A large cover photo fills the screen: it is a close-up image of Sam reaching to adjust the radio on top of the wardrobe closet. The whole image has been artistically tinted in a green earth tone.
Instructions:
Join Sam as he reads by the storefront window. Ask him questions about his early years in the U.S. and his life in Chicago today. Look around the seating area and discover hidden objects that illuminate themes related to his experience.
(The cover image falls away from you in 3D, revealing an animated film reel, spinning upward like it's running through a movie projector. Suddenly the screen scrolls down to a new region of the page which has just appeared.)
A black and white scene fills the screen, of Sam sitting comfortably and reading the newspaper. The scene is animated: you can see Sam ruffling the newspaper ever so slightly and moving his gaze across the page. Four glowing buttons hover above specific parts of the scene. If you want to avoid tabbing repeatedly to each button, use the first button to activate keyboard shortcuts. You can explore the details in any order you wish.
Hotspot, hovering over Sam, hovering over the Framed Photograph, hovering over a stack of newspapers, hovering over two vases#1#2#3#4
You start a conversation with Sam...
“Hi, I’m Isamu, or Sam. In 1907, I moved from Japan to California to start a strawberry farm. Now, I spend most of my time hanging out at my daughter Kimiye’s dry cleaning shop in Chicago.”
(Press Escape to close the conversation.)
What would you like to ask Sam about?
Expanded Hotspot
(Press Escape to close.)
This photo represents a young Sam and his wife Hana on their strawberry farm in California. What differences do you notice about Sam on his farm compared to how he looks sitting in his chair at the dry cleaners?
On the table next to Sam is a stack of the Chicago Shimpo, a local Japanese American newspaper that helps him stay informed about his community. How do you stay connected with communities that are important to you?
Sam carved these wooden vases while incarcerated at Poston,a concentration camp in Arizona. What do these vases make you wonder about Sam’s experience in camp?
For users of JAWS, you may need to temporarily turn off your "Virtual PC Cursor" to use these keyboard shortcut commands.
If you want to ask Sam a question, press Q (for Question). To examine the framed photo of a farm, press F (for Farm). To examine the newspapers, press N (for Newspaper). To explore the wooden vases, press V (for Vases).
(NOTE: to turn off these shortcuts, please reload the page in your browser.)
Bottom of your screen
A toolbar hovers over the bottom of the screen, but if you are done exploring the scene, the webpage continues below.
A modal dialog covers the entire screen. There are four tabs to explore,
and you are on Tab 1 which introduces the topic. Tab 2 is labelled "Look" with a symbol for photos. Tab 3 is labelled "Listen". Tab 4 is labelled "Analyze".
But you don't have to explore them in order. To jump around easily, you can press #2, #3, or #4 on your keyboard, to switch to that tab. Press #1 to come back to this first tab.
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;Button to define the term;Here is the definition ofAlien Land LawIsseianti-Japanese exclusion movementpropagandaNiseififth columnExecutive Order 9066
Farming was one of the most popular occupations for the thousands of Japanese people who immigrated to California in the early 1900s. However, many white farmers felt threatened by the economic competition from Japanese farmers. In 1913, legislators in California passed the Alien Land Law,
Definition:
“Alien land laws are most often associated with western states' attempts to limit the presence and permanence of Japanese immigrants . . . by forbidding ‘aliens ineligible for citizenship’ from purchasing, and later from leasing property.” Read more on Densho.org (opens in a new Tab). Or press Escape to close.
which prevented non-U.S. citizens from buying or leasing agricultural land in the state. This law targeted all Asian immigrants, including Issei,
The fourth tab (titled "Analyze") is now softly glowing.
forming a farming community
These photos provide a window into Japanese American community life along California’s Central Coast and Bay Area. Between the 1880s and 1910s, thousands of people immigrated to the United States from Japan to seek better economic opportunities. During this time, many Japanese people settled in California and worked in agriculture, which led to the growth of large Japanese American farming communities throughout California.
CITATIONS: Find the source for each of these photos on the Citations page.
