Summary:
On February 19, 1942, Franklin Delano Roosevelt signed the Executive Order of 9066, moving all Japanese-Americans in the mainland of the U.S to internment camps located on uninhabitable federal lands in the nation's interior, such as deserts, swamps etc. It has been established with historians that the movement of the Japanese to the internment camps was terrible, causing great harm to the Japanese. Many historians throughout the years however have questioned FDR decision and the factors that caused him to sign the Executive order of 9066.
On December 7, 1941, Japanese naval and air forces launched a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, which was referred to as "a date which will live in infamy" from that day onwards for most Americans. The "sneak attack" both traumatized and outraged the country overnight. In the months and days that preceded, waves of anti-Japanese sentiments spread throughout the nation as many white Americans articulated their hatred and mistrust for the Japanese. Most Americans viewed the Japanese-Americans suspiciously, believing that they were passing information to the foe, the Japanese. On February 19, 1942, Franklin Delano Roosevelt signed the Executive Order of 9066, moving all Japanese-Americans in the mainland of the U.S to internment camps located on uninhabitable federal lands in the nation's interior, such as deserts, swamps etc. It has been established with historians that the movement of the Japanese to the internment camps was terrible, causing great harm to the Japanese. Many historians throughout the years however have questioned FDR decision and the factors that caused him to sign the Executive order of 9066, arguing over two major points:
What factors influenced Roosevelt decision to move the Japanese to Internment camps"
Was Roosevelt's choice justified and did Roosevelt make the correct decision to move the Japanese Americans in the U.S to Internment camps?
As said by a James C. McNaughton, a historian which will later be discussed in the historiography, "The claim of "military necessity" has remained a lightning rod for those determined to prove that no such necessity existed (McNaughton 4)," which "likewise [has] been a rallying point for those who insist that the Roosevelt Administration was fully justified, or at least had reasonable cause (McNaughton 4)." This historiography will explain the ideas of 5 authors and their books: Greg Robinson and Eric Muller, which oppose the ideas of Michelle Malkin, David Lowman, and William Rehnquist along with 4 historians and their Journal Articles or book reviews.
Greg Robinson in his book, By Order of the President, portrays how the movement of the Japanese to the Internment camp was not justified and that FDR's decision to move the Japanese-Americans constitutes as one of the worst Americans tragedies ever to occur in U.S history. Robinson pointed out two elements that influenced Roosevelt's decisions; one was Roosevelt's own negative beliefs about Japanese Americans, while the other was a failure of political and moral leadership that resulted from weaknesses in his presidential style and administrative organization (Robinson 244). In his book, Robinson never mentions that whether the movement of the Japanese was justified, but does says that the movement of Japanese to the internment camps was "so extreme and coercive as to constitute a classic example of blaming the victims of racism for the discrimination against them (Robinson 244)." Robinson clearly stands at the forefront of all ideas saying that the government was clearly wrong in their decision to move the Japanese. Robinson also believed that espionage activities didn't justify the movement, feeling that the MAGIC excerpts from the cryptanalysts don't reveal conclusive evidence of any espionage activities by Japanese Americans (pg. 63). Greg Robinson is currently an Assistant Professor of History at the University of Quebec in Montreal. By Order Of The President was the only book written by Robinson so none of his ideas are an extension of his previous books. The ideas expressed in this book are view similar to the ones inherent in most American citizens. All Greg Robinson did was extend the ideas that are present today about the internment of the Japanese by sorting through other historical documents and books about that period.
Douglas E. Ford wrote a book review for the book, By the Order of the President. The reviewer felt that the book explained very well that the internment could have been avoided if FDR held less biased views (Ford, 204). The reviewer also felt that Robinson did a very good job in his meticulous effort to explain how FDR's perceptions of the Japanese played a crucial role in enabling the internment of Japanese-Americans to take place (Ford, 204). Ford also felt that the book offered a balanced account of the role played by faulty intelligence, racial prejudices, and the political relations between FDR and his government which led to the internment of the Japanese (Ford, 207). He seemed very impressed by the book and felt it was very factual, feeling that it allowed him to have a better understanding of the subject. Ford is part of the Department of International Politics at the University of Wales. The book does do a very good job of explain what occurred during that time period and how the racism, war hysteria, and weak political leaders led to the internment of the Japanese. Everything that is said in the book is backed up with facts and citations for where to find them.
