Sotomayor assails WWII Japanese-American internment

"In a move that may cheer critics of alleged "war on terrorism" excesses, historic US Supreme Court pick Sonia Sotomayor denounced the World War II-era jailing of Japanese-Americans."

Hot of the press!

AFP: Sotomayor assails WWII Japanese-American internment

 

This should probably go into the non-WWII section, but Mr. Feingold and Mrs. Sotomayor speak from a position of complete security. It is real easy to condemn an action decades after it was made in a time that is entirely alien to you.

(I find the internment repulsive, but I always keep in mind that FDR was a human.)

I could go on, but this is an inappropriate place to talk about it. I feel very passionately about this issue, so I have to cut it of here.

 

Agreed. Hindsight is a great tool to criticize things done previously in history. It´s good to know what people think about it and it´s not forgotten but still...

 

The argument for hindsight is valid if the objective is to condemn someone, judging an action out of context is questionable justice. But it's important to identify bad past choices so as to remove precedents that can be used to justify bad decisions today.

 

sotomayor is nothing but a blind activist on a Witch hunt-nothing more-nothing less with the exception that she has her own agenda. If she gets voted in to becoming a Supreme Court Justice-nothing but garbage is sure to happen. The Supreme Court will become nothing more than a Hexen Kessel.

 

Bit late.

 

Well I think Stalin should not have executed Poles.
I also think Hitler's "Final Solution" should have been to kill himself.

Neither of these statements will make the front page. The whole thing is politicaly motivated. If you make mention of something from the past, which at the same time can be applied to the present, it steers people in the direction you want them to go, which in this case is for votes. Just more Political BS

 

Sotomayor is a JOKE.. Nothing more than another Obama supreme court Tsar

 

Well said Mike, Franek, well said. Im beginning to wonder if our great Country can withstand these next 3 & 1/2 years? :-(

 

Ditto!

 

Any reasonably intelligent and informed individual should acknowledge that
the internment of Japanese Americans was morally wrong. Regrettably,
Americans tend to fall prey to hysteria and paranoia in times of great
national crisis.


Dave

 

This post is unreasonable, illogical and nonsensical.


Dave

 

Hi Dave-no--it aint. Open your eyes and ears to reality please.

Cheers and I did like your other post, but don't act like Mr. Spock when replying.

 

Dave,

I think that this is a human characteristic more than an American characteristic.

What I find far worse, which is another human characteristic, is that scoundrels will capitalize on hardship to further their own sick agendas. I'm specifically talking about the Bush administration which used the horrible tragedy of 9/11 to launch a totally unnecessary war that they had been salivating about long before that terrible day. War crimes do come to mind regarding the invasion of Iraq.

Unfortunately, the Bush administration's reaction to 9/11 was far worse than 9/11 itself.

We Americans must come to grips regarding this terrible blight on our long and proud heritage.

Bob Guercio

 

Correction: HUMAN BEINGS fall prey to hysteria and paranoia. We see it now with global warming and terrorism. Both sides of the political divide do it.

 

My GOD! What a controversial position to take.

What's next, a condemnation of slavery?

 

Well said. Can't leave a salute but reps I can.

 

It is well-documented that the evacuation was motivated, not by racism, but by information obtained by the U.S. from pre-war decoded Japanese diplomatic messages "MAGIC" and other intelligence revealed the existence of espionage and the potential for sabotage involving then-unidentified resident Japanese aliens and Japanese-Americans living within the West Coast Japanese community.

The U.S. Congress immediately passed legislation providing enforcement provisions for FDR's Executive Order, unanimously in both the House and Senate, provided under Article 1, Section 9 of the United States Constitution.

Only persons of Japanese ancestry (alien and citizen) residing in the West Coast military zones were affected by the evacuation order. Those living elsewhere were not affected at all.

It is not true that Japanese-Americans were "interned. Only Japanese nationals (enemy aliens) arrested and given individual hearings were interned. Such persons were held for deportation in Department of Justice camps.

Those evacuated were not interned. They were first given an opportunity to voluntarily move to areas outside the military zones. Those unable or unwilling to do so were sent to Relocation Centers operated by the War Relocation Authority.

At the time, the JACL (Japanese American Citizens League) officially supported the government's evacuation order and urged all enemy alien Japanese and Japanese Americans to cooperate and assist the government in their own self interest.

Is is misleading and in error to state that those affected by the evacuation orders were all "Japanese-Americans." Approximately two-thirds of the ADULTS among those evacuated were Japanese nationals--enemy aliens. The vast majority of evacuated Japanese-Americans (U.S. citizens) were children at the time. Their average age was only 15 years.

In addition, over 90% of Japanese-Americans over age 17 were also citizens of Japan (dual citizens)under Japanese law. Thousands had been educated in Japan. Some having returned to the U.S. holding reserve rank in the Japanese armed forces.

During the war, more than 33,000 evacuees voluntarily left the relocation centers to accept outside employment. An additional 4300 left to attend colleges.

In a questionaire, over 26% of Japanese-Americans of military age at the time said they would refuse to swear an unqualified oath of allegiance to the United States.

After loyalty screening, eighteen thousand Japanese nationals and Japanese-Americans were segregated at a special center for disloyals at Tule Lake California where regular military "Banzai" drills in support of Emperor Hirohito were held.

The Supreme Court of the United States upheld the Consitutionality of the evacuation/relocation in Korematsu v. U.S., 1944 term. In summing up for the 6-3 majority, Justice Black wrote:
"There was evidence of disloyalty on the part of some, the military authorities considered that the need for action was great, and time was short. We cannot -- by availing ourselves of the calm perspective of hindsight -- now say that at the time these actions were unjustified." That decision has never been reversed and stands to this day.

