Relocation Center Newspapers Describe Japanese American Internment in World War II

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Relocation Center Newspapers Describe Japanese American Internment in World War II

By Rebecca K. Sharp

Eddie Sato drew political cartoons for the Minidoka Irrigator. This one depicts Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini, and Emperor Hirohito. (Records of the War Relocation Authority, RG 210)

While interned at the Minidoka Relocation Center in Idaho, newspaper staff reporter Kimi Tambara wrote an open letter in the Minidoka Irrigator to her friend Jan. She recalled Christmas 1941, just weeks after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

. . . another thought . . . coincident with the crackling noise of the firecrackers popping around Lower Chinatown, a low voice 'You damn Jap-you! By gosh, the government should put every damn one of you in concentration camps'—I remember the cold shiver that ran up my spine, transforming the humid, warm air of a July night into the bitter cold of winter. You and I, Jan, tried to laugh it off, because somehow, it seemed ridiculous. The freedom of life and liberty was so much a part of us that the idea of confinement had never once occurred to us.

Tambara also described her feelings about internment:

[T]his life behind a fence is not a pleasant one, but nothing can be pleasant in these times, could it? I can now understand how an eagle feels when his wings are clipped and caged. Beyond the bars of his prison lies the wide expanse of the boundless skies, flocked with soft clouds, the wide, wide, fields of brush and woods—limitless space for the pursuit of Life itself. 1

The Japanese American 2 internees published newspapers that provided general information about their community as well as specific individuals. Publication frequency varied from newspaper to newspaper. Some newspapers were published once a week, while others were published biweekly, triweekly, or even six times a week. The publication frequency of a particular newspaper often changed over time.

Two and a half months after the attack on Pearl Harbor, on February 19, 1942, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, which gave the secretary of war and military commanders the authority "to prescribe military areas in such places and of such extent as he or the appropriate Military Commander may determine, from which any or all persons may be excluded." 3 This order gave the U.S. Army the authority to forcibly evacuate the Japanese American population from the designated military areas along the Pacific Coast between the latter part of March and May 1942. 4

The Japanese Americans could bring only what they could carry—clothes, plates, cups, utensils, linens, toiletry items, and mementos—to the designated collection points. With less than a week to sell their businesses, houses, and valuables, they had no time to get things in order. The evacuees were moved to 16 assembly centers. Many of the assembly centers were located on fairgrounds and racetracks, where the living conditions were overcrowded and unsanitary.

Beginning in May 1942, the War Department transferred the Japanese Americans to 10 War Relocation Authority (WRA) relocation centers: Central Utah (Utah), Colorado River (Arizona), Gila River (Arizona), Granada (Colorado), Heart Mountain (Wyoming), Jerome (Arkansas), Manzanar (California), Minidoka (Idaho), Rohwer (Arkansas), and Tule Lake (California). Under guard and surrounded by barbed-wire fences, the internees lived in cramped barracks sharing communal toilets, showers, and mess halls. Privacy was nonexistent. The relocation centers mirrored small communities with churches, hospitals, libraries, post offices, and schools. The WRA allowed some internees to leave for temporary seasonal agricultural work. Others attended college, served in the military, or obtained outside employment. Some of the internees remained in the WRA relocation centers until they closed in 1946.

Relocation Center Newspapers

The newspapers served as a means for disseminating WRA rules, regulations, and surveys. The WRA initially banned the use of Japanese in the newspapers, but later issues sometimes included Japanese-language inserts. Newspaper articles cover a wide range of topics including daily activities, beauty tips, diet and nutrition, crime and law enforcement, education, hobbies, social activities, and sports. The newspapers reported on military service, outside employment opportunities, and vital statistics as well as rumors that were circulating throughout the relocation centers. The newspapers also described culture shock, a consequence of internment, forced assimilation, and a constant reminder how their lives had changed. Since the newspapers were censored, the staff avoided direct criticism of the federal government. 

The staff of the Heart Mountain Sentinel do double duty on Friday night and Saturday morning . . . folding and preparing their paper for distribution. (Records of the War Relocation Authority, RG 210)

Artwork, maps, photographs, and weather reports offer a glimpse at the relocation center environment. On occasion, the newspapers include the artwork, articles, letters, poems, and short stories submitted by internees or former internees who were attending colleges and universities, working outside the relocation center, or serving in the military. In addition to relocation center news, the newspapers also conveyed national and world news.

