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142-669: After the attack on Pearl Harbor, anti-Asian prejudice rapidly began spreading through the West Coast, mainly affecting the state of California. This prejudice was not new, for it began spreading after Chinese immigration increased during the Gold Rush . At the time, Chinese people began working and began to be perceived as competition by White working-men. Once Japanese people began to immigrate, people started to put up anti-Asian propaganda. White-owned establishments had signs that stated that service would not be given to people of Asian descent. When

284-619: A better life; escaping a high rate of poverty left after the Taiping Rebellion . This immigration may have been as high as 90% male as most immigrated with the thought of returning home to start a new life. Those that stayed in America faced the lack of suitable Chinese brides as Chinese women were not allowed to emigrate in significant numbers after 1872. As a result, the mostly bachelor communities slowly aged in place with very low Chinese birth rates. The last major immigration wave started around

426-475: A certain point, as their history has shown; differing in language, opinions, color, and physical conformation; between whom and ourselves nature has placed an impassable difference" and as such had no right " to swear away the life of a citizen" or participate" with us in administering the affairs of our Government. The ruling effectively made white violence against Chinese Americans unprosecutable, arguably leading to more intense white-on-Chinese race riots, such as

568-648: A duty to protect and help one another. Soon after the first Chinese had settled in San Francisco , respectable Chinese merchants—the most prominent members of the Chinese community of the time—made the first efforts to form social and welfare organizations (Chinese: " Kongsi ") to help immigrants to relocate others from their native towns, socialize, receive monetary aid and raise their voices in community affairs. At first, these organizations only provided interpretation , lodgings and job finding services for newcomers. In 1849,

710-451: A group of roughly 500 every other day, then they took a 5 day break and sent the last three groups out, with the last group being transferred on September 15, 1942. In addition to those from Merced, 2,000 evacuees from other assembly centers were also relocated to Amache. By the time the Amache concentration camp closed in 1945, 10,000 people had been incarcerated in the camp. A historical marker

852-564: A large part of the money they earned in America back to China. Because it was usual at that time in China to live in confined social nets, families, unions, guilds, and sometimes whole village communities or even regions (for instance, Taishan ) sent nearly all of their young men to California . From the beginning of the California Gold Rush until 1882—when an American federal law ended the Chinese influx—approximately 300,000 Chinese arrived in

994-407: A pharmacy, a dental clinic, and a dietician's unit. The dental clinic used a homemade dental chair made out of a barber chair. In a 1942 letter from Mr. Henry Fujita to his boss, Mr. H.A. Strong of Electrolux Corporation, he writes that “there has been a number of unnecessary deaths” due to lack of medical resources and attention. He goes on to describe an incident on July 13, 1942, where he went to see

1136-827: A secret letter from Curtis B. Munson , which stated that many Japanese-Americans were loyal to the United States, but the West Coast was vulnerable because some Japanese-Americans were still loyal to Japan. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, those considered dangerous by the FBI were arrested. The accounts that they had in American banks that were traced back to Japanese branches were frozen. The attack on Pearl Harbor caused many American citizens to feel afraid and anti-Asian prejudice increased. Therefore, communities began to grow afraid of those of Japanese descent. There were many reports of Asian Americans being harassed by others. Once Executive Order 9066

1278-591: A strange foreign land they had only heard about. However, their presence was mostly temporary and only a few settled permanently. American missionaries in China also sent small numbers of Chinese boys to the United States for schooling. From 1818 to 1825, five students stayed at the Foreign Mission School in Cornwall, Connecticut . In 1854, Yung Wing became the first Chinese graduate from an American college, Yale University . The Chinese Educational Mission of

1420-572: A telephone conversation with Major General Allen W. Gullion on 26 December. Regardless of this, following the Roberts Commission report of 25 January 1942 accusing persons of Japanese ancestry of widespread espionage in Hawaii prior to Pearl Harbor , along with his perception of public opinion as anti-Japanese , he became a proponent of internment of Japanese and initially German and Italian-descended persons. The 44th Infantry Division (44th ID)

1562-716: A tenth of the Californian population—mostly from six districts of Canton ( Guangdong ) province ( Bill Bryson , p. 143) —who wanted to make their fortune in the 1849-era California Gold Rush . The Chinese did not, however, only come for the gold rush in California, but also helped build the First Transcontinental Railroad , worked Southern plantations after the Civil War , and participated in establishing California agriculture and fisheries. Many were also fleeing

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1704-512: A way to win votes by taking advantage of the nation's industrial crisis. Rather than directly confronting the divisive problems such as class conflict, economic depression, and rising unemployment, this helped put the question of Chinese immigration and contracted Chinese workers on the national agenda and eventually paved way for the era's most racist legislation, the Chinese Exclusion Act in 1882. Statistics on Employed Male Chinese in

1846-423: A wedding picture captured. The weddings were held at Merced Fairground Exhibit Hall with a guest limit of 200. Families at Merced Assembly Center shared a lot of their time together since most were crammed into one small room. There was very little privacy between families as the room partitions did not extend from the floor to the ceilings. It was said that greetings, cries, and screams could be heard from one room to

1988-411: The 1877 San Francisco riot . The Chinese living in California were with this decision left practically in a legal vacuum, because they had now no possibility to assert their rightful legal entitlements or claims—possibly in cases of theft or breaches of agreement—in court. The ruling remained in force until 1873. After the gold rush wound down in the 1860s, the majority of the work force found jobs in

2130-534: The California Gold Rush , many Chinese migrants made their living as domestic servants, housekeepers, running restaurants, laundries (leading to the 1886 Supreme Court decision Yick Wo v. Hopkins and then to the 1933 creation of the Chinese Hand Laundry Alliance ) and a wide spectrum of shops, such as food stores, antique shops, jewelers, and imported goods stores. In addition, the Chinese often worked in borax and mercury mines, as seamen on board

2272-494: The California Gold Rush , with 40,400 being recorded as arriving from 1851 to 1860, and again in the 1860s when the Central Pacific Railroad recruited large labor gangs, many on five-year contracts, to build its portion of the transcontinental railroad . The Chinese laborers worked out well and thousands more were recruited until the railroad's completion in 1869. Chinese labor provided the massive labor needed to build

2414-474: The Granada War Relocation Center . Amache was much more spacious, containing about 8000 acres of land for irrigation and having facilities big enough to house about 6,500 to 7,000 evacuees. Initially, authorities planned to send groups of 500 from Merced to Amache daily, but they soon realized that they would need more time because the camp was not ready to hold that many people. The pace slowed to

