Thesis: After reading Farewell to Manzanar by Jeanne Wakatsuki-Houston, it has been revealed that the divided society of Canada and the internment camp Manzanar are similar and disparate in numerous ways. Both Canada and Manzanar have comparable experiences with the internment of citizens. During both World Wars, internment camps were not an unfamiliar subject, in fact, many governments issued them. In both countries, citizens were forced from their homes into these camps by a law or order the government issued. In the United States, the President issued Executive Order 9066, which allowed the military to take action and intern populations of people. After this order was passed, Jeanne Wakatsuki was told by her mother that they were leaving
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The population of people interned in each country was immense, but in the United States, they interned only one main population of people, Japanese Americans. In Farewell to Manzanar, Jeanne states “There was a lot of talk about internment, or moving inland, or something like that in store for all Japanese Americans” (Wakatsuki-Houston 15). However, in Canada, they interned all citizens that were branded as “enemy aliens”. This included Germans, Austro-Hungarians, and Ukrainians, all citizens who were of enemy country ethnicity. The United States only heard of interning one population of people, but in Canada, there were three populations of people affected by internment. In addition to the different populations of people interned, there was also a distinction between the treatment of citizens who had been sent to the camps. After citizens were released from internment camps in Canada, it took about nine decades for those affected to be granted redress. Citizens that had been interned fought for redress for almost a century, as stated from the Canadian War Museum, “Since 2005, negotiations have taken place between members of the Ukrainian-Canadian community and the government over issues of redress” (Canadian War Museum). About four decades after the last internment camp closed in the United States, the government issued redress to those who were affected by the internment camps. Canadians affected by their internment from World War I were fighting for redress long after those in Manzanar and other WWII United States camps were given an apology. The treatment of interned citizens by the government was different in Canada due to the amount of time citizens had to wait for this redress. The United States and Canada may have treated their citizens in disparate ways, but internment was an issue that divided both of these
The population of people interned in each country was immense, but in the United States, they interned only one main population of people, Japanese Americans. In Farewell to Manzanar, Jeanne states “There was a lot of talk about internment, or moving inland, or something like that in store for all Japanese Americans” (Wakatsuki-Houston 15). However, in Canada, they interned all citizens that were branded as “enemy aliens”. This included Germans, Austro-Hungarians, and Ukrainians, all citizens who were of enemy country ethnicity. The United States only heard of interning one population of people, but in Canada, there were three populations of people affected by internment. In addition to the different populations of people interned, there was also a distinction between the treatment of citizens who had been sent to the camps. After citizens were released from internment camps in Canada, it took about nine decades for those affected to be granted redress. Citizens that had been interned fought for redress for almost a century, as stated from the Canadian War Museum, “Since 2005, negotiations have taken place between members of the Ukrainian-Canadian community and the government over issues of redress” (Canadian War Museum). About four decades after the last internment camp closed in the United States, the government issued redress to those who were affected by the internment camps. Canadians affected by their internment from World War I were fighting for redress long after those in Manzanar and other WWII United States camps were given an apology. The treatment of interned citizens by the government was different in Canada due to the amount of time citizens had to wait for this redress. The United States and Canada may have treated their citizens in disparate ways, but internment was an issue that divided both of these