This Curriculum and Resource Guide is divided into sections that include:
Historical Overview, Important Dates,
Book and Audio/Visual Lists, Curriculum Guides, Regional Resources,
and Learning Activities. It begins with
the historical events that lead up to the Internment Camps, providing
a better understanding as to why the public
perceived the Japanese Americans and nationals as threats during World
War II; these events are highlighted in a
timeline. It also offers related books and videos, which are listed
according to grade level.
There is an abundance of resources and contacts to programs in place,
some of which offer copies of their
cirriculum. Also included are sample activities with lists of questions
and the desired outcomes. The packet is
comprehensive and would supply those who want to incorporate the Japanese
American experience into their
courses with enough information and material to be an effective tool
in bringing an important part of American
History to light.
Questions I came away with:
1. Internees were given $20,000 in redress; I am still curious how they
arrived at that sum. Given that many
people lost property and businesses, including my grandparents, this
does not even cover the loss of those
mentioned valued at that time.
2. My maternal grandparents were taken from Peru, as were many others
from Central and South America, to be
used as trade bait by the U.S to exchange for POW's. Although it was
mentioned in the material, why is the
Crystal City, TX camp never listed among Internment Camps?
3. On point brought up in the Historical Overview asked why the Japanese
Americans and Nationals were singled
out even though they constituted only 4% of those who had cultural
ties to enemies of the U.S during WW II.
Much of it was attributed to the media and its portrayal of the Japanese
as untrustworthy and being spies. I can't
help but wonder how much of this was generated through the government;
since the media is controlled by big
business, it would seem only logical that the government and big business
might have been working together.
4. There were a number of comparisons between the Japanese Americans
during WWII and those of Middle
Eastern decent during the Persian Gulf War. What, if anything, has
been learned between those two events?
5. Why isn't American History more carefully defined in schools? I believe
a good start would be to help students
understand that being American does not equate to being White, therefore
American history is much more diverse
than what is being presented in the textbooks.
Submitted by Darrell Hosaka