Japanese American Relocation Camps Essay

Words: 433
Pages: 2

Harsh conditions caused death and stress to many Japanese- Americans. The sites of the camps were in places in the western United States that included, Topaz in Utah, MInidoka in Idaho, Gila River and Poston in Arizona, Heart Mountain in Wyoming, Amache in Colorado, Rohwer and Jerome in Arkansas, and Tule Lake and Manzanar in California (“Japanese - Behind”). With the site of the camps at such alien and deserted locations, the location greatly impacted the conditions and experiences of the relocation camps. Before the arrival to the barbed wired and watch tower infested camps, the internees were not informed of the location of the camps (“When” and “Japanese - Behind”). Even when the Japanese- Americans knew so little about their upcoming …show more content…
The Japanese- Americans were being treated like prisoners for committing no crime- definitely no crime large enough to go to prison for about three or four years! Because of the semi-arid and arid conditions, the camps were often too hot or too cold (“Japanese- American”). Not to mention the fact that the conditions were so harsh that President Roosevelt admitted that the relocation camps were concentration camps (“Japanese - Behind”). Many americans were against Germany for discriminating against color, race, and religion, but wasn't the United States doing the same thing? In reality the country was being hypocritical for not realizing that they are in fact doing the exact same thing as Germany at the time. “Some Japanese Americans died in the camps due to inadequate medical care and the emotional stresses they encountered” (“Children”). The Japanese- Americans soon realized if they tried to escape or “allegedly resisting orders” the snipers would kill them (“ Children”). The Japanese- Americans went from worrying about everyday things such as taxes and school to worrying about if they would live to see the next