Vital Statistic

The newspapers published lists of births, marriages, and deaths in the relocation centers. The lists provide minimal information about the individuals. For example, the birth lists typically record the baby's sex, birth date, and the parents' names, and in some, but not all cases, the baby's name. The newspapers briefly announced engagements, marriages, and milestone wedding anniversaries as well as obituaries. Longer articles about a newborn may list the attending medical staff, while an article about a wedding may include the name of the presiding religious official.

The newspapers usually ran feature articles about the first birth, marriage, and death that occurred at the relocation center. Yuki Shiozawa and Taro Katayama were the first couple to wed at the Central Utah relocation center. The Topaz Times reported that several musical performances preceded the wedding, including Goro Suzuki's (the bride's cousin) rendition of the song "At Dawning." Protestant minister Rev. Joseph Tsukamoto officiated; Yuki's father, Tetsushiro Shiozawa, gave her away; and Taro's best man was his brother, Jerry Katayama. The article also describes the couple's wedding attire:

The bride, with a "Victory" pompadour hairdress, wore a wine-colored velveteen dress and accessories with 1 strand of pearls. She wore an orchid corsage rounded off with white bouvardias. The benedict [bridegroom]wore a navy blue tailored suit.

The article also puts the wedding in the context of internment:

Prior to evacuation the bride was a Civil Service stenographer in the Alameda County Charities Commission in Oakland. The bridegroom, formerly of Salt Lake City, is a graduate of the University of Utah, and was working on a San Francisco paper before the evacuation. He was also the editor of the Tanforan Totalizer [an assembly center newspaper]. They are "at home" in 36-12-A [relocation center barracks address] until Thursday. 6

Living Quarters

In addition to general articles about the barracks and community living, a small percentage of the articles show the creative ways in which individuals modified their living quarters. Yoshimatsu Mukai, an internee at the Rohwer relocation center in Arkansas, decorated the exterior of his barracks with wood carvings of a monkey and birds. The article describes Mukai's personality: "He is very modest about his work and laughingly replies, ‘One minute,' when asked how much time is required to make each animal." 7

The Heart Mountain Sentinel ran a series of articles that showed different barracks to give readers interior decorating ideas. These articles include sketches of the featured barracks, such as Mr. and Mrs. Bob Sato's "apartment":

When is a closet not a closet? We have been informed it was intended for a coal bin, but Mrs. Sato has cleverly converted her "closet" to a den or nook, with card table and chairs. The chairs are fashioned out of orange boxes, draped in stripped denim. The upper part of the den was made for storage space, covered with monks cloth, the same material used for her dressing table and closet which was built in one corner. Adding life to the otherwise drab monks cloth is a gay yellow, red, and blue bias tape trim on the hem of the drapes.

The den is made cozy with lights. For [the] lamp shade, Mrs. Sato used the white corrugated paper which came with the mail order wrappings.

An oval mirror adds to the modernistic touch of her spacious dressing table which was fashioned out of left-over celotex. Three shelves on each side, 18 inches deep, hold linens, clothing, shoes, etc. 8

Artwork

Despite the difficult living conditions, people continued to express themselves artistically. Comic strips and other works of art appear in most WRA relocation center newspapers. One example is the artwork of Eddie Sato, a staff artist for The Minidoka Irrigator. Sato, a talented political cartoonist, created a comic strip character that he considered calling Potato, but the newspaper decided to run a character-naming contest. Three articles about the contest provide information about Sato, the cartoon character, and the Minidoka community. The November 7, 1942, issue announced Yasuko Koyama's winning submission, Dokie. 9 Dokie first appears to be an ordinary comic strip character, but a closer look at the strips reveals that Sato captured the reality of internment. In May 1943, Sato left the Minidoka relocation center to serve in the military. Although he was no longer interned, the newspaper occasionally ran articles about him, including information about his winning art contest submissions and his return visit to Minidoka. 10 Eddie Sato is just one example of the numerous Japanese American internees who went to war for a country that had confined its loyal citizens behind barbed wire fences.

Availability of the Records

The publications created by the Japanese American internees, including church papers, newspapers, and school papers, are among the records of the relocation centers (entry 4b) in the Records of the War Relocation Authority (Record Group 210).