2556-634: The Sacramento Valley . However construction was slowed, first by the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, then by the mountains themselves and most importantly by winter snowstorms. Consequently, the Central Pacific expanded its efforts to hire immigrant laborers (many of whom were Chinese). The immigrants seemed to be more willing to tolerate the horrible conditions, and progress continued. The increasing necessity for tunneling then began to slow progress of

2698-558: The Sierra Nevada mountains — where long tunnels had to be bored through solid granite using only hand tools and black powder. The explosions had caused many of the Chinese laborers to lose their lives. Due to the wide expanse of the work, the construction had to be carried out at times in the extreme heat and also in other times in the bitter winter cold. So harsh were the conditions that sometimes even entire camps were buried under avalanches . The Central Pacific made great progress along

2840-621: The Taiping Rebellion that affected their region. From the outset, they were met with the distrust and overt racism of settled European populations, ranging from massacres to pressuring Chinese migrants into what became known as Chinatowns . In regard to their legal situation, the Chinese immigrants were far more imposed upon by the government than most other ethnic minorities in these regions. Laws were made to restrict them, including exorbitant special taxes ( Foreign Miners' Tax Act of 1850 ), prohibiting them from marrying white European partners (so as to prevent men from marrying at all and increasing

2982-476: The Union Pacific Railroad and Central Pacific Railroad , the two privately chartered federally backed enterprises that built the line westward and eastward respectively. Since there was a lack of white European construction workers, in 1865 a large number of Chinese workers were recruited from the silver mines, as well as later contract workers from China. The idea for the use of Chinese labor came from

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3124-631: The United States around 1815. Subsequent immigrants that came from the 1820s up to the late 1840s were mainly men. In 1834, Afong Moy became the first female Chinese immigrant to the United States; she was brought to New York City from her home of Guangzhou by Nathaniel and Frederick Carne, who exhibited her as "the Chinese Lady". By 1848, there were 325 Chinese Americans . 323 more immigrants came in 1849, 450 in 1850 and 20,000 in 1852 (2,000 in 1 day). By 1852, there were 25,000; over 300,000 by 1880:

3266-644: The United States Congress enacted the Page Act that forbade the entry of all Chinese women considered "obnoxious" by representatives of U.S. consulates at their origins of departure. In effect, this led to American officials erroneously classifying many women as prostitutes, which greatly reduced the opportunities for all Chinese women wishing to enter the United States. After the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863, many Chinese Americans immigrated to

3408-463: The basis of race . These laws not only prevented new immigration but also the reunion of the families of thousands of Chinese men already living in the United States who had left China without their wives and children. Anti-miscegenation laws in many Western states also prohibited the Chinese men from marrying white women. In the South, many Chinese American men married African American women. For example,

3550-529: The explorer and fur trader John Meares from Canton to Vancouver Island , several Chinese sailors and craftsmen contributed to building the first European-designed boat that was launched in Vancouver . Shortly after the American Revolutionary War , as the United States had recently begun transpacific maritime trade with Qing , Chinese came into contact with American sailors and merchants at

3692-514: The railroad industry. Chinese labor was integral to the construction of the first transcontinental railroad , which linked the railway network of the Eastern United States with California on the Pacific coast. Construction began in 1863 at the terminal points of Omaha, Nebraska and Sacramento, California , and the two sections were merged and ceremonially completed on May 10, 1869, at

3834-575: The "Chinese Six Companies" because of the original six founding associations). It quickly became the most powerful and politically vocal organization to represent the Chinese not only in San Francisco but in the whole of California . In other large cities and regions in America similar associations were formed. The Chinese associations mediated disputes and soon began participating in the hospitality industry , lending, health, and education and funeral services. The latter became especially significant for

3976-528: The "Gold Mountains" or "Mountains of Gold" ( Cantonese : Gam Saan , 金山). Because anarchic conditions prevailed in the gold fields, the robbery by European miners of Chinese mining area permits were barely pursued or prosecuted and the Chinese gold seekers themselves were often victim to violent assaults. At that time, "Chinese immigrants were stereotyped as degraded, exotic, dangerous, and perpetual foreigners who could not assimilate into civilized western culture, regardless of citizenship or duration of residency in

4118-471: The "Green Peas." There were a total of 21 births and 10 deaths at the Merced Assembly Center. The first birth at the detention center was a girl born to Mrs. Haruko Agatsuma. There were a total of four weddings administered at Merced Assembly Center. Under the watch of a security guard, the couples were permitted to go to Merced in order to apply for a marriage license, find a wedding dress, and have

4260-472: The 1850s. The West Coast of North America was being rapidly settled by European Americans during the California Gold Rush , while southern China suffered from severe political and economic instability due to the weakness of the Qing government , along with massive devastation brought on by the Taiping Rebellion , which saw many Chinese emigrate to other countries to flee the fighting. As a result, many Chinese made

4402-537: The 1860s. They also worked as laborers in Western mines. They suffered racial discrimination at every level of White society . Many Americans were stirred to anger by the " Yellow Peril " rhetoric. Despite provisions for equal treatment of Chinese immigrants in the 1868 Burlingame Treaty between the U.S. and China, political and labor organizations rallied against "cheap Chinese labor". Newspapers condemned employers who were initially pro-Chinese. When clergy ministering to

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4544-603: The 1870s-'80s continued this tradition, sending some 120 boys to be educated in New England schools. During the Coolie Trade, Chinese laborers were subjected to harrowing conditions and forcibly transported to work in places like Cuba under exploitative contracts. Lau Chung Mun, Toishan Historian, recounted the way generations of his family were “sold like pigs” to work as coolies, when transported from China to Cuba for labour. Lau Chung Mun also informed that his father and uncle were

4686-483: The 19th century) had strived for centuries to wholly Christianize the nation with relatively minor success. Christian missionaries had also worked in the Chinese communities and settlements in America, but nevertheless their religious message found few who were receptive. It was estimated that during the first wave until the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act , less than 20% of Chinese immigrants had accepted Christian teachings. Their difficulties with integration were exemplified by

4828-555: The 3-mile (4.8 km) zone of the west coast. Their work became unprofitable, and gradually they gave up fishing. The only area where the Chinese fishermen remained unchallenged was shark fishing, where they stood in no competition to the European Americans. Many former fishermen found work in the salmon canneries , which until the 1930s were major employers of Chinese migrants, because white workers were less interested in such hard, seasonal and relatively unrewarding work. Since

4970-449: The CCBA as they were outcasts or lacked the clan or family ties to join more prestigious Chinese surname associations, business guilds, or legitimate enterprises. As a result, they organized themselves into their own secret societies, called Tongs , for mutual support and protection of their members. These first tongs modeled themselves upon the triads , underground organizations dedicated to