Eric Muller book, Free to Die for Their Country: The Story of the Japanese American Draft Resisters in World War II, discusses everything wrong that the government did in WW2 during Japanese Internment. Muller talks about how in 1944, the U.S government demanded even more (after all the hard times that the government had put the Japanese through when they put them in the internment camps), drafting the Japanese-Americans into the United States military. Most of these Japanese-Americans ended up complying, but Free to Die for Their Country tells a story lost in many history books of those who refused. Most of these men were ready to go and fight for their country, but they first wanted the U.S government to remove their suspicion on them (that they were spies for the Japanese) and for the U.S government to treat them as citizens and give them rights (they lacked them because of racism). Many of these men were then tried in court and then given an unjust prison sentence. Therefore in this book, Eric L. Muller helps to re-creates the emotions and events of the time period and helps paint a picture that the Japanese-Americans weren't involved in espionage networks (all they wanted was trust from the U.S government) and that they weren't deceiving us. In this book, he doesn't directly talk about the factors that led to the internment but talks about how atrocities the U.S government was doing. Muller along with Robinson are the two current day leading historians on the subject of Japanese Internment. Muller and Robinson disagree in virtually nothing (except that Robinson directly blames FDR while Muller indirectly blames FDR) in their analysis of the subject of Japanese internment, and they both believing that the government moved the Japanese because of racism. Later on in this historiography, the view points that directly oppose these two will be explained.
Robert Shaffer, a historian, produced an article called the "Opposition to Internment: Defending Japanese American Rights During World War II," and the ideas presented in the historical journal parallel the ideas presented by Lowman and Muller. The article talks about a reverend in 1943 who thought the movement of Japanese to internment camps was wrong and that racism was the sole purpose which had caused this atrocity to occur, feeling that in the future historians will record that the evacuation of the Japanese --this violation of citizenship rights--as "one of the blackest blots on American history; as the time that democracy came the nearest of being wrecked (Shaffer 597)." His ideas that he believed at the time as the cause of the movement of the Japanese still stand today. His first hand accounts of what occurred and the fact that he was a revered probably contributed to the perception which he had during that time period. At the time, the revered probably couldn't do anything about it because about a 20:1 ratio existed between the people who wanted Japanese internment vs. people that didn't want Japanese Internment. The historian continues on in the article and explains that racism was the major factor in the internment of the Japanese.
The majority of Americans would take the side of the last two authors along with the other historian and his article. But a few historians, who will be discussed now, felt the bill to move the Japanese wasn't signed because of racism and wartime hysteria, but because of one major factor. In 1983, the Congressional Commission on Wartime Relocation and Internment of Civilians arrived at a conclusion that there existed no evidence that any Japanese-American posed as a threat to our nation's security. Afterwards in 1988, the Civil Liberties Act was passed and $20,000 was awarded to victims of the internment during WW2. One man stood alone with his argument named David Lowman. Lowman in the years before the act and after the act had attempted to justify the president's actions in an attempt to show that really the threat of the Japanese network had caused their removal to internment camps. In 2000, David Lowman published his book called MAGIC: the Untold Story of U.S. Intelligence and the Evacuation of Japanese Residents from the West Coast during WWII, a year before September 11. David Lowman was a Special Assistant and part of the National Security Agency during WW2. In the book he describes what occurred during the war which led to the government's decision to move all Japanese-Americans to internment camps. He starts by outlines the events from a year before the Japanese attack (early 1940s) on Pearl Harbor when a select group of cryptanalysts working in the Army's Signal Intelligence Service broke Japan's highest-level diplomatic code. The messages recovered by the cryptanalysts, which was called MAGIC, revealed the existence of widespread Japanese espionage networks along the West Coast of the United States. Using the MAGIC messages recovered by the group, David Lowman helps recreate of the wartime situation which led President Roosevelt to order the unfortunate evacuation of all residents of Japanese ancestry from America's West Coast. Lowman claims these messages prove that military necessity indeed existed and that it provided sufficient justification for the mass evacuation of all persons of Japanese descent from the West Coast. MAGIC and other intelligence, he asserts, revealed "the specter of subversive nets up and down the West Coast, controlled by the Japanese government, utilizing large numbers of local Japanese residents, and designed to operate in a wartime environment (Lowman 1)." Lowman wrote this book in order to return prestige to our nation's leaders, referred to them as ." . . some of the finest men to have ever served our nation," who, he asserted, "were all branded by the Commission [on Wartime Relocation and Internment of Civilians] and now by the U.S. Congress and the country they served as racists and political opportunists" (Lowman 81) and to make the nation not accuse FDR of being a racist. Lowman clearly felt that the movement of the Japanese was a legitimate wartime measure (Lowman 17). Lowman never wrote any other books and his first-hand experience as a being part of the cryptanalysts allowed him to feel that the movement of the Japanese was justified. He actually experience all the events and all the war time fear of the Japanese, feeling that the passing of information of what the American army was doing had to be stopped. His views are directly opposite to that of Robinson and Muller in that he believes that the Japanese movement to internment camps was fully justified by the MAGIC messages. He does agree in the atrocities of the Japanese internment but he doesn't believe that the Japanese were moved because of racism.