The National Archives does not have a complete set of relocation center newspapers. Denshō: The Japanese American Legacy Project digitized approximately 4,000 newspapers from the 10 WRA relocation centers. Researchers must register (registration is free) to obtain access to Denshō's "Camp Newspapers Collections" Digital Archive ( www.densho.org ). 11 The Bancroft Library's (University of California at Berkeley) "Japanese American Evacuation and Resettlement Records, 1930–1974," and the Library of Congress's "Japanese Camp Papers" (microfilm number 2022) may have additional newspaper issues.

Entry 4b records have been microfilmed and are available as Field Basic Documentation of the War Relocation Authority, 1942–1946 (Microfilm Publication C53). The records are arranged by relocation center; however, the microfilm roll list only records the first and last record that appears on each roll of microfilm. The staff of the National Archives created a finding aid that provides the titles and coverage dates of the church papers, newspapers, and school papers published by the Japanese American internees.

To receive a copy of this finding aid, contact the Archives I Reference Section (NWCT1R), 700 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20408-0001 (e-mail archives1reference@nara.gov). Microfilm Publication C53 is available at the National Archives Building in Washington, D.C., and at the National Archives regional archives in Laguna Niguel, California. For additional information about this microfilm publication, including a digital copy of the microfilm roll list, visit the online microfilm catalog through Order Online at www.archives.gov. The records can be difficult to use because there is no master name index. To locate articles about individuals, researchers need to read the WRA relocation center newspaper of interest.

Although this research can be time consuming, the WRA newspapers provide a contemporary description of the often difficult and desolate conditions of the relocation centers. The newspapers can also show how the Japanese Americans adapted to both the physical and psychological pressures of internment.

Reading Comprehension Questions

1. What does Eddie Sato’s role as a political cartoonist in the Minidoka Irrigator suggest about the importance of creative expression during internment?
a) It highlights that internment stifled all forms of creativity.
b) It demonstrates how humor was used to cope with difficult circumstances.
c) It shows that political cartoons were not taken seriously by the internees.
d) It indicates that creative expression was discouraged in the relocation centers.
Correct answer: b

2. How does Kimi Tambara’s description of her feelings during the internment reflect the broader emotional experiences of Japanese Americans at the time?
a) It suggests that all internees felt resentment and anger toward the government.
b) t implies that artistic expression helped alleviate all negative emotions
c) It shows that homesickness was rare among those interned.
d) It indicates that feelings of confinement were common among most internees.I.
Correct answer: d

3. What was the impact of Executive Order 9066 on the Japanese American population, as described in the passage?
a) It allowed Japanese Americans to freely move across the country without restrictions.
b) It authorized the U.S. Army to forcibly evacuate Japanese Americans from the Pacific Coast.
c) It provided financial compensation for those who were evacuated.
d) It resulted in the immediate closure of all Japanese businesses without notice.
Correct answer: b

4. What do the features of the newspapers published by Japanese American internees reveal about their community life during internment?
a) They indicate a lack of interest in community affairs and events.
b) They show that the internees were completely isolated from one another.
c) They reflect a vibrant community that sought to maintain connections and document their experiences.
d) They primarily focused on negative aspects of life in the relocation centers.
Correct answer: c

5. How did the WRA’s initial ban on Japanese language in the newspapers affect the expression of cultural identity among the internees?
a) It eliminated any opportunity for cultural expression within the newspapers.
b) It encouraged the use of English exclusively, leading to full assimilation.
c) It sparked a desire among the internees to reassert their cultural identity through other means.
d) It had no significant impact on their cultural identity.
Correct answer: c

8. What does the article imply about the significance of vital statistics published in the relocation center newspapers?
a) They were primarily for entertainment purposes and had no real importance.
b) They served to document the lives of individuals and maintain a sense of community amidst hardship.
c) They were rarely published and thus not significant to the internees.
d) They were only included to satisfy government regulations.
Correct answer: b

7. In what way does the artwork featured in the relocation center newspapers contribute to understanding the experiences of the internees?
a) It highlights the creativity and resilience of individuals despite their difficult circumstances/
b) ​​​​​​​It shows that artistic expression was not valued during internment.
c) It implies that all artistic endeavors were censored by the government.
d) It suggests that the internees were focused solely on survival rather than creativity.
Correct answer: a