5112-486: The CCBA had effectively assumed the function of an unofficial local governing body, which even used privately hired police or guards for protection of inhabitants at the height of anti-Chinese excesses. Following a law enacted in New York, in 1933, in an attempt to evict Chinese from the laundry business, the Chinese Hand Laundry Alliance was founded as a competitor to the CCBA. A minority of Chinese immigrants did not join

5254-581: The Chinese community because for religious reasons many of the immigrants laid value to burial or cremation (including the scattering of ashes) in China. In the 1880s many of the city and regional associations united to form a national Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association (CCBA), an umbrella organization, which defended the political rights and legal interests of the Chinese American community, particularly during times of anti-Chinese repression. By resisting overt discrimination enacted against them,

5396-409: The Chinese community of San Francisco consisted of 4,018 men and only seven women. By 1855, women made up only two percent of the Chinese population in the United States, and even by 1890 this had only increased to 4.8 percent. The lack of visibility of Chinese women in general was due partially to the cost of making the voyage when there was a lack of work opportunities for Chinese women in America. This

5538-537: The Chinese constitute the largest ethnic group of Asian Americans (about 22%). As of the 2020 U.S. census , there are more than 4.2 million Chinese in the United States, above 1.2% of the total population. The influx continues, where each year ethnic Chinese people from the People's Republic of China , Taiwan , and to a lesser extent Southeast Asia move to the United States, surpassing Hispanic and Latino immigration by 2012. The Chinese reached North America during

5680-605: The Chinese fishermen with a whole array of taxes, laws and regulations. They had to pay special taxes (Chinese Fisherman's Tax), and they were not allowed to fish with traditional Chinese nets nor with junks. The most disastrous effect occurred when the Scott Act , a federal U.S. law adopted in 1888, established that the Chinese migrants, even when they had entered and were living the United States legally, could not re-enter after having temporarily left U.S. territory. The Chinese fishermen, in effect, could therefore not leave with their boats

5822-469: The Chinese immigrants could not own any land on account of the laws in California at the time. Nevertheless, they frequently pursued agricultural work under leases or profit-sharing contracts with their employers. Many of these Chinese men came from the Pearl River Delta Region in southern China, where they had learned how to develop fertile farmland in inaccessible river valleys. This know-how

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5964-490: The Chinese immigrants in California supported the Chinese, they were severely criticized by the local press and populace. So hostile was the opposition that in 1882, the U.S. Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act prohibiting immigration from China for the following ten years. This law was then extended by the Geary Act in 1892. The Chinese Exclusion Act was the only U.S. law ever to prevent immigration and naturalization on

6106-487: The Chinese into the United States was, to begin with, legal and uncomplicated and even had a formal judicial basis in 1868 with the signing of the Burlingame Treaty between the United States and China. But there were differences compared with the policy for European immigrants, in that if the Chinese migrants had children born in the United States, those children would automatically acquire American citizenship . However,

6248-473: The Chinese railroad workers lived and worked tirelessly, they also managed the finances associated with their employment, and Central Pacific officials responsible for employing the Chinese, even those at first opposed to the hiring policy, came to appreciate the cleanliness and reliability of this group of laborers. After 1869, the Southern Pacific Railroad and Northwestern Pacific Railroad led

6390-479: The Chinese. A notable incident occurred in 1870, when 75 young men from China were hired to replace striking shoe workers in North Adams, Massachusetts . Nevertheless, these young men had no idea that they had been brought from San Francisco by the superintendent of the shoe factory to act as strikebreakers at their destination. This incident provided the trade unions with propaganda, later repeatedly cited, calling for

6532-626: The English language editor of Shin Sekai, a popular Japanese language newspaper based in San Francisco. Censorship in both the WCCA and WRA-administered concentration camps was deeply rooted, as these camps never intended for there to be “free speech” critiquing the government, which kept these newspapers running. Presence of censorship was oftentimes blatant as in the example of the WCCA camps, which had an internal document titled "Report of Operations" which describes

6674-582: The European Americans from the outset increased continuously until the turn of the 20th century, and with lasting effect prevented their assimilation into mainstream American society. This in turn led to the creation, cohesion, and cooperation of many Chinese benevolent associations and societies whose existence in the United States continued far into the 20th century as a necessity both for support and survival. There were also many other factors that hindered their assimilation, most notably their appearance. Under Qing dynasty law, Han Chinese men were forced under

6816-529: The Executive Order 9066. It ordered the immediate forced removal and detention of Japanese Americans, even though they were not directly mentioned within the executive order. As a result of Executive Order 9066, more than 110,000 Japanese Americans were forced to relocate to temporary "assembly centers" primarily located within the Central Valley . A month after Executive Order 9066 was enacted, Public Law 503

6958-780: The Japanese Americans were leaving behind. The first phase entailed taking residents from their houses and putting them in military-controlled detention facilities nearby. After Japanese Americans started reporting to collection points near their homes, they were relocated to assembly centers. With a total of seventeen centers, many of them were in California but some were in Arizona, Washington, and Oregon. The locations of these centers in California were: Fresno, Owens Valley, Marysville, Merced, Pinedale, Pomona, Sacramento, Salinas, Santa Anita, Stockton, Tanforan, Tulare, and Turlock. The centers in Arizona were located at Mayer and Parker Darn. One of

7100-424: The Merced Assembly Center and what the memorial represents. History of Chinese Americans The history of Chinese Americans or the history of ethnic Chinese in the United States includes three major waves of Chinese immigration to the United States, beginning in the 19th century. Chinese immigrants in the 19th century worked in the California Gold Rush of the 1850s and the Central Pacific Railroad in

7242-554: The Navy. Most fought for the Union, but a small number also fought for the Confederacy. Union soldiers with Chinese heritage Confederate soldiers with Chinese heritage From the Pearl River Delta Region also came countless numbers of experienced Chinese fishermen. In the 1850s they founded a fishing economy on the Californian coast that grew exponentially, and by the 1880s extended along

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7384-492: The Southern states, particularly Arkansas , to work on plantations. The tenth U.S. census of Louisiana showed that 57% of interracial marriages between these Chinese American men were to African American women, and 43% to European American women. Pre- 1911 revolutionary Chinese society was distinctively collectivist and composed of close networks of extended families, unions, clan associations and guilds, where people had

7526-563: The Twenty, Most Frequently Reported Occupations, 1870 This table describes the occupation partitioning among Chinese males in the twenty most reported occupations. Western Defense Command Western Defense Command ( WDC ) was established on 17 March 1941 as the command formation of the United States Army responsible for coordinating the defense of the Pacific Coast region of