Recently McNaughton wrote a book review on Lowman's book called "Japanese Americans and the U.S. Army: A Historical Reconsideration," which was published in the Army History journal. In the journal McNaughton notes that the main flaw in the book was that it was ineffective in swaying and persuading other historians to adopt the view that he has. The reviewer felt that Lowman presentation of facts still doesn't justify the movement of the Japanese. For example, the main opponent of Lowman's work, Greg Robinson, relegates the impact of MAGIC on the evacuation decision to a footnote and there concludes that "the MAGIC excerpts do not reveal conclusive evidence of any espionage activities by Japanese Americans." (p. 277, note 43) McNaughton felt that the evidence portrayed the fact that any threat from Japanese Americans was mixed and indirect. The hints contained in MAGIC, if decision makers paid them any heed at all, were not by themselves sufficient to justify the mass evacuation and incarceration of over 100,000 civilians." Therefore James C. McNaughton refuted the ideas presented in David Lowman's book. McNaughton does a very good job in finding the major flaw many readers will find when they read the book. It presents the information and says that this is the reason why the event occurs, but he lacks the persuasion needed to mold the readers ideas to his.
After 9-11 the idea of the internment of certain Arabs was discussed by groups of historians, feeling that the Arabs themselves could be transmitting information to terrorists in Afghanistan (it obviously never happened because it is not practical and obviously wasn't very moral). A contradiction to that statement said by the Congressional Commission of Wartime Relocation and Internment of Civilians was in the 2003 when Congressman Coble insisted that "some [Japanese-Americans] probably were intent on doing harm to us, just as some of these Arab-Americans are probably intent on doing harm to us (Coble himself)." Coble believed that FDR was taking national security into account in his decision. The point that "some [Japanese-Americans] probably were intent on doing harm to us" was later attempted to be proven the following year by Michelle Malkin, a columnist and specialist on immigration issues, with her book In Defense of Internment: The Case for Racial Profiling in World War II and the War on Terror.
In her book she reviews many different events which led to Roosevelt signing the Executive order. She reviews and then contends with historical evidence (which was mainly from David Lowman's book) a set of three major facts. Her first major point which she pointed out was that within hours of the attack on Pearl Harbor, two American citizens of Japanese ancestry collaborated with a Japanese soldier, providing them information about the American army (therefore there were citizens willing to help the Japanese). Her second major point that she made was that the Japanese government established had already established an extensive espionage network within the United States by the time that the discussion came to intern the Japanese, and the fact that there existed hundreds of agents in the espionage network (Malkin 31, 132). Her last major point that she made was that she believed that the camps were administered to the most humane conditions. Malkin felt that in spite of the fact that there was barbed wire, armed guards, floodlights and watchtowers of the camps, conditions really were not so bad after all (Malkin 100) and that the barbed wire in the camp was clearly "more symbolic than practical(Malkin 108)." The ideas expressed in this book showed that the detainees were free to move elsewhere (initially) to anywhere else among the forty-four states in the United States that were not in the prescribed military areas, free to leave provided they had a school or job to go to (outside the exclusion zones) and were not considered subversive, and free to enter (Some 219 persons actually volunteered to move into the camps for their own comfort and safety) (Malkin 97-99).
