World War II Home Front 1941-1945
JAPANESE AMERICANS 100k First and Second generation Japanese Americans were placed in concentration camps Rooted in anti Japanese propaganda Japanese were labeled a security risk on the West Coast (Not in Hawaii) FDR issued Executive Order 9066 Forced to sell property Held for duration of war Freed after pledging loyalty to the US Supreme Court validated FDR s authority Korematsu v. US Limited number served in military (442 nd )
Gallup asked a follow-up question: "What should be done with them?" 50% - they should be sent "back to Japan," 13% - "Put them out of this country. 10% - "leave them where they are -- under control."
JAPANESE CANADIANS Beginning in early 1942, the Canadian government detained and dispossessed the vast majority of people of Japanese descent living in British Columbia. They were interned for the rest of the Second World War, during which time their homes and businesses were sold by the government in order to pay for their detention.
JAPANESE CANADIANS Federally, the Electoral Franchise Act (1885) explicitly denied Chinese Canadians the right to vote;; but, in 1898, new legislation extended the franchise to Asian voters. 1920, the Dominion Elections Act said that if a province discriminated against a group by reason of race, that group would also be excluded from the federal franchise. 1948 Japanese Canadians are given right to vote.
JAPANESE CANADIANS From the army point of view, I cannot see that Japanese Canadians constitute the slightest menace to national security, -Major-General Kenneth Stuart. BC politicians were in a rage, speaking of the Japanese in the way that the Nazis would have spoken about Jewish Germans. When they spoke I felt the physical presence of evil, -Escott Reid, Canadian diplomat.
JAPANESE CANADIANS JAN 1943 Canadian Govt liquidated all Japanese property that had been under the government s protective custody. Homes, farms, businesses and personal property were sold, and the proceeds used to pay down the social assistance received by detained Japanese Canadians.
Over 90% of Japanese Canadians (21,000 people) were uprooted during the war. The majority were Canadian citizens by birth. Even at the end of the war, Mackenzie King continued to bow to the most strident demands of the politicians and the citizens he represented. He offered Japanese Canadians two choices: 1) move to Japan 2) disperse to provinces east of the Rocky Mountains. He never expressed any regrets for the treatment of Japanese Canadians during the war or after.
JAPANESE CANADIANS 1988 Prime Minister Brian Mulroney rose in the House of Commons to apologize on behalf of the Canadian government for the wrongs it committed against Japanese Canadians during wartime. 1988 President Ronald Reagan apologizes on behalf of the United States.
JAPANESE TREATMENT IN PERU Trouble assimilating LATIN AMERICA Japanese schools (30) teachers, textbooks 1936 Immigration Act: Non-Peruvian Parents = NO CITIZENSHIP 1942 1,800* Japanese-Peruvians sent to TEXAS 97 returned to Peru Rest deported to Japan after the war Lost assets, couldn t move w/o permission
JAPANESE TREATMENT IN LATIN AMERICA The community activities of the Japanese totally disappeared. The 30 schools were closed or confiscated. The teachers were sent back to Japan. The funds and capital of the Japanese were frozen. What had been built by half a century of sweat and blood was totally wrecked. Children were sent to Japan and many died in the war. - Kamuko Gabe, 1967 interview
JAPANESE TREATMENT IN BRAZIL LATIN AMERICA Debate about what to do w/ Japanese in Brazil Detain enemy aliens Speaking German, Italian, or Japanese Illegal Imprisoned ayone who favored the Axis Japanese-Brazilians couldn t Drive, own cameras or radios 250,000 Removed from coastline (Germans too) Compare to US & Canada
Changing roles of women Working women were a social stigma during the Great Depression (took jobs from men) Federal government urged women into war production Allowed men to serve in the military More than 1/3 of labor force Many women held nontraditional jobs breaking gender stereotypes Gov. allowed gender discrimination in many industries Women made 65% of man s salary Mothers were derided for taking jobs Blamed for abandoning children Women filled a number of non-combat roles (over 300k enlist) War had a lasting impact on impression of women in society
Other Minority groups during the war Native Americans Many Native Americans attempt to leave reservations Find discrimination Led to formation of National Congress of American Indians A few joined the military, (Navajo Code Talkers) Latinos Bracero program Initially imported foreign laborers into the US Many stayed behind rather than return Encouraged future illegal immigration Zoot suit riots (Summer 1943) All minority groups volunteered/commended for military service in numbers disproportionate to pop
AFRICAN AMERICANS DURING THE WAR Major push to fight discrimination Double V Campaign victory at home & abroad NAACP membership grew Campaigned for anti-lynching laws and against poll taxes Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) founded in 1942 Were discriminated against in war industries A. Philiip Randolph threatened a march on Washington Led FDR to issue Executive Order 8802 Creates the Fair Employment Practices Commission Protests led to minimal gains Served in segregated military units Many units served with distinction
Economic recovery US becomes the world s largest manufacture of armaments 300,000 planes 2.6 million machine guns 6 million tons of bombs 91,000 cargo/war ships WWII will lead the US out of the Great Depression US government spends 250 million a day (320 billion) Keynesian economics 17 million jobs created Corporate profits up 70% Real industrial wages up 50% Closing gap between rich and poor Unprecedented prosperity for most Americans
Public sacrifice Shortages of goods created inflation Rationing of goods common Voluntary & Gov. supervised Increased wages lead to a high percentage of savings FDR s Revenue Act raised taxes for most Americans Propaganda tied sacrifice directly to the war effort Pushed voluntary conservation measures Encouraged enlistment Promoted bond sales To manage propaganda, FDR creates Office of War Information (OWI) Emphasized a good vs evil struggle Promoted total destruction of the enemy Villainized the enemy (particularly the Japanese)