Japanese internees awaiting deportation
Photograph
Image
Video
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Activities
LOOK
Look closely at this photograph and complete the following sentences:
- I see… [describe what you see in the photograph]
- I think… [describe what you think is happening in the photograph]
- I wonder… [describe what you wonder about the people in the photograph]
THINK
Take the perspective of a Japanese Canadian who was deported to Japan. How do you think this would have affected their sense of identity? How do you think they would have felt about Japan? About Canada?
DO
Look at this photograph and read the Historical Context provided. Do some external research on the postwar immigration boom in Canada. Compare the deportation of Japanese Canadians to this influx of new Canadians.
Details
Date 1946
Materials - Photograph
Historical Context
Choose one of the three levels below to match your needs.
- Japan attacked the United States in 1941. As a result, the Canadian government ordered more than 21,000 Japanese Canadians to move into improvised camps away from the West Coast.
- After the war, the government demanded that Japanese Canadians either settle east of the Rockies (away from the West Coast) or be deported to Japan.
- This photograph shows a group of Japanese Canadians who had been relocated during the war. They are waiting for a train that will take them to a ship bound for Japan.
Japan attacked the United States in 1941. As a result, the Canadian government ordered more than 21,000 Japanese Canadians to move away from the West Coast.
In 1942, the War Measures Act was invoked to order more than 21,000 Canadians of Japanese origin, 75% of whom had Canadian nationality, to move a minimum of 160 kilometres away from the West Coast.
The majority had to abandon homes, businesses and jobs to settle in improvised camps. Their assets were seized and sold by the government.
Towards the end of the war, the government demanded that Japanese Canadians either settle east of the Rockies or sign documents accepting deportation to Japan after the conflict.
Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, in December 1941, transformed the lives of Japanese Canadians.
In March 1941, the Canadian government demanded that all Canadians of Japanese origin, age 16 or older, register with the RCMP. Each received a registration card (with photograph and fingerprints), which they were required to carry at all times.
In 1942, the War Measures Act was invoked to order more than 21,000 Canadians of Japanese origin, 75% of whom had Canadian nationality, to move a minimum 160 kilometres away from the West Coast.
The majority had to abandon homes, businesses and jobs to settle in improvised camps. Their assets were seized and sold.
Towards the end of the war, the government demanded that Japanese Canadians either settle east of the Rockies or sign documents accepting their “repatriation” to Japan after the conflict. Around 4,000 people — one-half of whom were born in Canada — left for Japan in 1946.
This photograph shows a group of Japanese Canadians who had been forcibly relocated during the war. They are waiting for a train that will take them to a ship bound for Japan.
- Japan attacked the United States in 1941. As a result, the Canadian government ordered more than 21,000 Japanese Canadians to move into improvised camps away from the West Coast.
- After the war, the government demanded that Japanese Canadians either settle east of the Rockies (away from the West Coast) or be deported to Japan.
- This photograph shows a group of Japanese Canadians who had been relocated during the war. They are waiting for a train that will take them to a ship bound for Japan.
Japan attacked the United States in 1941. As a result, the Canadian government ordered more than 21,000 Japanese Canadians to move away from the West Coast.
In 1942, the War Measures Act was invoked to order more than 21,000 Canadians of Japanese origin, 75% of whom had Canadian nationality, to move a minimum of 160 kilometres away from the West Coast.
The majority had to abandon homes, businesses and jobs to settle in improvised camps. Their assets were seized and sold by the government.
Towards the end of the war, the government demanded that Japanese Canadians either settle east of the Rockies or sign documents accepting deportation to Japan after the conflict.
Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, in December 1941, transformed the lives of Japanese Canadians.
In March 1941, the Canadian government demanded that all Canadians of Japanese origin, age 16 or older, register with the RCMP. Each received a registration card (with photograph and fingerprints), which they were required to carry at all times.
In 1942, the War Measures Act was invoked to order more than 21,000 Canadians of Japanese origin, 75% of whom had Canadian nationality, to move a minimum 160 kilometres away from the West Coast.
The majority had to abandon homes, businesses and jobs to settle in improvised camps. Their assets were seized and sold.
Towards the end of the war, the government demanded that Japanese Canadians either settle east of the Rockies or sign documents accepting their “repatriation” to Japan after the conflict. Around 4,000 people — one-half of whom were born in Canada — left for Japan in 1946.
This photograph shows a group of Japanese Canadians who had been forcibly relocated during the war. They are waiting for a train that will take them to a ship bound for Japan.
Summary
- Japan attacked the United States in 1941. As a result, the Canadian government ordered more than 21,000 Japanese Canadians to move into improvised camps away from the West Coast.
- After the war, the government demanded that Japanese Canadians either settle east of the Rockies (away from the West Coast) or be deported to Japan.
- This photograph shows a group of Japanese Canadians who had been relocated during the war. They are waiting for a train that will take them to a ship bound for Japan.
Essential
Japan attacked the United States in 1941. As a result, the Canadian government ordered more than 21,000 Japanese Canadians to move away from the West Coast.
In 1942, the War Measures Act was invoked to order more than 21,000 Canadians of Japanese origin, 75% of whom had Canadian nationality, to move a minimum of 160 kilometres away from the West Coast.
The majority had to abandon homes, businesses and jobs to settle in improvised camps. Their assets were seized and sold by the government.
Towards the end of the war, the government demanded that Japanese Canadians either settle east of the Rockies or sign documents accepting deportation to Japan after the conflict.
In-Depth
Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, in December 1941, transformed the lives of Japanese Canadians.
In March 1941, the Canadian government demanded that all Canadians of Japanese origin, age 16 or older, register with the RCMP. Each received a registration card (with photograph and fingerprints), which they were required to carry at all times.
In 1942, the War Measures Act was invoked to order more than 21,000 Canadians of Japanese origin, 75% of whom had Canadian nationality, to move a minimum 160 kilometres away from the West Coast.
The majority had to abandon homes, businesses and jobs to settle in improvised camps. Their assets were seized and sold.
Towards the end of the war, the government demanded that Japanese Canadians either settle east of the Rockies or sign documents accepting their “repatriation” to Japan after the conflict. Around 4,000 people — one-half of whom were born in Canada — left for Japan in 1946.
This photograph shows a group of Japanese Canadians who had been forcibly relocated during the war. They are waiting for a train that will take them to a ship bound for Japan.