The conclusion that she make towards the end of the book is our country should not have "unwarranted guilt" over the internment (Malkin 115.). She felt that Reagan had made a mistake in signing the bill (Malkin 119) and that the apology for internment by Ronald Reagan in 1988, in addition to the nearly $1.65 billion in reparations paid to former internees was premised on faulty scholarship. In particular, she noted, it largely ignored the top-secret decoding of Japanese diplomatic traffic, codenamed the MAGIC messages, which revealed Tokyo's plans to exploit Japanese-Americans.
Michelle claims that she made this book in order to create a debate over the topic of Japanese Internment with the help of the ideas of Lowman. Malkin's other major book which she wrote was Invasion: How America Still Welcomes Terrorists Criminals & Other Foreign Menaces to Our Shores, which provided a story about the failure of immigration control, but she never wrote another book related to Japanese Internment. The words and ideas presented by Lowman probably swayed Malkin's ideas and caused her to write an influential book about her findings on the subject. Malkin is a Pilipino immigrant and it seems logical that she would denounce anything the U.S did after all her family has gone through in the Philipines as a result of the Americans, but ironically she takes the side of the U.S government and says that they were right in their decision. The ideas presented in Malkin's book are modeled off of Lowman's book, except that Malkin has a much better publisher and which has caused her book to reach more people and has helped her goal of spreading the ideas of Lowman. Malkin is a very known newspaper writer and her column appears twice a week in nearly 100 clients.
Greg Robinson wrote a review in Fact & Fiction against Malkin's ideas in her book in hopes of accrediting his ideas and denouncing Malkin's. The views in Malkin's book has helped Robinson organized the Historians' Committee for Fairness, an organization of scholars and professional researchers. This group feels that Malkin's book represents "a blatant violation of professional standards of objectivity and fairness." Robinson had three major problems that exist in the book:
- that the MAGIC cables do not present the image of a Japanese American spy network
- that the people who pushed the case for evacuation would not have had access to the MAGIC excerpts in any case; thirdly, that those who did have access to MAGIC did not base their decision on it."
- Malkin does not, as she must, show any direct evidence of influence here--it cannot simply be assumed, with the burden of proof on the other side."
He therefore says that "In sum, Malkin's book is not a work of history but a polemical argument with evidence tortured or ignored to fit a predetermined and ideologically-driven thesis."
Why would he write this? Probably to denounce that claims of the opposing augments made by another historian. He wrote this book review in order to protect the ideas written in his book, which was explained earlier and to help preserve that idea that the Japanese-Americans were unfairly put into internment camps. Overall, I would have to agree that Michelle's arguments don't justify the movement of the Japanese and that these major flaws, if noticed by the reader, would allow the authors voice to be less on a force on the molding of their views.
The last book that will be talked about will be All the Laws but one: Civil Liberties during Wartime. This book talks about how throughout the years, many presidents during war, have waved rights of many citizens. The author, William Rehnquist, talked about how the U.S government suspended the rights of the Japanese during WW2 and moved them to the camps. He explains that in a report created by a commission that there existed an espionage network on the east coast (Rehnquist 189). He then goes on to justify that it was the president's right to suspend the rights of certain citizens, as he had done in previous wars ( Abe Lincoln suspended Habeas Corpus and Wilson created Espionage Act of 1917 and the Sedition Act of 1918), in order to attempt to win the war. The book was written by chief justice William H. Rehnquist, the current chief justice the United States. Rehnquist has a deep understanding of law and political science and went to both Harvard and Stanford to get his bachelors and masters degree. After study law, Rehnquist study what presidents did throughout many wars of the United states and then created his book filled with analysis on the subject. The fact that he had studies in political science allowed him to be able to write such a book. The book is very good in supporting fact and shows that Roosevelt that to do what he needed to win the war. His book is different from all the other books in that he used political science (the fact that the president was going to do whatever possible to win the war) to just his point. He is similar to Lowman and Malkin in that fact that he acknowledges the spy network, in which then it was the presidents job to suspend rights. His ideas are very different to that of Robinson and Muller, which believe that the Japanese were moved for racial reasons.