It should be noted that the relocation centers had many amenities. Accredited schools, their own newspapers, stores, churches, hospitals, all sorts of sports and recreational facilities.

They also had the highest percapita wartime birth rates for any U.S.community.

More history for you to consider regarding the Commission on Wartime Relocation and Internment of Civilians:

Consider that of the nine commission members, six were biased in favor of reparations. Ishmail Gromoff and William Marutani, relocatees themselves, sat in judgment of their own cases. Arthur Goldberg and Joan Bernstein made sympathetic, pro-reparation statements publicly before hearings even began.

Arthur Fleming had worked closely with the JACL (he was a keynote speaker at its Portland convention in the '70s).

Robert Drinan was a co-sponsor of the bill establishing the commission.

Consider that notices of when and where hearings were to be held were not made known to the general, non-Japanese public.

Consider that witnesses who gave testimony were not sworn to tell the truth by oath.

Consider that witnesses who were pro-reparation were carefully coached in their testimony in "mock hearings" beforehand.

Consider that witnesses against reparation were harassed and drowned out by foot-stomping Japanese claques, that the commission members themselves ridiculed and badgered these same witnesses.

Consider that not one historian was asked to testify before the commission, that intelligence reports and position papers contrary to reparations were deliberately ignored.

Consider that as a result of the above, the United States Department of Justice objected strongly to the findings of the commission.

Lastly, I would be curious to know of your knowledge of the doctrines of Japanese militarism, a belief system similar and equally as insidious as Nazism?

Any knowledge of the kokutai? Hakko Ichiu? Any reading of Kokutai no Hongi? Shimin to Michi? The role of Nichiren Buddhism and Japanese "Language Schools" in teaching these doctines of Japanese racial superiorty to ethnic Japanese colonies throughout the word prior to Pearl Harbor?

The accurate historical truth is many ethnic Japanese throughout the world fully agreed with the racial doctrines of a militarist Japan.

This included ethnic Japanese living in the United States.

 

Let's take a look at the transcript of what was actually said:

GRAHAM: I realize I'm jumping back and forth through these issues. But the last one I want to bring up has to do with the wartime Supreme Court decisions like Korematsu that we look back at with some bewilderment, of course. The Korematsu vs. the United States decision in which the Supreme Court upheld a government policy to round up and detain more than a hundred thousand Japanese Americans during World War II.

It seems inconceivable that the U.S. government would have decided to put huge numbers of citizens in detention centers based on their race and yet the Supreme Court allowed that to happen. I asked Chief Justice Roberts about this, I'll ask you as well. Do you believe that Korematsu was wrongly decided?

SOTOMAYOR: It was, sir.

GRAHAM: Does a judge have a duty to resist the kind of wartime fears that people understandably felt during World War II which likely played a role in the 1944 Korematsu decision?

SOTOMAYOR: A judge should never rule from fear. A judge should rule from law and the Constitution. It is inconceivable to me today that a decision permitting the detention and arrest of an individual solely on the basis of their race would be considered appropriate by our government.

FEINGOLD: Now, some of the great justices in the history of our country were involved in that decision. How does a judge resist those kind of fears?

SOTOMAYOR: One hopes, by having the -- the wisdom of a Harlan in Plessy, by having the wisdom to understand always, no matter what the situation, that our Constitution has held us in good stead for over 200 years and that our survival depends on upholding it.

FEINGOLD: Thank you, Judge

Someone should tell Senator Graham Korematsu involved the evacuation from the West Coast Military Zones. Detainment had nothing to do with it. Race had nothing to do with it, either - national origin did. Fear had nothing to do with it. The West Coast was a combat area and the military calls the shots in a military zone.

When a bunch of senators make such comments indicating they have no idea what they are talking about, while in the process of nominating a Supreme Court Justice - it is indeed a sad day in America.

I wonder if any of these people realize Korematsu is still good law to this day?

 

Any reasonably intelligent and informed individual should acknowledge that
the internment of Japanese Americans was morally wrong. Regrettably,
Americans tend to fall prey to hysteria and paranoia in times of great
national crisis.


Dave

How about known intel, Dave?

1.Office of Naval Intelligence memorandum for the Chief of Naval Operations, Feb 12, 1941,"Japanese Espionage Organization in the United States," which suggests that the information therein be brought to the attention of the President and stating that the Japanese government had decided to strengthen its intelligence network by, among other moves to employ "Nisei Japanese and Japanese resident nationals" using extreme caution in doing so.

2. The Tachibana case (March 1941) about which Peter Irons' wrote in his "Justice at War":
"...There was no question that Tachibana headed an espionage ring on the West Coast that enlisted a number of Japanese Americans, both aliens and citizens (sic), nor that the government knew the identities of its members..."

3. Military Intelligence Div. 336.8, Honolulu, 14 October 1941. "Japanese Ex-Service Men's Organization" which reports on two Japanese ex-military member groups active in the U.S. with 7200 members, stating in part: "...these two organizations have pledged to do sabotage (railroads and harbors)in the states mentioned (California, Washington, Oregon, and Utah) in time of emergency. Similar organizations are in Hawaii. Sixty-nine local units of these two organizations are said to be carrying on activities."

4. U.S.Army MID Information Bulletin No.6 of Jan.21, 1942,titled "Japanese Espionage," forwarded to Ass't SecWar John J. McCloy by Brig. General Mark J. Clark,then Deputy Chief of Staff, U.S.Army, which, among its conclusions states: "Their espionage net containing Japanese aliens, first and second generation Japanese and other nationals is now thoroughly organized and working underground."

I suspect most of the attitudes regarding this bit of history stem from a passive understanding based on years of fluff pieces in the media. If Senator Graham and Judge Sotomayor don't know what they're talking about, it's doubtful most Americans do either.