Module 3: Executive Order 9066

Executive Order 9066

Japanese internment during World War II was one of the most controversial and unjust actions taken by the U.S. government in response to the fear of espionage and sabotage following the attack on Pearl Harbor. On February 19, 1942, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, which authorized the forced relocation and internment of Japanese Americans living on the West Coast. The order was aimed at securing the nation against perceived threats posed by Japanese nationals and their descendants, despite the fact that there was no evidence of widespread disloyalty. General John L. DeWitt, in charge of the Western Defense Command, played a major role in advocating for the internment, arguing that Japanese Americans, particularly those in military zones on the West Coast, posed a national security threat. This led to the establishment of assembly centers and internment camps where over 100,000 Japanese Americans, the majority of whom were U.S. citizens, were forcibly relocated.

The internment affected both the Issei (first-generation Japanese immigrants) and the Nisei (second-generation Japanese Americans, many of whom were born in the U.S. and thus American citizens). The Issei, who had immigrated from Japan, were generally barred from becoming U.S. citizens due to laws that restricted naturalization, while the Nisei, despite their American citizenship, were subjected to the same harsh treatment. The government argued that it was necessary to detain Japanese Americans to prevent potential espionage or sabotage, yet no such threats were ever substantiated. In fact, military intelligence and reports, including those from Curtis Munson, found no evidence that Japanese Americans posed a significant threat to national security. Nevertheless, the racial prejudice and wartime hysteria overshadowed these findings, leading to the forced relocation of entire families to remote internment camps, where they faced harsh living conditions, loss of property, and widespread discrimination.

The internment of Japanese Americans was later challenged in the landmark case Korematsu v. United States (1944), in which Fred Korematsu, a Japanese American who defied the internment order, argued that the internment violated constitutional rights. However, the U.S. Supreme Court controversially upheld the government's decision, citing wartime necessity. The ruling was a painful reminder of the ways in which fear and prejudice can override civil liberties. It was not until decades later, in the 1980s, that the U.S. government officially acknowledged the injustice of the internment. In 1988, the Civil Liberties Act was passed, offering a formal apology and compensation to surviving internees. The internment of Japanese Americans during WWII remains a powerful example of how racial prejudice and wartime hysteria can lead to the violation of basic civil rights, even for U.S. citizens.