ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
The resources below have been compiled for use in conjunction with The Orange Story. The material has been organized by chapter and includes links to relevant curricula, other resources, and discussion questions. These resources are intended primarily for general audiences and a wide range of grade levels, unless specified otherwise.
Restrictions, Responses, & Resistance
Loss of Property and Livelihood:
- Japanese American Internment During World War II - This is a primary source set and accompanying teaching guide that covers visual propaganda, how Japanese American businesses were affected by the coming incarceration, and some letters that reveal how Japanese Americans and others felt about the incarceration at that time.
- 1941 Camera and Radio Confiscation - This short article/photo series, published by the Los Angeles Times, provides primary sources that teachers can use to discuss restrictions on property during this time. It includes a transcript of a 1941 article about Japanese Americans turning in contraband items, and archival photos that illustrate the process.
- "How Bellevue businessmen who stoked fears benefited after Japanese American incarceration" - In this Seattle Globalist article, interviewee Alice Ito discusses the lasting economic impacts of incarceration, including how non-Japanese businessmen took advantage of her family, and how their descendants still benefit today.
Responses to Removal:
- Interrupted Lives: Japanese American Students at the University of Washington, 1941-1942 - This online exhibit crafted by the University of Washington Libraries, examines in detail how Japanese American students' lives were affected by the incarceration orders.
- In Response to Executive Order 9066 (Grades 5-12) - This lesson plan and corresponding teacher's guide was created by the Elk Grove Unified School District of California. By drawing on an archive of oral histories, it encourages students to empathize with Japanese Americans as they responded to Executive Order 9066 in 1942.
- "Personal Experiences" - This exhibition from the Japanese American Relocation Digital Archive (JARDA) includes images and documents created by men, women, and youth during their incarceration, which reflect a wide range of emotions.
Resistance:
- "A More Perfect Union: Court Cases" - This resource is part of a more comprehensive website maintained by the National Museum of American History. This specific section highlights the major Supreme Court cases related to Japanese American incarceration.
- Minoru Yasui - Citizen Min - In this 1983 profile of Minoru Yasui conducted by NBC affiliate KUTV, Yasui reflects on his motivations for choosing to resist the curfews imposed on Japanese Americans.
- "Fred Korematsu Fought Against Japanese Internment in the Supreme Court...and Lost" - This early 2017 article from Smithsonian.com focuses on Fred Korematsu and the case he brought to the Supreme Court. It reinforces the point that the legal precedent established in Korematsu v. United States has not been overturned and could be used again today.
Chapter 2 Discussion Question 1
Have you ever had to leave your home? How did you process this change?
Chapter 2 Discussion Question 2
Many Japanese Americans were forced to sell their possessions at very cheap prices in order to prepare for the incarceration. If you were in a similar situation, what would you try to sell and how would you go about doing this quickly?
Chapter 2 Discussion Question 3
What were some of the belongings that the United States government labeled as contraband for Japanese Americans? Why do you think those specific items were restricted? How would you feel if you were required to turn in certain possessions to your local jail or police station?
Chapter 2 Discussion Question 4
Prior to incarceration, many Japanese Americans were subject to curfew regulations meant to prevent them from going out at night. If a similar curfew was placed on your community, how would that affect your life and your community?
Chapter 2 Discussion Question 5
How did some Japanese Americans try to resist the curfew regulations? Identify one or two Japanese Americans who tried to resist in this way. Why do you think they chose to resist?