Source 1: Global News article titled “‘A real hero’: City of Surrey honours Japanese-Canadian veteran Zennosuke Inouye” Link: https://globalnews.ca/news/8878389/zennosuke-inouye-surrey-park/.
Notes: Inouye arrived in Canada in 1900 from Japan. He initially volunteered to fight in World War I in Vancouver but ended up enlisting in Calgary after getting rejected in British Columbia due to his race. There was a lot of anti-Asian sentiment in Canada during this time. After fighting and getting wounded on Vimy Ridge / the Somme, he bought 32 hectares of land through the Soldier Settlement Act. He started a farm with his wife, Hatsuno Morikawa, a Japanese woman, and served as president of the Surrey Berry Growers Cooperative Association, an association …show more content…
However, due to the War Measures Act of 1942, he was forcibly relocated and had his land revoked and sold, along with many other Japanese Canadians. Japanese Canadians were also forced into internment camps. His wife and their daughters were relocated to Hastings Park, B.C., while their sons were sent to Vernon, B.C., to perform work. Though he was a veteran, his land was sold under the Veteran’s Land Act. He remained resilient throughout this all, writing a whopping eighty letters to officials like his commanding officer, the MP, and the then-Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie in demand of his land back. In 1949, seven years later, he finally got his property returned. He is the only Japanese Canadian to have his property back since the internment. Such policies strained the Canadian government’s relationship with Japanese Canadians, as many innocent Japanese were forced to give up their land for veterans …show more content…
After arriving in British Columbia in 1900, he got by by working a handful of jobs. He enlisted in Calgary in the "Canadian Over-Seas Expeditionary Force" in 1916. The following year, he was wounded in France, and in 1919, he left the military. That same year, he obtained 80 acres of land through a soldier settlement. In 1920, the year after, he married Hatsuno Morikawa. They had five children: Arthur, Tom, Robert, Mary, and Beverley. The Inouyes started a farm located at 324 Sandell Road in Surrey, also known as Strawberry Hill. There, he ran the Surrey Berry Growers' Cooperative Association. He had a bit of competition from fellow Japanese farmers. Under the internment, Japanese Canadians were prohibited from British Columbia’s coastal areas and were moved several miles inland. Those who protested the internment were threatened with deportation, and around 4000 were successfully exiled to Japan. The Canadian government has set up eight internment camps in remote areas of British Columbia. Many of these camps were under harsh conditions, such as extreme temperatures. His status as a veteran did not exempt him from being removed from his property or having his assets sold. Despite the nature of the problem, his letters were written respectfully and cordially, and he did not stop or lose hope. He was willing to be compensated financially if his land could not be returned to
Notes: Inouye arrived in Canada in 1900 from Japan. He initially volunteered to fight in World War I in Vancouver but ended up enlisting in Calgary after getting rejected in British Columbia due to his race. There was a lot of anti-Asian sentiment in Canada during this time. After fighting and getting wounded on Vimy Ridge / the Somme, he bought 32 hectares of land through the Soldier Settlement Act. He started a farm with his wife, Hatsuno Morikawa, a Japanese woman, and served as president of the Surrey Berry Growers Cooperative Association, an association …show more content…
However, due to the War Measures Act of 1942, he was forcibly relocated and had his land revoked and sold, along with many other Japanese Canadians. Japanese Canadians were also forced into internment camps. His wife and their daughters were relocated to Hastings Park, B.C., while their sons were sent to Vernon, B.C., to perform work. Though he was a veteran, his land was sold under the Veteran’s Land Act. He remained resilient throughout this all, writing a whopping eighty letters to officials like his commanding officer, the MP, and the then-Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie in demand of his land back. In 1949, seven years later, he finally got his property returned. He is the only Japanese Canadian to have his property back since the internment. Such policies strained the Canadian government’s relationship with Japanese Canadians, as many innocent Japanese were forced to give up their land for veterans …show more content…
After arriving in British Columbia in 1900, he got by by working a handful of jobs. He enlisted in Calgary in the "Canadian Over-Seas Expeditionary Force" in 1916. The following year, he was wounded in France, and in 1919, he left the military. That same year, he obtained 80 acres of land through a soldier settlement. In 1920, the year after, he married Hatsuno Morikawa. They had five children: Arthur, Tom, Robert, Mary, and Beverley. The Inouyes started a farm located at 324 Sandell Road in Surrey, also known as Strawberry Hill. There, he ran the Surrey Berry Growers' Cooperative Association. He had a bit of competition from fellow Japanese farmers. Under the internment, Japanese Canadians were prohibited from British Columbia’s coastal areas and were moved several miles inland. Those who protested the internment were threatened with deportation, and around 4000 were successfully exiled to Japan. The Canadian government has set up eight internment camps in remote areas of British Columbia. Many of these camps were under harsh conditions, such as extreme temperatures. His status as a veteran did not exempt him from being removed from his property or having his assets sold. Despite the nature of the problem, his letters were written respectfully and cordially, and he did not stop or lose hope. He was willing to be compensated financially if his land could not be returned to