Japanese Internment Memorial

Suzzette Medina
MCOM 100W- Tu/ Th 10:30 a.m.
Japanese Internment Camp
Word Count: 685

The Japanese Internment Memorial located in San Jose was a very impressive collection of art and history that greatly relived the feelings and struggles of the detainees during their years of internment. It is a bit unsettling to know that the entire Japanese population here in California was removed from their homes and forcibly placed into different camps throughout their years in captivity. The two camps called Manzanar and Tule Lake are just a driving distance away from San Jose, and create an eerie sense of closeness and direct connection to home here. San Jose State actually served as a location where the Japanese population could register for these interment camps; specifically Yoshihiro Hall was the prime location of these registrations. The anti-Japanese movement clearly hit home, and affected everyone in majorly the west coast after Pearl Harbor, approximately 110,000 people to be exact.
One of the most compelling vignettes that immediately caught my attention and also sent chills down my spine was the barbed wire that circled around the memorial, hovering above the various other scenes of life during the time. The wire so predominantly takes over the upper portion of the artwork and actually serves to instill the same fear and hostility of the situation to the viewers. The barbed wire provided a very threatening quality to the memorial and created a feeling of being trapped and isolated from the rest of the world. Especially because this particular element also wrapped around the artwork, like it would an internment camp, is really hit home when looking and observing the overall effect of the piece. There was also a paper airplane that was folded and flying right along side of the barbed wire. Imagine the small children that were playing around and enjoying themselves during such trying times. Seeing a playful symbol like a paper airplane right along side a hostile symbol like barbed wire was a very powerful decision of Ruth Asawa, and greatly helped the viewers understand life inside the internment camps.
Also, going along with the barbed wire I also focused on the large tower that overtook the attention on one side of the memorial. The army personnel were climbing or already located at the top of this enormous tower, armed and ready to shoot the population for whatever they seemed legitimate. This was also a very moving scene because of the plain threatening and dangerous nature of the tower. One would think the country was at war right in that very camp, with armed soldier aiming to assassinate the enemy.
Another vignette I paid close attention to was the scene of the family sadly having to burn their possessions prior to their imprisonment outside of their home. Their need to destroy any additional evidence of their ancestry was a very sad scene to see. The two older men were burning what appeared to be a vase of some sort, a sword, and a child’s small doll. The poor little girl was crying and trying to rush and grab her toy while her parents were holding her back. Her arms were extended out to the fire with all force. It was very upsetting to imagine the desperation and sadness of the family. Also, the mother had her hands over her faces, she was probably sobbing due to the unfortunate situation as well. This scene in particular was very upsetting because artifacts of ones ancestry should be treasured, valued, and passed onto future generations. It is a shame that so many beautiful pieces of art and history had to be destroyed because of the internment camps.
Overall the field trip to the memorial was very enlightening and a bit saddening at the same time. California defiantly has a dark past with regards to the Japanese interment camps, and San Jose State University is not excluded from this. The country panicked after Pearl Harbor and acted hysterically and without merit. It is unfortunate this imprisonment occurred, as so many lives, memories, and bits of history were lost in the process.