Japanese Internment Case Study

The primary reason as to why the United States Government decided to issue Executive Order 9066 was because of the racial demeanor towards those of Japanese descent. Several factors contribute to the decision to intern Japanese-Americans living on the west coast, however the racism behind the decision definitely stands out among all the other justifications.

Racial demeanor towards the Japanese has existed long before the Japanese Empire attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. Even back in 1905 some Americans despised the idea of growing immigration from Japan. These white workers claimed that the typical Japanese man was “bumptious, disagreeable, and unreliable”, and that the country would be blessed to receive less “oriental labor” (Japanese

Only residents living in California, Oregon, and Washington were subject to internment, while most Japanese were left alone in Hawaii. Japanese were interned on the west coast because they lived near the ocean, so why not in Hawaii, a region much closer to Japan, and surrounded by ocean? The only plausible reason could be that in Hawaii, the Japanese made up about 40% of the population. In other words, they were nearly the majority. Whereas on the west coast, there were only about 120,000 out of the millions of the total population (Relocation and Incarceration). They were more influential in Hawaii due to the fact that they made-up a large portion of the region’s workforce. Relocating that many people would hurt the economy, and slow down production during war. That wasn’t the case on the west coast. The Japanese were an overwhelming minority which meant that they would be easy to replace in the workforce. Removal on the west coast was definitely racially motivated. When you don’t have much experience with a group of people it is a lot easier to group them all into one bubble. The Japanese on the west coast were subject to negative stereotypes, and their small numbers prevented them from having a voice in their communities to defend themselves. Hawaii housed a much larger Japanese population by percentage, so it was easier for them to speak out, and be recognized as vital to the community. Those on the west coast were not so familiar with the Japanese, only with stereotypes. This created tension causing a higher demand for removing them from the west