Imagine that you are a person in one of the following groups during WW2:
* Tuskegee Airmen.
* 442nd Regimental Combat Team.
* Navajo Code Talkers.
* A woman working on the home front.
* An individual in an internment camp.
* A soldier involved in any of the following battles: Midway, Iwo Jima, Okinawa, the Battle of the Bulge.
Assume your identity with as much accuracy as you can. In your blog, write a detailed letter to a friend or relative, in which you describe your day to day life, important events, hopes, fears, etc.
Make sure you choose a specific date and location for your letter. Try to make it as historically accurate as possible. Your letter should be approximately 750 words for the purposes of this writing assignment. Your letter should be based on historical research. Following your letter, please list the resources that were helpful for you.
To whomever finds this letter,
I want everyone to know what happened to my family and me so I'm writing this letter for everyone to understand what we went through.
I am Susan Kato. I am a 17 year old half Japanese, half Caucasian girl. I used to live with my Mother, Father, and baby sister, who was only 13, in a nice little house a few blocks away from my school. I had many friends and for the most part I had a really good life until December 7, 1941.
On that day Pearl Harbor was attacked by Japanese planes and many people were killed. People all over America were worried there would be another attack or that a war would start. My parents knew that I was scared so they assured that everything would be fine. I knew they were lying.
On February 19, 1942 signed Executive Order 9066, which ultimately created internment camps for everyone who was from the Japanese decent. 120,000 U.S citizens were removed from their homes and placed in internment camps. The government was afraid that any person with Japanese parts was a spy for the Japanese so the internment camps were justified.
Manzanar was an internment camp in California that my sister and I were sent to while my parents were taken to another place. I was terrified my sister and I would never see our parents again. I didn't understand why the government thought I could be a spy or how my sister could be a spy. My parents had never done anything wrong either. Nothing was making any sense, we were good people, we would never try to hurt our country.
My sister and I barely saw each other during the day. I was terrified for her because I knew that I was scared being here and I was the one who was always brave. I couldn't even begin to imagine how she felt. Whenever I saw her I made sure to tell her I loved her and that everything would be over soon. I tried m hardest to keep her from being afraid even though I knew it wasn't really working. I was still proud of her for staying strong.
The more days, weeks, and months that went by the sicker the people around me were getting. People where dying and it made me worry more and more. I hated the sight of seeing sick people because I knew that they would soon be dead. I stayed strong and took care of myself. I tried to take care of my sister a well but she wasn't as strong as me.
My sister started becoming sick. As the days past she got sicker and sicker. After a week went by she looked like all the other people did before they died so that night instead of getting food at dinner I stayed with her. Tears ran down my face and she took her final breaths.
After my sister was gone I wanted to give up. I lost all faith in myself and started feeling like I wasn't the strong person I thought I was until I saw a little girl reunited with her mother. The tears of joy that ran down their faces gave me hope that I'd too see my parents again. I kept my head up and carried on.
In 1943, all of the people here, men and women, over 17 were given a kind of test. It was used to test our loyalty to America. Males were asked if they were willing to serve in the in the U.S military while females like me we asked "Are you willing to volunteer for the Army Nurse Corps or Women's Army Corp?" We were all also asked "Will you swear unqualified allegiance to the United States of America and faithfully defend the United States from any or all attack by foreign or domestic forces and forswear any form of allegiance or obedience to the Japanese emperor, to any other foreign government, power or organization?"
I must have answered the questions correctly because they just sent me back to my bunk. I kept living in the camp and I tried to stay positive even though some days I didn't feel like going on until one day I was able to go home.
In December 1944 Public Proclamation number 21, which became effective in January 1945, allowed internees to return to their homes. I was so excited but a little worried at the same time. I really wanted to see my parents but I was worried they wouldn't be home or maybe even dead but instead of thinking of the worst I thought positive.
When I got back to my house I could hear my mom crying from outside. I ran in and started yelling "Mom! Mom! Where are you?!" She ran out of the kitchen and my dad ran after her. I hugged them both and we all cried with joy together. After a few minutes of being reunited and realizing we were finally back together they asked about my little sister. I told them what had happened and I told them she was in a better place now.
From, Susan Kato