7668-516: The U.S. The credit-ticket system had long been used by indentured migrants from South China who left to work in what Chinese called Nanyang (South Seas), the region to the south of China that included the Philippines, the former Dutch East Indies, the Malay Peninsula, and Borneo, Thailand, Indochina, and Burma. The Chinese who left for Australia also used the credit-ticket system. The entry of

7810-614: The USA". In response to this hostile situation these Chinese miners developed a basic approach that differed from the white European gold miners. While the Europeans mostly worked as individuals or in small groups, the Chinese formed large teams, which protected them from attacks and, because of good organization, often gave them a higher yield. To protect themselves even further against attacks, they preferred to work areas that other gold seekers regarded as unproductive and had given up on. Because much of

7952-511: The United States during World War II . A second major responsibility was the training of soldiers prior to their deployment overseas. The first Commanding General of WDC was Lieutenant General John L. DeWitt , who continued on in command of the Fourth U.S. Army . WDC headquarters were co-located at the existing Fourth Army headquarters at the Presidio of San Francisco . WDC's operational region covered

8094-828: The United States in 1868 effectively lifted any former restrictions and large-scale immigration to the United States began. In order to avoid difficulties with departure, most Chinese gold-seekers embarked on their transpacific voyage from the docks of Hong Kong , a major trading port in the region. Less frequently, they left from the neighboring port of Macau , with the choice usually being decided by distance of either city. Only merchants were able to take their wives and children overseas. The vast majority of Chinese immigrants were peasants, farmers and craftsmen. Young men, who were usually married, left their wives and children behind since they intended to stay in America only temporarily. Wives also remained behind to fulfill their traditional obligation to care for their husbands' parents. The men sent

8236-401: The United States in 1898) were utterly excluded by law, denied citizenship and naturalization , and prevented from owning land. In many Western states, Asian immigrants were even prevented from marrying Caucasians. Only since the 1940s, when the United States and China became allies during World War II , did the situation for Chinese Americans begin to improve, as restrictions on entry into

8378-579: The United States. Because the chances to earn more money were far better in America than in China, these migrants often remained considerably longer than they had planned initially, despite increasing xenophobia and hostility towards them. Chinese immigrants booked their passages on ships with the Pacific Mail Steamship Company (founded in 1848) and the Occidental and Oriental Steamship Company (founded 1874). The money to fund their journey

8520-498: The WCCA prohibited Issei from participating and eventually abolished these advisory committees altogether. Other platforms for residents of the Merced Assembly Center still remained. These included sending in concerns to the Mercedian or verbally participating in forums held in the center’s town hall. Like the other assembly centers, the Merced Assembly Center printed its own newspaper to inform people of current events taking place in

8662-465: The WDC for mobile defense from early 1942. These included at least the 125th , 140th (detached from the 35th ID), 144th , 174th (detached from the 44th ID), 184th , and 364th Infantry Regiments , along with two 155 mm gun battalions of the 54th Coast Artillery Regiment and elements of the 56th Coast Artillery Regiment. This lasted at least through late 1943. From June 1942 to August 1943, WDC

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8804-713: The assembly center, all of them Japanese American volunteers. Classes ran from June 10, 1942 to August 21, 1942, enrolling roughly 330 elementary students, 450 middle and high school students, and 100 adults. Elementary subjects included arithmetic, reading, spelling, choir, dancing, story-telling, drawing, and crafts. High school subjects included English, Algebra, Geometry, Trigonometry, Gen.Science, Chemistry, American History, Government, Bookkeeping, and Business Training. Adult classes offered English instruction to incarcerated Issei, along with assorted other subjects. The school lacked adequate space and supplies, with some classes held in grandstands and empty barracks with students sitting on

8946-430: The assembly centers were repurposed from existing race tracks or fairgrounds, including at Merced. Cattle stalls on racetracks were cleared out and made to fit families of six. Since the Merced Assembly Center had to be built in a very short amount of time, facilities were often built poorly out of crude materials and were not able to withstand rain and wind. Floods would often occur as well as insects invading housing due to

9088-579: The attack on Pearl Harbor occurred, most people were in shock, but Japanese-Americans had a feeling it would occur. In actuality, Japanese Americans began to be threatened about being placed in camps beginning in 1937. After the Alien Registration Act of 1940 , the FBI made a list of potentially dangerous immigrants who were German, Italian, or Japanese. In November 1941, President Franklin Roosevelt received

9230-408: The authority to designate "military areas" and to then exclude any or all people from them. On 2 March 1942, General DeWitt issued a proclamation that designated the western halves of Washington, Oregon and California, and the southern third of Arizona to be military areas from which Americans of Japanese ancestry would be excluded from that area . The exclusion zone would later be expanded to include

9372-474: The basic procedures of censorship. One of the highlights of the “Report of Operations” was that every copy of the assembly center newsletter had to be edited and approved by the Public Relations representative which was then handed to the center manager. Non-compulsory education programs were offered to elementary, middle, and high school students, along with some adult classes. There were twenty teachers at

9514-422: The camp doctor because his children fell seriously ill and the doctor brushed it off as a common cold. Fujita’s letter further details the kind of conditions that Japanese Americans were forced to endure during this time period that may have contributed to the 10 deaths that occurred at the detention center. Since the government did not have the resources at the time to incarcerate 110,000 people adequately, most of

9656-415: The camp. The Mercedian published two issues per week between June 9, 1942 and August 29, 1942. Articles were written by incarcerated Japanese Americans, though the Mercedian , like other assembly center newsletters, was only written in English and subject to surveillance and censorship by the WCCA. Mercedian staff included managing editor Oski Taniwaki and editor Tsugime Akaki. Taniwaki had previously been

9798-537: The camp....We were told, you go beyond that fence you're going to get shot." A twice-daily roll call was held, in the mornings and evenings. One civilian policeman was assigned for every two hundred inmates. The police were authorized to enter and search any and all facilities in the detention center without a warrant. The police also screened all visitors and incoming luggage and parcels for contraband, though mail remained protected from surveillance and censorship. Medical facilities included doctor’s offices, hospital wards,

9940-501: The centers became potential breeding sites for epidemic outbreaks, compounding the health dangers of the unsanitary living quarters. All of them were staffed by inexperienced personnel who lacked basic hygiene and food-handling skills. The army was aware and concerned with the assembly centers: “Assembly Centers are not and cannot, without the expenditure of tremendous sums of money for space and facilities in duplication of those which will be provided on relocation sites, be designed to permit

10082-562: The centers was in Portland, Oregon. The final center was in Puyallup, Washington. The largest assembly center was in Santa Anita . Eleven of the assembly centers were at racetracks and fairgrounds. The others were: unsuitable facilities, migrant workers camps, abandoned corps, and a former mill site. The owners of eleven racetracks and fairgrounds signed leases with the government. The mess halls of