The Izumizaki family sits in a strawberry field with apple trees in Watsonville near the Central Coast of California, circa 1913. They were one of thousands of families working in agriculture in California before World War II.
The Izumizaki family dresses up in formal attire for a trip into town on their wagon, circa 1913. On other days the Izumizakis would take a ride down to the beach to search for clams.
A view looking over the fields of Watsonville, CA. Like many cities in California, Watsonville had a booming farming industry that produced apples, strawberries, and a wide variety of other crops.
When they weren’t at work, Japanese Americans engaged in recreational sports like baseball. This photo shows the 1923 championship between the Monterey Minatoes and the Watsonville Kasei teams.
This photo shows a Japanese American family harvesting strawberries on their farm in San Jose in April 1942 a few days before the family was forcibly removed from their home and moved to concentration camps.
In May of 1942, a Japanese American soldier was furloughed so he could help his widowed mother prepare for forced removal from her strawberry farm. He and his siblings had leased the farm for her a year prior so that she “wouldn’t have to work for somebody else” anymore.
"you couldn't own land or rent land"
Listen to the audio clip and view the historical photo on the right.
Audio clip:
In this oral history excerpt, Paul Murata, a Nisei,
“Alien land laws are most often associated with western states' attempts to limit the presence and permanence of Japanese immigrants . . . by forbidding ‘aliens ineligible for citizenship’ from purchasing, and later from leasing property.” Read more on Densho.org (opens in a new Tab). Or press Escape to close.
affected his father, a Japanese American strawberry farmer in Orange County, California. The Alien Land Law stipulated that only citizens of the United States were allowed to own land. This meant that Asian immigrants who the U.S. barred from naturalizing as citizens would also be unable to own land or lease it long term. As a result, many Issei,
Interviewer: When did your father get involved in the strawberry industry? Paul Murata (PM): My father started farming strawberries in 1925 and he grew strawberries until the outbreak of the war, 1941 and we had strawberries up until May 17th of 1942 when we evacuated to Poston, Arizona. Interviewer: What was it like for Japanese Americans or Japanese to be working as farmers or to be working prior to the war? Did you own land?
PM: No, there was this Alien Land Law, so you couldn’t own land or rent land, so you farmed under somebody else's name or if you bought land you had to either buy it under somebody else’s name or you put in the trust in your children’s name, you know, people who were in minority age, under 21 I guess.
Interviewer: Could you repeat that again and say that for Japanese Americans or for Asians, that there was this Alien Land Law?
PM: Yes, there was an Alien Land Law whereby the persons who were ineligible for citizenship could not rent or own land in California until I think 1950 which was after the war, terminated. Interviewer: You were talking earlier about, well in Central CA they formed a growers association. What did they do here in Southern California?
PM: Southern California my father was president of the Orange County Strawberry Association, I guess they called it Stanton Strawberry Association. And then a few years before the outbreak of the war, he and the other Japanese Isseis, they formed this big association they called the Southern California Farm Federation. They even had a newspaper “San Gionipo.” But everything was destroyed when the war started.
Interviewer: Why did they form this association?
PM: They formed it because it was for the good of the farmers. It’s a cooperative, so anything that you made was supposed to come back to you. It’s really a marketing cooperative.
Interviewer: You were talking about the outbreak of the war. How did that change your family’s situation? What happened to your family?
PM: Well we evacuated into Poston and it was just two suitcases each, so I mean, economically we were destroyed.
Interviewer: Can you describe that? Did you lose land? How were you economically destroyed?
PM: We were farming land and leasing land, but we just had to leave so we couldn’t farm anymore.
Titled “Waiting for the Signal From Home,” this cartoon by Dr. Seuss from February 13, 1942 shows stereotyped caricatures of Japanese people marching along the West Coast to retrieve blocks of dynamite from a building titled “Honorable 5th Column.” A fifth column
Definition:
“A fifth column is a group of people residing in a given country who work to actively support a wartime enemy of that country from within by engaging in espionage or sabotage or who engage in such activities in anticipation of war.” Read more on Densho.org (opens in a new Tab). Or press Escape to close.
is a group who attempts to undermine a larger group from within, usually in favor of an enemy group or nation. The racist cartoon was published days before President Roosevelt’s administration issued Executive Order 9066,
which set in motion the forced removal and incarceration of all people of Japanese ancestry living on the West Coast. Not one person of Japanese ancestry in the United States was ever charged or convicted of espionage or sabotage.
