Following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, Americans living on the West Coast became suspicious of their Japanese neighbors. Many of the Japanese Americans were first generation immigrants who had come over for a better life, but others were second or even third generation Americans. Regardless of their citizenship, the U.S. government elected to intern and displace all Japanese to avoid sabotage and the presence of a fifth column as it prosecuted the war in the Pacific.
Tens of thousands of Japanese Americans found themselves in camps, away from their property and the comfort of a life now behind them. Each camp was run by the War Relocation Authority, and a civilian lawyer was attached to each with contradictory orders. First, they were to provide legal advice to any of the internees who needed it. They could provide divorces, sell assets, attempt to resolve banking issues caused by the forced relocation, and deal with any civilian law enforcement. Second, they were mandated to ensure that the camps kept operating, and were not disturbed by strikes or protests. The fact that order in the camps often violated civil rights, and the wholesale imprisonment was a clear violation of the U.S. Constitution, added to the burden of these lawyers.
Lawyer, Jailer, Ally, Foe explores the lives of three of these lawyers, who served the U.S. government but attempted to negotiate the best of a bad situation for the detainees. Navigating a racist system that implemented a structure to deal with a perceived lack of loyalty, these lawyers fought the Japanese Americans' exclusion from their own rights, and shone a light on a dark page of American history.
No comments:
Post a Comment