10224-497: The commercial port of Canton (Guangzhou). There, local individuals heard about opportunities and became curious about America. The main trade route between the United States and China then was between Canton and New England , where the first Chinese arrived via Cape Horn (the only route as the Panama Canal did not exist). These Chinese were mainly merchants, sailors, seamen, and students who wanted to see and acquaint themselves with

10366-410: The cooks struggled to prepare edible meals. Some of the incarcerated established their own victory gardens around the barracks. Because the detention center operated from the late spring through the early fall in a region that routinely experiences triple-digit temperatures, those incarcerated at Merced had to cope with extreme heat. As Harry Fujita, who was incarcerated at Merced, wrote in a letter at

10508-696: The country, naturalization, and mixed marriage were lessened. In 1943, Chinese immigration to the United States was once again permitted—by way of the Magnuson Act —thereby repealing 61 years of official racial discrimination against the Chinese. Large-scale Chinese immigration did not occur until 1965 when the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 lifted national origin quotas. After World War II, anti-Asian prejudice began to decrease, and Chinese immigrants, along with other Asians (such as Japanese, Koreans, Indians and Vietnamese), have adapted and advanced. Currently,

10650-492: The decision to emigrate from the chaotic Taishanese - and Cantonese -speaking areas in Guangdong province to the United States to find work, with the added incentive of being able to aid their family back home . For most Chinese immigrants of the 1850s, San Francisco was only a transit station on the way to the gold fields in the Sierra Nevada. According to estimates, there were in the late 1850s 15,000 Chinese mine workers in

10792-605: The delta's waterways in an effort to reclaim and preserve farmland and control flooding. These levees therefore confined waterflow to the riverbeds. Many of the workers stayed in the area and made a living as farm workers or sharecroppers , until they were driven out during an outbreak of anti-Chinese violence in the mid-1890s. Chinese immigrants settled a few small towns in the Sacramento River delta, two of them: Locke, California , and Walnut Grove, California located 15–20 miles south of Sacramento were predominantly Chinese in

10934-439: The detention center was not unlike a prison. As Bob Fuchigami, who was incarcerated at the Merced Assembly Center as a child, remembers, "Merced was like a prison camp, surrounded by barbed wire, guard towers manned by military. I'm sure they had rifles and machine guns or whatever. And they had jeep patrol coming around the perimeter of the camp and they would come fairly often. At night the search lights were there and criss-crossed

11076-467: The development and maintenance of a vocational, educational, recreational and social program. Long residence in an assembly center is bound to have a demoralizing effect” (52). The Western Defense Command put out 108 Civilian Exclusion Orders to forcibly relocate people of Japanese ancestry who lived on the West Coast. The purpose in doing this was to transfer them to temporary detention centers. Those closest to army areas were evacuated first and an effort

11218-476: The doors not being screened and properly built. The living areas were extremely crowded which contributed to a lack of privacy. As Marion Michiko Bernardo, who was incarcerated at the Merced Assembly Center as a young girl, remembers, "The rooftops were at this angle and there was no ceiling in between the whole building. People could hear me crying and everything. I remember that." Buildings included housing, laundry facilities, communal restrooms, and mess halls. There

11360-425: The employers. The American trade unionists were nevertheless still wary as the Chinese workers were willing to work for their employers for relatively low wages and incidentally acted as strikebreakers thereby running counter to the interests of the trade unions. In fact, many employers used the threat of importing Chinese strikebreakers as a means to prevent or break up strikes, which caused further resentment against

11502-521: The end of the first wave in the mid-20th century when only a minority of Chinese living in the U.S. could speak English . Tanka people women who worked as prostitutes for foreigners also commonly kept a "nursery" of Tanka girls specifically to export them to overseas Chinese communities in Australia or America for prostitution work, or to serve as a Chinese or foreigner's concubine. Of the first wave of Chinese who moved to America, few were women. In 1850,

11644-604: The entire state of California and Executive Order 9066 also encompassed Alaska in the process. On 19 December 1941, General DeWitt had recommended to the Army's GHQ "that action be initiated at the earliest practicable date to collect all alien subjects fourteen years of age and over, of enemy nations and remove them to the Zone of the Interior". He initially felt very differently about the necessity and practicality of locking up citizens as well, in

11786-514: The era of Spanish colonial rule over the Philippines (1565–1815), during which they had established themselves as fishermen, sailors, and merchants on Spanish galleons that sailed between the Philippines and Mexican ports ( Manila galleons ). California belonged to Mexico until 1848, and historians have asserted that a small number of Chinese had already settled there by the mid-18th century. Also later, as part of expeditions in 1788 and 1789 by

11928-579: The expansion of the railway network further into the American West, and many of the Chinese who had built the transcontinental railroad remained active in building the railways. After several projects were completed, many of the Chinese workers relocated and looked for employment elsewhere, such as in farming, manufacturing firms, garment industries, and paper mills . However, widespread anti-Chinese discrimination and violence from whites, including riots and murders, drove many into self-employment . Until

12070-474: The famous " golden spike " event at Promontory Summit, Utah . It created a nationwide mechanized transportation network that revolutionized the population and economy of the American West . This network caused the wagon trains of previous decades to become obsolete, exchanging it for a modern transportation system. The building of the railway required enormous labor in the crossing of plains and high mountains by

12212-511: The first Chinese merchants' association was formed, but it did not last long. In less than a few years it petered out as its role was gradually replaced by a network of Chinese district and clan associations when more immigrants came in greater numbers. Eventually some of the more prominent district associations banded together under one umbrella known as the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association (also known as

12354-530: The first day in which Chinese were on the line, the decision was made to hire as many as could be found in California (where most were gold miners or in service industries such as laundries and kitchens). Many more were imported from China. Most of the men received between one and three dollars per day, but the workers from China received much less. Eventually, they went on strike and gained small increases in salary. The route laid not only had to go across rivers and canyons , which had to be bridged, but also through

12496-441: The floor for lack of desks. The detention center also held a ceremony for students who missed their high school graduation due to their forced relocation. To keep operating costs low, the WCCA employed the incarcerated in the everyday work of running the assembly centers. Employment was voluntary and, depending on their classification, they were paid $ 8 for unskilled work, $ 12 for skilled work, and $ 16 for professional work, far below

12638-403: The fuses were lit. The well organized Chinese teams still turned out to be highly industrious and exceedingly efficient; at the peak of the construction work, shortly before completion of the railroad, more than 11,000 Chinese were involved with the project. Although the white European workers had higher wages and better working conditions, their share of the workforce was never more than 10%. As

