English & Literature

On pages 69-80 of “They Called Us Enemy” by George Takei describe what we are learning about characters in the story(George Takei and/or his family)

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In this section, we learn that the detainees band together immediately and establish a tight-knit community, led in part by George's father. These connections show how marginalized groups can find strength through community. They build the boardwalk together, and help each other move furniture and luggage. While the adults work, the children are depicted, once again, playing games with one another. In these pages chronicling the first few days at Camp Rohwer, George recalls two other detainees in particular, Mrs. Takahashi and Mrs. Yasuda, both of whose husbands had been arrested prior to their journey to the camp. Mrs. Takahashi's husband was a Buddhist minister, and Mrs. Yasuda's a Japanese language teacher. They were arrested solely because they “occupied highly visible positions within the Japanese American community” (74). One can only imagine what it must have been like for these women, left to look after their children alone, with no idea where their husbands were or what was being done to them. One panel depicts Mr. Takahashi being taken away by soldiers as he looks over his shoulder at his wife, a terrified expression on his face. “We were all so diverse, all so different,” George recalls, “and yet, we were the same” (76). They are people of all ages and socio-economic statuses and personal backgrounds, but their differences no longer matter as much as what they share in common—their need to make the best of this terrible situation.

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