The discussion over Japanese Internment has been started just 5 years ago, and in this time period a handful of books, which were discussed above, have been published. Who was the correct historian in this discussion? It impossible to say! There are so many distortions that these historians make in order to prove their point. One says that the espionage networks existed rampantly throughout the U.S (using the MAGIC documents) and then the other one says that it barely even exists, dismissing the augments shown in the MAGIC documents. If I had to choose, I would have to go with the arguments presented by William Rehnquist. First of all, he has the most background in issues concerning wartime liberties. His main idea of his book was that it was the president job to suspend certain liberties in order to win the war. The president is chosen by the people to lead the people in the correct direction. Suspending certain liberties has been very effective in getting gone what needs to be done. In WW1, the espionage acts allowed for people to not talk about the government, and because the people had similar ideas and they loved their country, nationalism spread and so did national unity, making the government able to lead the people in the right direction towards victory. By moving the Japanese, it first of all was popular among the Anglo-Saxon in the West Coast region and promoted an unified effort to go and beat the Japanese. This can be shown in that fact that before the bill was passed; the Japanese army was making great advances through East Asia capturing American base etc. After the removal of the Japanese from the west coast, the Americans stopped the advance of the Japanese and then slowly captured back all their bases until the war was won in 1945. Therefore his argument was best. He answered the question of
What factors influenced Roosevelt decision to move the Japanese to Internment camps"
by stating that there existed espionage networks in the U.S and the question of
Was Roosevelt's choice justified and did Roosevelt make the correct decision to move the Japanese Americans in the U.S to Internment camps?
by justified it by the fact that the president is like the leader of our nation, therefore he should make choices for the better of all. If the espionage had not been stopped and we had lost the war, we might now be controlled by a showgunate and all be speaking Japanese.
Therefore it's the president's job to do what is right in order to win the war, which is similar to what FDR said just before he move the Japanese,
"The president has the power, under the Constitution and under Congressional acts, to take measures necessary to avert disaster which would interfere with the winning of the war (Robinson 245)."
Bibliography
Ford, Douglas. "By Order of the President: FDR and the Internment of Japanese-Americans
(book)." Intelligence & National Security 18 (2003): 204-207.
This journal entrée focuses on the good things that that Robinson did in his book. This helps the reader who what is good and bad in the book.
Lowman, David. MAGIC: The Untold Story of U.S. Intelligence and the Evacuation of Japanese Residents from the West Coast during WWII. U.S.: Athena Press, Inc., 2001.
This book is necessary because it show the side of the argument which said that the movement of the Japanese was justified through the MAGIC documents. This book is needed to show contrast to other authors which believe that the movement of the Japanese wasn't justified and that racism played a major role in the movement.
Malkin, Michelle. In Defense of Internment US.: Regnery Publishing, Inc., 2004
This book is an extension of Lowman's book which attempts to further prove his point. Both Malkin and Lowman agree in their ideas and they opposed the ideas of the author such believe that racism was the major factor in the Japanese movement to he internment camp.
McNaughton, James C. "Japanese Americans and the U.S. Army: A Historical
Reconsideration." Army History (2003): 4-15.
This journal article is needed in order to show all the flaws apparent in Lowman's work .This helps disiguish between what is the good and bad information presented in Lowman's book
Muller, Eric. Free to Die for Their Country: The Story of the Japanese American Draft Resisters in World War II US.: University of Chicago Press., 2001
This is a book written by one of the most well known historians in the field of Japanese Internment. In the book, he explains that atrocities that the American government put on the Japanese people and ties it back to the factor which caused it to occur
Rehnquist, William H. All the Laws but One: Civil liberties in Wartime. US.: Alfred A. Knoph, Inc., 1998
This book is important in that it present the fact of espionage activities but says that it was the president's job to suspend the rights of certain Americans. He arguments are more related to that of Lowman and Malkin than to that of Robinson and Muller
Robinson, Greg. By Order of The President: FDR and the Internment of Japanese Americans. US. Harvard University Press., 2001
Another well known historian in the field of Japanese Internment, Greg Robinson explains that racism was the major factor which led to the internment of the Japanese. His views parallel that of Robinsons
Robinson, Greg. "Why the Media Should Stop Paying Attention to the New Book that
Defends Japanese Internment." Fact & Fiction (2004).
This is a book review of Malkin book which was written in order to point out all the bad arguments in his opponents book. This is essential in order for the reader to find what is the essential and nonessential facts in Malkins writing
Shaffer, Robert. "Opposition to Internment: Defending Japanese American Rights
During World War II." Blackwell publishing 61 (99) 597-620.
This is a stand-alone journal article about why Japanese internment occurred, His ideas parallel the ideas of Robinson and Muller
This is the complete article, containing 4,453 words
(approx. 15 pages at 300 words per page).