12780-525: The gold fields were exhaustingly gone over until the beginning of the 20th century, many of the Chinese remained far longer than the European miners. In 1870, one-third of the men in the Californian gold fields were Chinese. However, their displacement had begun already in 1869 when white miners began to resent the Chinese miners, feeling that they were discovering gold that the white miners deserved. Eventually, protest rose from white miners who wanted to eliminate

12922-518: The growing competition. From 1852 to 1870 (ironically when the Civil Rights Act of 1866 was passed), the California legislature enforced a series of taxes. In 1852, a special foreign miner's tax aimed at the Chinese was passed by the California legislature that was aimed at foreign miners who were not U.S. citizens. Given that the Chinese were ineligible for citizenship at that time and constituted

13064-449: The immediate and total exclusion of the Chinese. This particular controversy slackened somewhat as attention focused on the economic crises in 1875 when the majority of cigar and boots manufacturing companies went under. Mainly, just the textile industry still employed Chinese workers in large numbers. In 1876, in response to the rising anti-Chinese hysteria, both major political parties included Chinese exclusion in their campaign platforms as

13206-619: The immigrants themselves would legally remain as foreigners "indefinitely". Unlike European immigrants , the possibility of naturalization was withheld from the Chinese. Although the newcomers arrived in America after an already established small community of their compatriots, they experienced many culture shocks . The Chinese immigrants neither spoke nor understood English and were not familiar with Western culture and life; they often came from rural China and therefore had difficulty in adjusting to and finding their way around large towns such as San Francisco . The racism they experienced from

13348-405: The inside of a racetrack field. Camp management was able to expand the barbed wire fence to the outside of the racetrack and bleachers. Everyone was excited to utilize the extra space for entertainment. An advanced group of 212 Japanese Americans were transferred from the Merced Assembly Center on August 25 to help set up a more permanent concentration camp located in Amache, Colorado, also known as

13490-574: The lack of dignity in death, explaining that the laborers’ bones were discarded in pits and forgotten. The first hand testimonies from the Cuba Commission Report of 1874 provide vital insight into the abuse and dehumanization faced by Chinese Laborers during this period. In the 19th century, Sino–U.S. maritime trade began the history of Chinese Americans. At first only a handful of Chinese came, mainly as merchants, former sailors, to America. The first Chinese people of this wave arrived in

13632-414: The largest percentage of the non-white population of California, the taxes were primarily aimed at them and tax revenue was therefore generated almost exclusively by the Chinese. This tax required a payment of three dollars each month at a time when Chinese miners were making approximately six dollars a month. Tax collectors could legally take and sell the property of those miners who refused or could not pay

13774-460: The line yet again. To combat this, Central Pacific began to use the newly invented and very unstable nitro-glycerine explosives—which accelerated both the rate of construction and the mortality of the Chinese laborers. Appalled by the losses, the Central Pacific began to use less volatile explosives, and developed a method of placing the explosives in which the Chinese blasters worked from large suspended baskets that were rapidly pulled to safety after

13916-462: The local chapters of the national CCBA helped to bring a number of cases to the courts from the municipal level to the Supreme Court to fight discriminatory legislation and treatment. The associations also took their cases to the press and worked with government institutions and Chinese diplomatic missions to protect their rights. In San Francisco's Chinatown , birthplace of the CCBA, formed in 1882,

14058-498: The majority of the Central Pacific's difficult railroad tracks through the Sierra Nevada mountains and across Nevada . The Chinese population rose from 2,716 in 1851 to 63,000 by 1871. In the decade 1861–1870, 64,301 were recorded as arriving, followed by 123,201 in 1871–1880 and 61,711 in 1881–1890. 77% were located in California, with the rest scattered across the West, the South, and New England . Most came from Southern China looking for

14200-541: The manager of the Central Pacific Railroad, Charles Crocker , who at first had trouble persuading his business partners of the fact that the mostly weedy, slender looking Chinese workers, some contemptuously called "Crocker's pets", were suitable for the heavy physical work. For the Central Pacific Railroad , hiring Chinese as opposed to whites kept labor costs down by a third, since the company would not pay their board or lodging. This type of steep wage inequality

14342-461: The middle of the 19th century, wheat was the primary crop grown in California. The favorable climate allowed the beginning of the intensive cultivation of certain fruits, vegetables and flowers. In the East Coast of the United States a strong demand for these products existed. However, the supply of these markets became possible only with the completion of the transcontinental railroad . Just as with

14484-400: The next. Life was made more tolerable at the Merced Assembly Center through recreation. There were various competitions, including kite flying contests and talent shows. Music appreciation hour was also held to give the incarcerated some relief off of the daily stress of their new lives. Surprisingly, school was not mandatory for students. Many kids, especially the older ones, took advantage of

14626-518: The number of Chinese prostitutes. By the time of the 1880 U.S. census , documents show that only 24 percent of 3,171 Chinese women in California were classified as prostitutes, many of whom married Chinese Christians and formed some of the earliest Chinese American families in mainland America. Nevertheless, American legislation used the prostitution issue to make immigration far more difficult for Chinese women. On March   3, 1875, in Washington, D.C. ,

14768-611: The only survivors of 13 sent to work in Cuba. The Chinese government sent an Imperial Mission to Cuba, to investigate working conditions and collected testimonies from labourers. In the 1874 Cuba Commission Report, a laborer, Chang Kuan testified about working 21 hour days and enduring beatings. Another laborer, Chu Tsun-fang recounts a denial of his release papers on the termination of his contract, and confinement in prison for six years while labouring without receiving wages. Laborer, Lin Chin, remarked on

14910-517: The opportunity to use their time for recreational activities. Many found this time to be more fun and fulfilling. Recreational activities were centered around baseball and sumo wrestling. Other commonly known sports were played as well, including basketball, badminton, football, and ping pong. Other activities consisted of boy scouts, girl scouts, dances, and craft shows. The first month, however, had minimal recreation due to limited space for activities and facilities. Originally, activities were only held on

15052-528: The overthrow of the Qing dynasty , and adopted their codes of brotherhood, loyalty, and patriotism. The members of the tongs were marginalized, poor, had lower educational levels and lacked the opportunities available to wealthier Chinese. Their organizations formed without any clear political or benevolent motives and soon found themselves involved in lucrative criminal activities , including extortion , gambling , people smuggling , and prostitution. Prostitution proved to be an extremely profitable business for

15194-452: The police, legislature and popular press singled out Chinese prostitutes for criticism. This was seen as further evidence of the depravity of the Chinese and the repression of women in their patriarchal cultural values. Laws passed by the California state legislature in 1866 to curb the brothels worked alongside missionary activity by the Methodist and Presbyterian Churches to help reduce