CITATION: Courtesy of the UC San Diego Library’s Special Collections & Archives (1942)
A modal dialog covers the entire screen. There are four tabs to explore,
and you are on Tab 1 which introduces the topic. Tab 2 is labelled "Look" with a symbol for photos. Tab 3 is labelled "Reed". Tab 4 is labelled "Watch", with a symbol of a video player.
But you don't have to explore them in order. To jump around easily, you can press #2, #3, or #4 on your keyboard, to switch to that tab. Press #1 to come back to this first tab.
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;Button to define the term;Here is the definition ofWar Relocation AuthorityChicago ShimpoChicago Resettlers CommitteeGinza HolidayBon Odori (Obon)IsseiYonseiNiseiactivism
efforts to assimilate Japanese Americans into white, middle-class society in Chicago, resettled Japanese Americans continued to keep Japanese culture, language, and community alive. The Chicago Shimpo
was a popular Japanese-language newspaper for the local community to advertise their businesses, share resources, and stay informed on daily news in Chicago and Japan. Another essential resource for newly settled Japanese Americans was the Chicago Resettlers Committee
Definition:
Established in 1945 and later renamed the Japanese American Service Committee (JASC), this organization focused on helping resettled Japanese Americans find housing and work. The JASC continues to provide social services and cultural activities today. Read more on Densho.org (opens in a new Tab). Or press Escape to close.
(now known as the Japanese American Service Committee). The Chicago Resettlers Committee initially served as a social service agency for resettling Japanese Americans and now hosts Japanese cultural activities and programming for elders. The community continues to celebrate Japanese food, dance, and Buddhist traditions. What events or traditions are important to your family, and how do you keep them alive?
On the table next to Sam is a stack of issues of the Chicago Shimpo, a local Japanese American newspaper.
The fourth tab (titled "Watch") is now softly glowing.
celebrating japanese culture and community
These photos show an array of cultural and community events hosted by Chicago Japanese Americans over the years, from an annual “Resettlers Picnic” hosted by the Chicago Resettlers Committee,
Definition:
Established in 1945 and later renamed the Japanese American Service Committee (JASC), this organization focused on helping resettled Japanese Americans find housing and work. The JASC continues to provide social services and cultural activities today. Read more on Densho.org (opens in a new Tab). Or press Escape to close.
two summer festivals hosted by the Midwest Buddhist Temple.
Japanese Americans play a game of tug of war at the 1952 Chicago Resettlers community picnic, an annual summer gathering of food and games that continues to this day. Courtesy of the JASC Legacy Center (1952)
The Chicago Resettlers Committee hosted many social gatherings at its headquarters, like this tournament for “Go,” a traditional Japanese board game. Chicago Guidebook - Courtesy of the JASC Legacy Center (1949)
Since 1955, the Midwest Buddhist Temple in Chicago has hosted an annual Ginza Holiday Festival, inspired by the Ginza shopping district in Tokyo. Attendees enter the event through a pair of Japanese “torii” gates. Courtesy of the Midwest Buddhist Temple (c.1960s)
In 1961, the Ginza Holiday Festival featured an array of performances, including this demonstration of Japanese calligraphy and drawing. Photo by Raeburn Flerlage, courtesy of the Chicago History Museum (1961)
To help aging Issei adjust to life in Chicago, the Japanese American Service Committee (formerly the Chicago Resettlers Committee) opened the Issei Work Center. At the Center, elders could earn money helping produce items like fishing reels.Courtesy of the JASC Legacy Center (circa 1970)
To provide social outlets for elderly Issei in Chicago, the Japanese American Service Committee (formerly the Chicago Resettlers Committee) hosted gatherings like this 1976 picnic. Courtesy of the JASC Legacy Center (1976)
For decades the annual Obon festival, hosted by the Midwest Buddhist Temple, has provided a way for Chicago Japanese Americans of all ages to dance together and honor their ancestors.Courtesy of the Chicago Shimpo (date unknown)