8. How does the passage characterize the nature of the relationships among Japanese American internees during their time in the relocation centers?
a) The relationships were solely competitive and filled with animosity.
b) The passage suggests that the internees formed deep bonds and supported each other through shared experiences.
c) The relationships were superficial and lacked emotional depth.
d) The internees were entirely indifferent to each other's struggles.
Correct answer: b

Open-ended Questions

1. How did the Japanese American internees use the relocation center newspapers to maintain a sense of community and identity during their internment?
Suggested answer The Japanese American internees used the relocation center newspapers as a vital tool for maintaining community and identity during their internment. The newspapers served as a forum for sharing news, information, and personal stories, fostering a sense of connection among individuals who were forcibly separated from their homes and communities. By publishing articles on daily life, cultural events, and personal achievements, the newspapers helped preserve cultural traditions and create a sense of normalcy amidst the extraordinary circumstances of internment. The inclusion of artwork, poetry, and personal letters further enhanced the sense of community and provided a space for emotional expression.

2. What challenges did the Japanese American newspaper staff face in producing their publications, and how did they overcome these obstacles?
Suggested answer The Japanese American newspaper staff faced numerous challenges in producing their publications, including censorship by the War Relocation Authority (WRA), limited resources, and the emotional toll of internment. The initial ban on the use of Japanese in the newspapers was a significant hurdle, yet the staff found ways to include Japanese language inserts. Despite the difficult living conditions and lack of resources, the staff managed to publish regularly, demonstrating their commitment to providing information and fostering community. Their perseverance in the face of adversity showcased their resilience and determination to maintain a sense of normalcy and preserve their cultural heritage.

3. What aspects of life in the relocation centers are highlighted in the newspapers, and what can these details reveal about the experiences of the internees?
Suggested answer The relocation center newspapers highlighted various aspects of life in the camps, ranging from daily activities and community events to more sensitive issues such as culture shock and forced assimilation. The details provided in the newspapers offer valuable insights into the physical and psychological challenges faced by the internees. The descriptions of overcrowded and unsanitary living conditions, coupled with accounts of emotional distress, paint a picture of hardship and injustice. However, the newspapers also showcase the internees' resilience, creativity, and their efforts to maintain a sense of community and normalcy. The articles on weddings, births, and deaths highlight the continuity of life amidst the disruption caused by internment.

4. In what ways did the relocation center newspapers serve as a form of resistance or subtle protest against the internment?
Suggested answer While direct criticism of the government was avoided due to censorship, the relocation center newspapers served as a form of subtle resistance and protest against the internment. The very act of publishing newspapers, despite the difficult circumstances, demonstrated the internees' determination to maintain their independence and voice. The inclusion of artwork, personal stories, and accounts of daily life served to humanize the internees and counter the dehumanizing nature of the internment experience. By documenting their experiences and preserving their cultural heritage, the newspapers served as a form of historical record that challenged the government's narrative and ensured that the experiences of the Japanese Americans would be remembered.

5. How did the publication frequency of the relocation center newspapers reflect the changing circumstances and priorities of the internees over time?
Suggested answer The varying publication frequencies of the relocation center newspapers reflected the changing circumstances and priorities of the internees over time. Initially, the newspapers may have been published less frequently due to the initial chaos and challenges of resettlement. As the communities settled into a routine within the camps, the publication frequency may have increased, reflecting the growing need for information and community engagement. The inclusion of more diverse content such as artwork, personal stories, and cultural features likely also contributed to changes in publication frequency. Changes in publication frequency could also reflect broader events, such as the availability of staff or shifts in the internees’ access to resources and opportunities.

6. What challenges do researchers face in accessing and utilizing the records of the relocation center newspapers, and what resources are available to overcome these obstacles?
Suggested answer Researchers face several challenges in accessing and utilizing the records of the relocation center newspapers, primarily due to the incomplete nature of the collections and lack of comprehensive indexing. The absence of a master name index makes it difficult to locate articles about specific individuals, requiring researchers to manually review newspaper issues. However, resources such as the Densho Digital Archive, the Bancroft Library, and the Library of Congress offer digitized collections of these newspapers, making them more accessible to researchers. While accessing these resources may require registration or familiarity with online databases, they significantly enhance the ability to study this important historical period.