Did The United State Commit War Crimes Against Japan During WW II?

Part A- Plan:

This investigation will evaluate the question, to what extent did the United States of America commit war crimes against Japanese civilians and POWs during their Pacific campaign in World War II? This question is important because it raises present day controversy that the United States did not commit war crimes, when evidence may prove otherwise. The scope of this investigation focuses on the United States entry into World War II and the events during the war, specifically the war with Japan in the Pacific during 7 December 1941 – 2 September 1945. One method used during this investigation will be the analysis of the non-fiction book Anguish of Surrender by Ulrich Straus. The source will be used to see evidence about the life of Japanese POWs in American camps, and raise information of any war crimes committed against any Japanese POWs. Another method employed during the investigation is watching the documentary The Fog of War, which gives first hand perspectives on the USA’s Pacific campaign from the perspective of the secretary of defense Robert S. McNamara, and an overview of war crimes committed by the USA.

Word Count: 185

Part B- Summary of Evidence

Historical Context:

-The Pacific War began on December 7, 1941 with the bombings of Pearl Harbor.

-Battle of Midway between the United States and Japan began on June 4, 1942.

-First United States firebombing of Japan took place on March 10, 1945

War Crimes Against civilians:

Rape:

-After the U.S. Marines landed in a village on the Motobu Peninsula the marines “mopped up” the entire village, but found no signs of Japanese forces, they then proceeded to start “hunting for women”. (Toshiyuki pg 111)

- It has been claimed that U.S. sold...

... middle of paper ...

...Prisoner Taking and Prisoner Killing in the Age of Total War: Towards a Political Economy of Military Defeat 11.2 (2004): n. pag. Web. 27 Apr. 2014..

Schrijvers, Peter. The GI War against Japan: American Soldiers in Asia and the Pacific during World War II. New York: New York UP, 2002. Print.

Straus, Ulrich. The Anguish of Surrender: Japanese POW's of World War II. Seattle, WA: U of Washington, 2003. Print.

Tanaka, Toshiyuki. Japan’s Comfort Women: Sexual Slavery and Prostitution during World War II and the US Occupation. London: Routledge, 2002

Weingartner, James J. "Trophies of War: U.S. Troops and the Mutilation of Japanese War Dead, 1941-1945." Pacific Historical Review 61.1 (1992): 53-67. Print.