and Gordon Hirobayashi; and their reactions to the evacuation of all of the Japanese-Americans from the west coast into interment camps because of the attack on Pearl Harbor.
The documentary was very moving. It tells of how after the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, they were all evacuated from their homes with little notice. They were not told where they were going or why and it was simply because they were Japanese. The American government even went as far as to take away certain belongings of the Japanese that they thought would be dangerous. They took away radios, cameras, etc. A curfew was also set for these people.
Some Japanese people stood up for their rights even though that meant arrest. The Japanese were harmed, killed, threatened and alienated and the Japanese wanted this to stop. One of these people was a man named Fred Korematsu. He decided to take a stand and refuse to be evacuated. He was engaged to a caucasian woman and did not want to be separated from her. He got some minor plastic surgery to make himself look less Japanese. He was able to avoid the internment camp for a little while but eventually he was found and sent there. Another man named Min Yasui purposefully violated the curfew to make a statement and had to plead with the officer to be arrested. The last man named Gordon Hirobayashi when given the chance to fight for America, refused. He did not want to be fighting for the country that took his home away from him and put him through all of this bad treatment in the internment camp.
The way the Japanese were treated was terrible and completely unfair. Even though the Government did eventually acknowledge what they did- by holding the court cases of the three men- it was wrong that they took away the rights of the Japanese people to "protect" them and they did not really apologize to them for what they did.
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AnonymousApril 3, 2012 at 9:12 PM
The documentary entitled “Unfinished Business” sheds light on the quiet yet powerful resistance of three men to the unjust actions of the United States government and military towards Japanese-americans during World War Two. The three men, Fred Korematsu, Min Yasui, and Gordon Hirobayashi, all disobeyed direct orders from the government and served time in prison for their actions. I found that the documentary informing, but more interviews with other Nisei “survivors” would have shed more light on their experiences. The men gave some idea of what it was like to be in the camps, but the main story was the trials in the 40’s and then the “current” ones in the 80’s. Fred Korematsu was originally enlisted in the Army Reserve Corps, but once the attacks on Pearl Harbour took place he was no longer allowed to serve in the military. In an attempt to evade the “round up” or Japanese looking citizens who were being taken to internment camps he had minor plastic surgery to change his facial features. For directly disobeying the mandate he served time in a federal court and was later removed to a camp with his family. His case was the first to be used against the government in 1944. Min Yasui, a lawyer who fought the laws against Japanese-americans during the war, also deliberately broke a military mandate, the curfew for all Asians, and was arrested. He spent 9 months in solitary confinement after which he spent the remainder of the war in a camp. The final protester, Gordon Hirobayashi, a Quaker and pacifist, also turned himself in for a curfew violation, was sentenced to 90 days in prison, and later spent another year in prison for not joining the armed forces due to his religious beliefs. All three cases of convictions were later brought back to the Supreme Court in the 80’s in light of new evidence supporting the cases of the men. My opinion is that the court rules they have all convictions revoked. I also believe that military mandates cannot be imposed by race is a major part of what they are fighting for, but it cannot be accomplished by this case against the government.
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