At Obon festivals, most participants wear yukatas, Japanese cotton robes worn during summertime.Courtesy of the JASC Legacy Center (1948)
Reflecting Obon festivals practiced in Japan, Chicago’s Obon festival involves men, women, and children dancing in a circle to Japanese folk songs. The dance is performed to welcome the spirits of one’s ancestors.Courtesy of the Chicago Shimpo (date unknown)
Today, members of Ho Etsu Taiko are helping to keep Japanese drumming culture alive in Chicago through original compositions, community workshops, and performances.Photo by Andrew Tse, courtesy of Ho Etsu Taiko (2018)
supporting community elders
This article from a 1949 issue of Scene magazine discusses the ways that the Chicago Resettlers Committee,
Definition:
Established in 1945 and later renamed the Japanese American Service Committee (JASC), this organization focused on helping resettled Japanese Americans find housing and work. The JASC continues to provide social services and cultural activities today. Read more on Densho.org (opens in a new Tab). Or press Escape to close.
along with churches and other social organizations, developed classes and recreational programs to help Issei
Among the Issei – especially the unattached bachelors – living in the Clark and Division area, life is generally boresome and depressing.
To rectify this situation, the Resettlers Committee and the church and social organizations provide, as in the case of the Nisei, programs of recreation.
And, taking in the married Issei men and women also, classes in English are provided, so that they may form a closer contact with their children and America in general and thus develop well-rounded, happy routines.
(LEFT) A LONELY ISSEI bachelor stands in front of a bright ‘nihon-machi’ sign and, filled with depressive boredom, starts thinking of prewar days.
(BOTTOM L.) FACILITIES FOR for playing ‘go,’ a Japanese game, have been made available to the single and married Issei men.
(BELOW) ENGLISH CLASSES for Issei parents serve to bring them in closer contact with their children, open up mutual horizons.
that she valued. She talks about how her perspective on activism changed when she remembered all the ways her elders passed along Japanese culture to her despite the government’s efforts to prevent them from holding on to their heritage.
A modal dialog covers the entire screen. There are four tabs to explore,
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;Button to define the term;Here is the definition ofExecutive Order 9066War Relocation Authorityconcentration campassembly centerscivilian exclusion ordersPostonColorado River Indian ReservationBureau of Indian Affairs
On February 19, 1942, President Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066,
which set in motion the forced removal and incarceration of more than 120,000 people of Japanese ancestry living on the West Coast. Soon after, Roosevelt’s administration created the War Relocation Authority (WRA)
located in remote areas across the country. During the construction of the camps, the military forced Japanese Americans to wait in temporary detention facilities called assembly centers.
In the newly built concentration camps, the WRA confined Japanese Americans with barbed wire fences and armed military guards. What would you do if your country unjustly targeted you as the enemy?
Sam carved these wooden vases while incarcerated at Poston, a concentration camp in Arizona.
The fourth tab (titled "Look") is now softly glowing.
an order for removal
These civilian exclusion orders
Definition:
“A series of orders issued by Gen. John L. DeWitt as head of the Western Defense Command (WDC) directing the exclusion of ‘all persons of Japanese ancestry, including aliens and non-aliens’ from designated areas on the West Coast.” Read more on Densho.org (opens in a new Tab). Or press Escape to close.
contain the mandates for the forced removal of all people of Japanese ancestry living in “exclusion areas” along the West Coast. These orders came after Executive Order 9066,
which gave the U.S. military the power to exclude “any or all persons” from designated military areas. While Executive Order 9066 did not mention Japanese Americans by name, it enabled the civilian exclusion orders that specifically targeted people of Japanese ancestry.