15336-565: The population) and barring them from acquiring U.S. citizenship. Decrees by the Qing dynasty issued in 1712 and 1724 forbade emigration and overseas trade and were primarily intended to prevent remnant supporters of the Ming dynasty from establishing bases overseas. However, these decrees were widely ignored. Large-scale immigration of Chinese laborers began after China began to receive news of deposits of gold found in California . The Burlingame Treaty with

15478-461: The prevailing wage for American GIs. Beginning in June 1942, the WCCA also provided the incarcerated with monthly allowances to purchase basic necessities such as food, hygiene items, and clothing. Men and women incarcerated at the Merced Assembly Center were employed throughout the detention center, including in the improvement of the hastily constructed facilities and even as an internal police unit known as

15620-681: The previous name. From 11 December 1941 until 1 November 1943, Alaska Defense Command was controlled through WDC. The initial subordinate commands of the WDC in December 1941 were Fourth Army, Second and Fourth Air Forces , and the Ninth Corps Area . However, in January 1942 the Second Air Force was moved inland and placed under Air Force Combat Command . In April 1942, the Ninth Corps Area

15762-483: The railway construction, there was a dire manpower shortage in the expanding Californian agriculture sector, so the white landowners began in the 1860s to put thousands of Chinese migrants to work in their large-scale farms and other agricultural enterprises. Many of these Chinese laborers were not unskilled seasonal workers, but were in fact experienced farmers, whose vital expertise the Californian fruit, vegetables and wine industries owe much to this very day. Despite this,

15904-417: The same racial violence and discrimination they had faced. With the heavily uneven gender ratio, prostitution grew rapidly and the Chinese sex trade and trafficking became a lucrative business. Documents from the 1870 U.S. census show that 61 percent of 3,536 Chinese women in California were classified as prostitutes as an occupation. The existence of Chinese prostitution was detected early, after which

16046-442: The same time. The main order they had to follow was in regards to what they were allowed to bring, amongst vaccination and tag requirements. Families were only allowed to have what they could carry. They were required to have: bedding and linens, toiletries, clothing, dining utensils, and necessary personal hygiene products. Prior to being evacuated, civilians had to get their affairs in order, such as owned and rented properties. Due to

16188-590: The ships of American shipping companies or in the consumer goods industry, especially in the cigar, boots, footwear and textile manufacturing. During the economic crises of the 1870s, factory owners were often glad that the immigrants were content with the low wages given. The Chinese took the bad wages, because their wives and children lived in China where the cost of living was low. As they were classified as foreigners they were excluded from joining American trade unions , and so they formed their own Chinese organizations (called "guilds") that represented their interests with

16330-478: The staple of Chinese cuisine . They sold their catch in local markets or shipped it salt-dried to East Asia and Hawaii . Again, this initial success was met with a hostile reaction. Since the late 1850s, European migrants—above all Greeks , Italians , and Dalmatians —moved into fishing off the American West Coast too, and they exerted pressure on the California legislature , which, finally, expelled

16472-537: The states of Washington , Oregon , California , Idaho , Montana , Nevada , Utah , and Arizona , and the Territory of Alaska . Until 11 December 1941, the command was little more than a planning agency. On that date the Army coast defense , antiaircraft , and fighter assets on the West Coast were placed under the command, which until 20 March 1942 was known as the Western Theater of Operations , then reverted to

16614-402: The tax. Fake tax collectors made money by taking advantage of people who could not speak English well, and some tax collectors, both false and real, stabbed or shot miners who could not or would not pay the tax. During the 1860s, many Chinese were expelled from the mine fields and forced to find other jobs. The Foreign Miner's Tax existed until 1870. The position of the Chinese gold seekers also

16756-411: The tenth U.S. census of Louisiana alone showed 57% Chinese American men were married to African American women, and 43% to European American women. In 1924, the law barred further entries of Chinese. Those already in the United States had been ineligible for citizenship since the previous year. Also by 1924, all Asian immigrants (except people from the Philippines , which had been annexed by

16898-969: The threat of beheading to follow Manchu customs including shaving the front of their heads and combing the remaining hair into a queue . Historically, to the Manchus, the policy was both an act of submission and, in practical terms, an identification aid to tell friend from foe. Because Chinese immigrants returned as often as they could to China to see their family, they could not cut off their often hated braids in America and then legally re-enter China. The first Chinese immigrants usually remained faithful to traditional Chinese beliefs, which were either Confucianism , ancestral worship , Buddhism , or Taoism , while others adhered to various ecclesiastical doctrines. The number of Chinese migrants who converted to Christianity remained at first low. They were mainly Protestants who had already been converted in China where foreign Christian missionaries (who had first come in mass in

17040-547: The time, "In the prevailing hot weather our rooms are just like ovens. There is no escape because there isn't any artificial or natural shade except for a few scattered trees in inconvenient places." Like the other temporary detention centers, the Merced Assembly Center was administered by the Wartime Civil Control Administration . There were limited efforts at self-government, with both appointed and elected representatives to advise camp authorities. However,

17182-573: The tongs, due to the high male-to-female ratio among the early immigrants. The tongs would kidnap or purchase females (including babies) from China and smuggle them over the Pacific Ocean to work in brothels and similar establishments. There were constant internecine battles over territory, profits, and women in feuds known as the tong wars , which began in the 1850s and lasted until the 1920s, notably in San Francisco, Cleveland , and Los Angeles . The Chinese moved to California in large numbers during

17324-427: The truth of what these civilians were going through, which could ultimately help them. Despite her beliefs, captions of the images aligned with government language. It is believed that she did this to satisfy the federal government and the idea that this event in history was to protect Japanese civilians. She thought that the words would be censored as were her images. During this time, another photographer, Ansel Adams ,

17466-696: The turn of the 20th century. Also Chinese farmers contributed to the development of the San Gabriel Valley of the Los Angeles area, followed by other Asian nationalities like the Japanese and Indians . A small number of Chinese fought during the American Civil War . Of the approximately 200 Chinese people in the eastern United States at the time, 58 are known to have fought in the Civil War, many of them in

17608-456: The unknown duration of time of being away, most people lost leases and had to get rid of their homes and businesses. Few had the opportunity to store their belongings safely for recovery post liberation. This forced relocation process was documented by Dorothea Lange , an American photographer hired by the government to show how well the Japanese internees were being treated in the camps. While she