CITATION: Courtesy of the United States Headquarters Western Defense Command and Fourth Army - Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley (1942)
"i had salt coming out of my pores"
In this video, Mas Hashimoto describes his experience arriving at Poston,
located in southwestern Arizona. The Hashimoto family lived and worked on a strawberry farm in Watsonville, California before being sent to a temporary assembly center in Salinas, California and then to a permanent camp at Poston, where they were incarcerated until the end of the war.
despite pushback from the local Native American Tribal Council, who did not want their land used as a prison for Japanese Americans. With a peak population of 18,000, Poston was one of the largest WRA camps and was initially operated in partnership with the Office of Indian Affairs (today known as the Bureau of Indian Affairs
They've sunk in posts, deep into the ground They've strung out wires, all the way around, With machine gun nest, just over there, And sentries and soldiers everywhere;
We're trapped like rats in a wired cage, To fret and fume with impotent rage; Yonder whispers the life of the night, But that DAMNED FENCE in the floodlight glare,
We seek the softness of the midnight air, But that DAMNED FENCE in the floodlight glare, Awakens unrest in our nocturnal quest, And mockingly laughs with vicious jest,
With nowhere to go and nothing to do, We feel terrible, lonesome and blue; That DAMNED FENCE is driving us crazy Destroying our youth and making us lazy.
Imprisoned in here for a long, long time, We know we're punished tho we've committed [no] crime, Our thoughts are gloomy and enthusiasm damp, To be locked up in a concentration camp.
Loyalty we know and Patriotism we feel, To sacrifice our utmost was our ideal, To fight for our country, and die mayhap; Yet we're here because we happen to be a Jap.
We all love life, and our country best, Our misfortune to be here in the West, To keep us penned behind that DAMNED FENCE Is someone's notion of NATIONAL DEFENCE!!!!!!
Poston consisted of three camps — Poston I, II, and III, which the incarcerees nicknamed Roastin’, Toastin’, and Dustin’ in reference to the arid desert climate.
This watercolor painting made by a high school student incarcerated in Poston illustrates the camp's desolate desert landscape.
After the local Native American Tribal Council resisted the building of Poston on their land, the U.S. government recruited Apache men to help unload mattresses for the barracks.
Upon arriving at Poston, government officials directed Japanese Americans to stuff cloth sacks with straw to use as mattresses.
While incarcerated at Poston, Gene Sogioka made this charcoal painting of an Arizona dust storm. Before the war, Sogioka worked as an artist for Disney. He was hired by the government to document what he saw in camp, and created hundreds of drawings and paintings.
This photo shows young Jim Morikawa hosing down the ground in an attempt to settle the dust on a windy day at Poston.
While incarcerated at Poston, Harry Yoshizumi created this watercolor painting of a boy in front of the barracks and latrines. In camp, Yoshizumi studied art under Viola Kerbe and former Disney artist Gene Sogioka. After the war, Yoshizumi attended art school in California.
Armed U.S. military guards at Poston patrolled the camp perimeter.
At Poston, kids passed the time by playing sports like baseball and card games like blackjack.
A high school student at Poston painted this watercolor image of an older woman and young girl walking past a water tower.
At Poston and several other concentration camps, Japanese Americans circulated this poem titled “This Damned Fence,” which captures the frustration of being wrongfully incarcerated and the psychological effects of living behind barbed wire.
Click through the tabs to examine how many Japanese Americans made their living through farming before they were incarcerated during WWII. For many Japanese Americans, their livelihoods were both sources of community and joy as well as places of hardship and injustice.
Click through the tabs to explore different ways Japanese Americans held on to culture and community during the resettlement period and demonstrated resilience to pressures to assimilate into white, middle class culture within the Midwest.
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What types of power do you see through these sources?
What evidence do you see for those types of powers?
Zooming In
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On the Look tab, this photo was taken by Fred Clark, who was commissioned by the U.S. government to photograph the Japanese American incarceration experience. The photo was never released.
Instead, it was labeled “impounded” and hidden away in the archives until decades after the war.
You can pin Any prompt to the bottom of your screen:
Why do you think the government censored and impounded this photo?
What do you think might have happened if the government released this photo?