17750-452: The whole West Coast of the United States , from Canada to Mexico . With entire fleets of small boats ( sampans ; 舢舨), the Chinese fishermen caught herring , soles , smelts , cod , sturgeon , and shark . To catch larger fish like barracudas , they used Chinese junks , which were built in large numbers on the American west coast. The catch included crabs , clams , abalone , salmon , and seaweed —all of which, including shark, formed

17892-416: The —er—latrines. There is absolutely no privacy or sanitation—10 seats lined up (hard, fresh-sawed, un-sandpapered wood) and it flushes automatically about every 15 minutes." The barracks did not have kitchens and meals were served in a central mess hall, staffed by Japanese American cooks incarcerated at the detention center. The food was of poor quality, unfamiliar and unappetizing to Japanese Americans, and

18034-507: Was commonplace at the time. Crocker overcame shortages of manpower and money by hiring Chinese immigrants to do much of the back-breaking and dangerous labor. He drove the workers to the point of exhaustion, in the process setting records for laying track and finishing the project seven years ahead of the government's deadline. The Central Pacific track was constructed primarily by Chinese immigrants. Even though at first they were thought to be too weak or fragile to do this type of work, after

18176-636: Was complicated by a decision of the California Supreme Court , which decided, in the case The People of the State of California v. George W. Hall in 1854 that the Chinese were not allowed to testify as witnesses before the court in California against white citizens, including those accused of murder. The decision was largely based upon the prevailing opinion that the Chinese were: ... a race of people whom nature has marked as inferior, and who are incapable of progress or intellectual development beyond

18318-476: Was enacted, it allowed federal courts to enforce the orders from Executive Order 9066. Many Japanese Americans were not aware they would be confined, in some cases, for almost four years. The evacuees were not allowed to take a lot of their belongings with them, with only one duffel bag and two suitcases leaving the rest to be sold or stored. Due to everything happening so fast, everything was being sold at unfair prices and people were taking advantage of any items that

18460-484: Was exacerbated by the harsh working conditions and the traditional female responsibility of looking after the children and extended family back in China. The only women who did go to America were usually the wives of merchants. Other factors were cultural in nature, such as having bound feet and not leaving the home. Another important consideration was that most Chinese men were worried that by bringing their wives and raising families in America they too would be subjected to

18602-459: Was hesitant to place the Memorial, but once the space was granted, there was fundraising which led to the Memorial being open to the public in 2010. The memorial consists of the names of those incarcerated at the assembly center, along with a statue of families waiting with their luggage in front of the wall and a reflection pool behind it. There are several additional plaques with more information about

18744-483: Was hired to do this job, 97% of her images were censored by the government and not seen until many years later. The existence of the images to the public today is mainly due to their transmission into the National Archives and their presence in the traveling exhibition, Executive Order 9066, by Richard Conrad, Lange’s assistant, and his wife. In order to justify the perception that the government wanted to show, Lange

18886-580: Was in the Pacific Northwest from February 1942 through February 1944, and was available for mobile defense through at least February 1943. The 35th Infantry Division (35th ID) was similarly available in California from December 1941 through March 1943. The 3rd Infantry Division was also available from December 1941 through August 1942. Several regimental combat teams , primarily regiments detached from divisions being "triangularized" (reducing from four infantry regiments to three), were also available to

19028-413: Was issued, some Japanese-Americans fled to Mexico to escape detention camps. The Mexican government did not surrender any of their Japanese-American refugees to the United States. Following the bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, fear spread regarding national security. In the state of California, the major worry was along the West Coast. On February 19, 1942, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed

19170-472: Was mostly borrowed from relatives, district associations or commercial lenders. In addition, American employers of Chinese laborers sent hiring agencies to China to pay for the Pacific voyage of those who were unable to borrow money. This " credit-ticket system " meant that the money advanced by the agencies to cover the cost of the passage was to be paid back by wages earned by the laborers later during their time in

19312-482: Was placed in 1982 to honor the history behind the assembly centers. This marker, located at the former location at the Merced County Fairgrounds, is marker number 934, one of ten historical markers that are placed to honor other temporary detention centers and those who were forcibly removed to these centers. The Merced Assembly Center Memorial is located at the Merced County Fairgrounds. The 2008 Fair Board

19454-809: Was put in to send them to camps close to their homes. The first order went out on March 24, 1942 for 55 families closest to the attack on Pearl Harbor, who would eventually be sent to Manzanar and Minidoka internment camps. Those forcibly relocated to Merced came from mostly rural farming communities, including 1,600 people from Colusa County and Yolo County . Around 1,400 came from nearby regions of Modesto , Merced, and Turlock . 1,000 more came from northern coastal towns. Many owned land and while most were forced to sell or lost their property, but evacuees from Cortez , Cressey , and Livingston were part of collective farming organizations that ensured that they could keep their farms and homes. Amidst this chaotic process, civilians experienced anxiousness and excitement at

19596-570: Was removed from WDC command. In September 1943 Fourth Army and Second Air Force were also separated from the WDC. On 14 February 1942, Lieutenant General John L. DeWitt , commander of the Western Defense Command, sent a memorandum to Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson recommending that "Japanese and other subversive elements" be removed from the West Coast region. This led President Franklin D. Roosevelt to issue Executive Order 9066 on 19 February, which gave U.S. military commanders

19738-610: Was taking photographs of the Manzanar Internment Camp under his own direction. While Lange’s images were being censored, she urged him to release the truth through his photographs and create change. Adams declined to do this and only showed a “make the best of it” approach through his project. Her images challenged the ideas that were being pushed that the Japanese were traitors. She showed their common experience through her specialty, portraits, as well as through landscape and close up shots, like of piles of luggage. Security at

19880-465: Was told not to make sure barbed wire, watchtowers, and armed soldiers were not depicted in any of the images. To enforce this, she was constantly tracked and followed by members of the WRA . In addition, she was always trying to be caught in breeches of agreement by U.S Army Major Beasley who was never successful. Lange did not agree with the internment of Japanese people. By taking on this job, she hoped to show

20022-623: Was used for the reclamation of the extensive valleys of the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta. During the 1870s, thousands of Chinese laborers played an indispensable role in the construction of a vast network of earthen levees in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta in California. These levees opened up thousands of acres of highly fertile marshlands for agricultural production. Chinese workers were used to construct hundreds of miles of levees throughout

20164-509: Was very little space available for recreation. Sanitation in the detention center was poor. The barracks were poorly constructed, with no indoor plumbing and inadequate communal bathrooms and showers that lacked partitions. Ruth Ihara, who was incarcerated at the Merced Assembly Center, described the conditions she encountered in a letter: "When we first saw our living quarters we were so sick we couldn't, eat, walk, or talk. We couldn't even cry till later." She continued, "... but gee—you should see

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